Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet

Unit: Homeostasis

Topic: Homeostasis & Exercise

Do Now: During exercise muscle cells use a lot of ATP and therefore engage in several rounds of cellular
respiration.
1. Fill in the inputs and outputs of cellular respiration occurring in the muscle cell below during exercise
2. Write a prediction based on the question: How does your respiratory system help your body maintain
homeostasis while you exercise?

Learning Target: I can conduct an investigation to explain how my body maintains homeostasis when I
exercise.

Standards Performance:

NGSS Standard HS-LS1-3

Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.

Performance Objectives:
- Students will be able to predict how exercise affects muscle cells and the respiratory system by
completing the do now.
- Students will be able to explain how exercise leads to a response in the circulatory system by increasing
pulse rate by analyzing data collected from the investigation.
- Students will be able to make connections as to how exercise leads to the respiratory and circulatory
systems to work together to maintain homeostasis

Vocabulary:

Gas Exchange- the process by which oxygen moves from lungs into bloodstream, while carbon dioxide passes
from blood to lungs simultaneously.

Homeostasis- is the ability to maintain a constant and stable internal environment regardless of the external
environment.

Pulse Rate- is the measurement of number of heart beats per minute.

Material List:
Hand-out
Calculator

Safety and Disposal:

N/A
Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet
Development of the Lesson:
Timing What the Teacher Does
Beginning of Lesson
5 min Ask students to read the Learning Target
and Do Now. Instruct the class to answer
the question while teacher prepares
materials.
3 min Discuss the Do Now on cellular respiration
in muscles, and Gas Exchange in the
lungs.
Middle of Lesson
5 min Introduce the topic by discussing Pulse
Rate and explain the procedure for the
investigation.
20 min Instruct students to get into pairs. Lead the
activity and supervise students. Answer
any questions and provide support during
the experiment.
12 min Support students, by asking questions, in
analyzing the Data. Discuss how the
respiratory and circulatory systems work
together to maintain homeostasis.
End of Lesson
5 min Answer the exit ticket, ask one student to
write answer on the board. Use appropriate
Vocabulary.
What the Students Do
Students will read and copy the
Learning Target, then answer the
Do Now and share with class.
Participate in answering the Do
Now.
Listen to instructions and
participate in discussion.
Get into pairs and listen to
instruction. Assign a role to each
group member (Participant,
Timekeeper). Work with classmates
to complete an experiment. Ask
questions if necessary.
Students begin to create a bar graph
of their data. Students analyze the
graph to make meaning of the
experiment using key vocabulary
and concepts.
Answer the exit ticket.
Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet

Homework:
N/A

Summative Assessment:
Exit Ticket
Based on your data table explain how your circulatory system helps your body maintain homeostasis after
exercise.

Notes for Revision:

Student Worksheet- Homeostasis & Exercise

Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet
Date:

Learning Target: ________________________________________________________________________

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Do Now
During exercise muscle cells use a lot of ATP and therefore engage in several rounds of cellular respiration.
1. Fill in the inputs and outputs of cellular respiration occurring in the muscle cell below during exercise.

2. Write a prediction based on the question: How does your respiratory system help your body maintain
homeostasis while you exercise?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Homeostasis & Exercise:

★ You will conduct an investigation to describe how your circulatory system helps your body maintain
homeostasis while you exercise. You will do this by taking your pulse rate at rest and after you
have exercised.
★ You will graph and analyze your data in order to come to a valid conclusion.

My Pulse Rate:
Discuss and answer the prompts below with your partner.
1. What is a pulse rate? What body system are you analyzing when you measure your pulse rate?
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Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet
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2. How do you measure pulse rate?
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3. Determine which person in your partner pairing will be actively engaged in the investigation and the
person who will be responsible for keeping the time and recording the data.

Person Participating: __________________ Timekeeper: __________________

4. Sit in your chair and have the volunteer partner measure his/her/their pulse rate for 30 seconds. The
recorder should keep track of time and record the data in data table 1.
5. Repeat step 4 for a second time and calculate the average resting pulse rate of the volunteer.

6. Have the person participating in the investigation jog in place for three minutes. Measure the pulse
rate of the volunteer immediately after exercising. Record the data in the appropriate data column.
7. Repeat step 6 for a second time and calculate the average pulse rate of the volunteer.

8. Create a bar graph of the average pulse rate at rest vs the pulse after exercise.

Data Table 1

Resting Pulse rate 1 Resting Pulse Rate 2 Average Resting Pulse Rate

Data Table 2

Pulse Rate After Exercise

Trail 1
Homeostasis Inquiry Activity Lesson Plan and Worksheet

Trial 2

Average

Exit Ticket
● Based on your data table describe how your circulatory system helps your body maintain homeostasis
after exercise. Use appropriate Vocabulary.
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