Rocket races around the yard with his kite. When he stops, his chest is thumping.
"Did my heart get louder?" he asks.
Raven grins. "What do you notice? Did it get faster, too?"
Nova circles the kite. "Your muscles were working hard," she says. "Think about what working muscles need."
Rocket thinks. "Oxygen! And blood brings it."
When you run and play, your muscles need more oxygen.
So your heart beats faster. It sends more oxygen-rich blood to your muscles.
When you rest again, your heart slows back down.
Your heart is a muscle too. Being active helps keep it strong.
Tomorrow your family will test how moving changes a pulse.
Scientists plan a fair test first. They change only one thing.
Here we change only what you do: rest, or move.
Everything else stays the same: same wrist, same 15 seconds, same counting.
| For a fair test... | True or false? |
|---|---|
| We count for 15 seconds both times. | ? |
| We count at the wrist both times. | ? |
| We count for 15 seconds once and 60 seconds the other time. | ? |
| We change only one thing: resting or moving. | ? |
A bar graph uses bars to compare numbers.
This one shows made-up practice numbers for a pretend scientist named Tess.
A taller bar means a bigger number.
| Made-up practice data for Tess | Beats in one minute | Bar |
|---|---|---|
| Resting | 80 | ######## |
| After 2 minutes of jumping jacks | 120 | ############ |
You planned like a real scientist! Tomorrow is Body Lab Day. Your family gets to collect pulse data.