Review by Kristen Bentley
A bit about the author: Kristen is a High school English teacher since 1994. Mother of two and professional writer with a Master’s degree in education. She loves to read, travel, watch baseball, and watch her children play sports, too.
My Busy Body
Children are fascinated with their bodies and “My Busy Body” from iStorybooks helps children learn about their amazing bodies. This story involves a little girl who is trying to go to sleep when she starts to hear voices. Those voices are her body parts that are arguing with each other about which body part is the best one. During the arguments, the girl learns what several of her body parts are responsible for doing on a daily basis.
Mediating the Argument between Her Body Parts
The girl learns that her ears help her listen and her eyes help her see. Her nose helps her smell and her mouth helps her talk. Her hands help her touch and her feet help her walk. The girl listens to the body parts, but then ends the argument by telling the parts they are all very important. The body parts realize that they are a team and there is no “I” in the word “team” so they agree to continue working together.
Teach Children about the Five Senses
“My Busy Body” is a perfect book to use when teaching children about the five senses. One of the best ways for children to memorize their five senses is by using one hand. Each finger represents one of the senses and each finger touches the spot of the sense. The five-senses hand begins by placing the thumb on the ear, the first finger on the eye, the middle finger on the nose, and the ring finger on the mouth. The little finger touches the chin. Children can easily remember sound, sight, smell, taste, and touch when they place their fingers in the right location.
Test the Five Senses with Blindfolded Activities
It can be very fun for children to test their five senses, too. When they have some of the senses dulled, with blindfolds, ear plugs, or nose plugs, children can see how their senses work. Some of the fun experiments involve blindfolding kids and letting them smell different fragrances, even scented candles. Children also love to taste different flavors, especially when they cannot see what they are tasting. It is also fun for kids to touch different textures when they are blindfolded, too. While blindfolded, children can also be asked to identify sounds. These little senses tests can be fun games for kids.
Age-Appropriate Images of the Body Bring the Lesson to Life
While young children should not be exposed to particular graphic images of body parts, they usually intrigued by models of the human body. Educational research shows that real pictures are better to use with children than cartoon pictures, especially when children are learning about science. There are school-age appropriate models and posters of the human body that can be used in schools.
Teach the Five Senses from the Inside Out
Just like adults, children are also fascinated with what body parts look like on the inside. When teaching lessons on the five senses, teachers can capture their students’ attention with pictures of the inside of body parts. Children can learn about the inner ear and the mechanical workings of the inside of the ear. Learning about the tongue and the taste buds is another topic that children can understand, too. The basic structure of the eye is interesting to children, too. The senses of touch and smell can also be broken down into language that young children can understand. Since children can relate a lesson on the five senses to their own lives, they will remember the lessons very well.
The Importance of the Feet: A Balancing Act
“My Busy Body” also discusses the importance of the feet and hands. Since the hands and feet rely on the sense of touch, teachers can include how the feet work with the sense of touch. Children can also learn how special their feet are with balancing lessons. Children can learn how sensitive their feet are by standing on different textures. They can also learn about the vestibular system and how their inner ears play a major role in balancing, too. With simple lessons about the inner workings of the body and how those systems work together, teachers can bring the lessons in “My Busy Body” to life.