We all know that the tongue can help us taste food and keep our mouth clean, but did you know it can also do so much more? From helping us to speak and producing saliva to playing a role in promoting good posture, kids will be amazed at the amazing things a tongue can do. In this article, we’ll take a kid-friendly look at a range of facts about tongues that often go unnoticed – but should not be overlooked!
Our tongue is one of the most amazing parts of our body! It is not just a muscle that helps us taste food, it can do so much more. In fact, our tongue plays a very important role in our everyday lives. This article will explore the amazing things a tongue can do and how it works.
Tasting
Firstly, let’s talk about taste. Our tongue has taste buds that can detect different flavors. These taste buds are tiny, and they work together to help us taste the food we eat. Our tongue can detect five main types of taste: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (which is a savory taste). Each taste bud has special cells that can sense these different tastes, and they send signals to our brains to tell us what we are tasting.
Talking
Our tongue can also help us talk. We use our tongues to make different sounds when we talk. This is because our tongue is very flexible and can move around in our mouths to help us form different sounds. For example, when we say the letter “L”, our tongue touches the roof of our mouth. When we say the letter “S”, our tongue pushes air out between our teeth. Try it out for yourself and see how your tongue moves!
Unexpected Functions
Additionally, research shows that tongues have special properties called elasticity, which helps them contort into various shapes. This allows them to explore surfaces as animal whiskers do, which helps children gain tactile knowledge when touching something new.
Are you drinking enough water?
But that’s not all our tongue can do. Did you know that our tongue can also help us stay hydrated? When we are dehydrated, our tongues can feel dry and rough. This is because our body is trying to conserve water, and it produces less saliva.
However, when we drink water, our tongue helps us to swallow it by pushing it back toward our throat. Our tongue also helps to mix the water with our saliva, which helps us digest our food.
Germ busting!
Another amazing thing about our tongue is that it can help us stay healthy. Our tongue has special cells called “lymphoid tissues” to help fight germs and bacteria. These cells are part of our immune system, and they work to protect our body from infection. When we eat something that has germs or bacteria, our tongue helps to detect it and sends signals to our brains to tell us to spit it out.
Lastly, our tongue can also help us feel things
Did you know that tongues can actually sense temperature too? This is because they are filled with thermoreceptors (or nerves) that detect heat or cold when something is placed on them.
Our tongue is covered in these tiny, sensitive nerves that can detect different textures and temperatures. For example, when we eat ice cream, our tongues can feel the ice cream’s cold temperature and smooth texture. When we eat chips, our tongues can feel the crunchiness of the chip.
Check out my Tongue Workbook
Kids will have fun learning about the parts of the tongue, doing taste-testing activities, and recording their findings not to mention learning a few tongue twisters.
These worksheets are perfect for science and reading centers or homeschool learning.
You will get EIGHTEEN (18) 8.5” by 11” pages of instantly printable worksheets to learn all about our tongue. See it in my Etsy store HERE.
Final Thoughts
Our tongues is an amazing part of our body that can do many different things. It can help us taste food, talk, stay hydrated, stay healthy, and feel different textures and temperatures. Our tongue is truly a wonder of nature, and we should take care of it by eating healthy foods, drinking enough water, and brushing our teeth regularly. So the next time you eat something delicious or say something funny, remember to thank your tongue for all the amazing things it can do!
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