Every cell in your body needs oxygen to work , and breathing is how you get it. When you breathe in, air travels down your windpipe and into your two lungs , which are spongy organs inside your ribcage . Take a deep breath now and feel your chest grow bigger !
The air you breathe is a mixture of gases . The one your body wants is oxygen . Your cells use oxygen like a fire uses air, to turn food into energy . In return , your cells make a waste gas called carbon dioxide , which you need to get rid of by breathing out.
📷 Jayzlimno · CC BY-SA 4.0✨ You breathe in and out about 20,000 times every day — and you do it without even thinking !
Inside each lung are millions of tiny air sacs called alveoli . They are wrapped in tiny blood vessels . Oxygen from the air passes through their thin walls into your blood , and waste carbon dioxide passes back the other way to be breathed out. This swap happens with every single breath .
📷 Internet Archive Book Images · No restrictions🧩 Put the steps of breathing in the right order.
Carbon dioxide is breathed out ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Oxygen passes into the blood at the alveoli ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Air travels down the windpipe ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
You breathe air in through your nose or mouth ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
How does air get in and out? The hero is your diaphragm , a dome-shaped muscle just below your lungs . When it contracts and flattens , it makes more space , so air rushes in. When it relaxes back into a dome , it pushes air out. Put a hand on your tummy and feel it move as you breathe .
📷 Cruithne9 · CC BY-SA 4.0💡 When you have hiccups , your diaphragm is having little sudden jumps ! Slow , deep breaths can help calm it down .
🔗 Match each breathing part to its job.
Spongy organs that hold the air Muscle that pulls air in Tiny sacs where oxygen enters the blood Carries air down to the lungs
Spongy organs that hold the air Muscle that pulls air in Tiny sacs where oxygen enters the blood Carries air down to the lungs
Spongy organs that hold the air Muscle that pulls air in Tiny sacs where oxygen enters the blood Carries air down to the lungs
Spongy organs that hold the air Muscle that pulls air in Tiny sacs where oxygen enters the blood Carries air down to the lungs
When you exercise , your muscles need more oxygen , so you breathe faster and deeper . That is why you puff and pant after running — your body is grabbing extra oxygen and clearing out extra carbon dioxide as quickly as it can. It is a sign your lungs are doing a great job.
✨ If you laid out all the alveoli in one lung flat , they would cover the area of a tennis court — all folded up to fit inside your chest !
🗂️ Sort each gas into what happens to it during breathing.
Breathed IN (the body needs it) Breathed OUT (the body removes it)
Breathed IN (the body needs it) Breathed OUT (the body removes it)
Breathed IN (the body needs it) Breathed OUT (the body removes it)
Breathed IN (the body needs it) Breathed OUT (the body removes it)
You can look after your lungs by staying active , which keeps them strong , and by breathing fresh clean air. Coughing and sneezing are clever tricks your body uses to blast out dust and germs and keep your airways clear .
✍️ Fill in the breathing words.
Your cells need _____ to make energy and make waste _____ . The dome-shaped breathing muscle is the _____ .
oxygen carbon dioxide diaphragm alveoli windpipe
