LUB DUB LUB DUB - Stethescope

How to MAKE your Stethoscope

1. Cut the neck off a 9” balloon. 2. Stretch the balloon over the mouth of the small plastic funnel making sure that it is tight. 3. Insert the funnel in one end of an 18” section of vinyl tubing. (Tubing can be purchased at home repair stores.) How to USE your Stethoscope The heart is located directly in the center of the chest. However, the lower tip of the heart is closest to the left, front of the chest. Place the tube end of your stethoscope in your ear and place the funnel end over your heart area. Now use your stethoscope to listen to the soft and loud beats (“lub-dub lub-dub” sound) your heart makes! Record how many beats it makes per minute. My Heart Rate = # of Beats__________ in one minute!

HOW IT WORKS

As the heart beats, it causes the stethoscope to vibrate. These vibrations are transmitted as sound to our ears. The soft beat means that the blood is being pumped down into the ventricles and the louder beat means the blood is being pumped up into the arteries.

FUN FACTS:

• Usually, the heart pumps about 4-8 liters of blood per minute. • The heartbeat slows down during sleep and speeds up when we exercise. • Generally a smaller heart beats faster than a larger one. • A child’s heart beats about 100-120 times per minute. • An adult’s heart beats about 70-90 times per minute. • Your heart is about the size of your fist. TRY THIS AT HOME WITH YOUR STETHOSCOPE: • Can you find a beat or pulse anywhere else on your body? • Try to calculate how many times your hearts beat in an hour, a week or a year! • Listen to your heartbeat at rest then exercise for a few minutes, listen again and record the changes.