Learn about how bones in our hands work together to help us move and carry things!
Channel your inner scientist today!
Materials:
Craft foam sheet, straws, yarn, tape or glue (preferred), scissors, beads, markers, and sticks.
Time Estimated:
5-10 minutes
Directions:
Use a marker to trace your hand onto a blank foam sheet.
Then, use your scissors to cut out the shape.
Next, cut your straw into sections that represent the bones in your hand.
Glue the straws onto your foam hand, making sure to leave a bit of space in between!
While waiting for the glue to dry, cut five long pieces of yarn and tie a bead to the end of each piece.
Then, feed a string of yarn through each “finger.” Make sure that there is enough yarn to form a tail at the end of each finger!
Lastly, glue one stick behind each hand!
Think Like a Scientist:
How are bones able to move smoothly and freely? Why are joints so important?
How It Works:
In this activity, you were able to visualize how our hand bones work!
The bones in our hand can be grouped into three different categories: 1) the phalanges, 2) the metacarpal bones, and 3) the carpal bones.
The phalanges are typically referred to as our finger bones. Each of our fingers have three phalanges, except for our thumb. Our shortest digit (the thumb) only has two!
Metacarpal bones can be found in the palms of our hands! We have one for each of our fingers, meaning that there are five metacarpals in total!
Lastly, the carpal bones are located near our wrists. The carpal bones come in a set of eight and, unlike the other hand bones, are more irregularly shaped! These bones are what connect our hands to our arms!
Did you know that between each of these bones (or any two bones in the body!) is something called a joint? Without them, we wouldn’t be able to move our bodies! Joints are what allows our bones to glide together, having enough flexibility to move freely! They can either be really big, like the ones found in your legs and your shoulders, or really small, like the ones found in your hands!
Using the strings on your new hand model, try your best to figure out which bones need to move in order to make everyday hand movements such as giving someone a thumbs up or grabbing a cup of juice! Bonus points if you are able to figure out where the joints are located!
Looking for more fun at home STEM activities for your young scientist? Check out our workbook full of exciting science experiments and empowering activities!
