Digestion is an amazing and complicated process that provides humans with the energy they need to survive. Lesson six in this series on the science of food uses sliced turkey and a meat tenderizer to demonstrate how enzymes help break down food so it can be absorbed into our bodies. Though not a comprehensive lesson, this simple activity can nicely supplement a teaching of the stomach's role in the digestive system.

Concepts

the digestive system, human body systems, digestion, enzymes, protein

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Additional Tags

digestive system, protein, enzyme, science

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Pros

• Activity clearly demonstrates digestive processes that occur inside the human body
• Provides student practice with making and recording observations

Cons

• Requires the teacher to provide explicit instruction about the different organs in the digestive system and their functions