Pupils in P5 at St John’s Primary, South Ayrshire, recently challenged Radio Lingua Schools to support them in a project on the human body. The class had been learning about the parts of the human body including the functions of bones, muscles, organs and the skin, and their class teacher wanted to reinforce their learning with a project which would involve various elements of media.

The first stage was to write a song: using GarageBand loops and a midi keyboard, the children created a rhythm and melody, and started to write the words to the song, working along with Radio Lingua Schools director Mark Pentleton. The pupils then spent a few days creating sponge versions of bodily organs. The class teacher wanted the pupils to understand how the parts of the body fit together, so we came up with an idea which would combine the song with a visual element involving time-lapse photography. The pupils were delighted with the result which exemplifies a real cross-curricular project.

Sing along to the Body Song with the lyrics below:

We’ve been learning about our bodies, all about our skeleton:
Bones and organs, flesh and muscles, let’s all sing our body song.

When you’re walking around or running a race
Your bones help you move all over the place.
You’d be very floppy all of the time
If you didn’t have a strong, straight spine.
Your ankle helps you walk, your wrist helps you write;
Your patella helps you kneel and your jaw helps you bite.
So without your bones you couldn’t do much,
And that’s all you need to know.

Every day of your life you are kept alive:
Without your organs you just couldn’t survive.
It’s complicated, so let us explain:
Your eyes send pictures to your brain.
Your heart pumps your blood, which makes you feel good.
Your intestines help you digest all of your food.
So without your organs you couldn’t do much,
And that’s all you need to know.

If you stretch or you jump, or even dance with your friend,
Your muscles help you move, they help you to bend.
You have 600 muscles in your body machine:
to smile you need to use seventeen.
Last but not least comes your skin,
Protecting everything and keeping everything in!
So your body’s made up of all these things,
And that’s all you need to know.

This animation was produced by pupils in P4N in St John’s Primary School in Ayr and looks at the octopus: its habitat, eating habitats and ability to camouflage itself. The children worked together to produce the script and developed the animation in a group of 4 in a one-day workshop with Radio Lingua Schools.

This animation was produced by pupils in P4N in St John’s Primary School in Ayr and looks specifically at arachnids. The children worked together to produce the script and developed the animation in a group of 4 in a one-day workshop with Radio Lingua Schools.

This animation was produced by pupils in P4N in St John’s Primary School in Ayr and looks specifically at worms. The children researched the topic and worked together to produce the script. They then developed the animation in a group of five in a one-day workshop with Radio Lingua Schools.