The Human Skeleton

For 6th Grade

Students
By: Shannon Boyer
 Functions of the Skeletal
System
 Provides shape and form
 Supporting, protecting, and allowing
bodily movement
 Produces blood for blood cells
 Storing minerals
 The Skeleton Is Divided
Into Two Distinct Parts:
 The axial skeleton  Click on these links
consists of bones to read about the
that form the axis of axial parts of the
the body and body.
support and protect  The skull
the organs of the  The sternum
head, neck, and
trunk.  The ribs
 The backbone
 The Second Part of the
Skeleton
 The appendicular  Click on these links
skeleton is to read about the
composed of appendicular parts
bones that anchor of the body.
the appendages to  The lower body
the axial skeleton.  The upper body
 The shoulders
 The pelvic area
 Types of Bones
The bones of the body fall into four general
categories: long bones, short bones, flat bones, and
irregular bones. Long bones are longer than they are
wide and work as levers. The bones of the upper and
lower extremities are of this type. Short bones are
short, cube-shaped, and found in the wrists and
ankles. Flat bones have broad surfaces for
protection of organs and attachment of muscles
Irregular bones are all others that do not fall into the
previous categories. They have varied shapes, sizes,
and surfaces features and include the bones of the
vertebrae and a few in the skull.
 Bone Composition
Bones are composed of tissue that may take one of two
forms. Compact, or dense bone, and spongy, or
cancellous, bone. Most bones contain both types.
Compact bone is dense, hard, and forms the protective
exterior portion of all bones. Spongy bone is inside the
compact bone and is very porous (full of tiny holes).
Spongy bone occurs in most bones. The bone tissue is
composed of several types of bone cells embedded in
a web of inorganic salts (mostly calcium and
phosphorus) to give the bone strength, and collagenous
fibers and ground substance to give the bone flexibility.
 Other Links

*Site of Anatomy Terms

*Listen to audio recordings about the skeletal
system
*Click on any part of the skeleton and it will tell
you about that part of the body
*Watch a movie about the skeletal system, then
take a quiz
Take a look at these facts:

 Cool Bone Facts

This contains some
interesting facts
about the skeletal
system.
 NMU Homepage
CS255 Computers in El
Ed Home Page