Question Sheet: Strong Bones for Life

By Science News Explores

SCIENCE

Before reading:

  1. What do you think could happen if you don’t take care of your bones? 

  2. What sort of nutrition is important for kids to make sure they develop strong bones?

During reading:

  1. Describe in your own words (or draw a picture of) what a bone looks like. 

  2. What role does calcium play in bones? 

  3. What is osteoporosis? How can you tell if you suffer from osteoporosis? 

  4. Why is it better to consume milk or yogurt than a soft drink? 

  5. Besides changing your diet to include more calcium, what else can you do to strengthen your bones?

After reading:

  1. Given the suggestions provided in this article for protecting and increasing the health of your bones, do you think you’re doing a better or worse job than most of your classmates? Why? 

  2. Do you think there should be soda machines in schools? Why or why not? 

  3. What suggestions would you offer to a friend who wants to protect her bones but is allergic to milk products? 

  4. How do bones change over time? 

  5. Create a three-day menu of meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) that would help prevent bone weakness. 

  6. Coupey suggests that people do “weight-bearing exercise and strengthening exercises.” Name three sports in which players would get such exercise.

LANGUAGE ARTS

  1. School lunches have been in the news a lot lately. Many people are concerned about how healthy these lunches really are. Think about what kind of lunches you see people buy in your cafeteria. Do you think they are healthy? What changes would improve the lunches? Write an editorial about the issue of school lunches. If you wish, you may search the Web for additional articles on the topic to help you decide what side to take. 

  2. What kinds of things do you think the government or schools could do to raise awareness about bone health? Design a poster or advertisement promoting bone health.

MATHEMATICS

The Institute of Medicine recommends that kids between the ages of 9 and 18 get 1,300 milligrams of calcium every day. But only about 10 percent of girls and 25 percent of boys get that much. In a group of 680 kids, where half are boys and half are girls, how many people are getting the recommended amount of calcium?