Why Do We Have a Skeleton?

🕐 4 min 4 sec 👦 Ages 4–5 🌍 English
Join Koko and Owlo as they explore the importance of our skeletons and how they help us stay strong and active!
Understand what a skeleton is Learn why bones are important Discover how skeletons help us move
📖 Story Script
                    Koko:
                    Owlo! Owlo! Look what I found in the garden this morning!
                
                    Owlo:
                    My goodness, Koko! You look very excited. What did you find out there?
                
                    Koko:
                    I found a tiny little feather, and it was so light! It made me think, what is inside me that makes me feel so solid?
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is a wonderful thing to wonder about, Koko. You are much more solid than a feather, that is for sure.
                
                    Koko:
                    Yeah! Like, I can stand up and run and jump. But a feather just floats away. So what keeps me all together?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Well, the secret is something you carry inside you every single day. It is called your skeleton.
                
                    Koko:
                    My skeleton? Is that the bony thing? I heard that word before but I never really knew what it meant.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Yes, exactly! Your skeleton is all the bones inside your body. You have lots and lots of them working together.
                
                    Koko:
                    Wow. But why do I even need bones? Can I just be soft all the way through?
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is such a smart question. Let me show you something. Come with me to the science room, and I will explain.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Here we go. Now, Koko, pick up that small beanbag from the shelf over there.
                
                    Koko:
                    Okay! Oh, it is so squishy. It just flops around everywhere when I hold it.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Now pick up the wooden block right next to it. Feel the difference?
                
                    Koko:
                    The wooden block is hard and it keeps its shape! The beanbag just goes all wobbly.
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is exactly what your bones do for you, Koko. Without your skeleton, your body would be floppy, just like that beanbag.
                
                    Koko:
                    So my bones help me keep my shape? That is so cool. I never thought about that before!
                
                    Owlo:
                    Your skeleton does even more than that. It also protects the soft and important parts inside you.
                
                    Koko:
                    Like what parts? What is it protecting?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Well, feel the top of your head. That hard part is your skull. It protects your brain, which is very soft and very important.
                
                    Koko:
                    Oh! So my skull is like a helmet for my brain? My brain has its very own helmet!
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is a perfect way to think about it, Koko. Your ribs do something similar for your heart and lungs.
                
                    Koko:
                    So I have a helmet for my brain and a cage for my heart. My skeleton is like my own personal armor!
                
                    Owlo:
                    You are absolutely right. And there is one more very important job your skeleton does. It helps you move.
                
                    Koko:
                    Wait, bones help me move? I thought my legs did that.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Your bones and muscles work together as a team. Your muscles pull on your bones, and that is how you run and jump and dance.
                
                    Koko:
                    So when I do my big jumps in the garden, my bones and muscles are doing teamwork? That is amazing!
                
                    Owlo:
                    It really is. And here is one more fun thing. Your bones are alive, just like the rest of you.
                
                    Koko:
                    Bones are ALIVE? I thought they were just hard and still in there.
                
                    Owlo:
                    They grow as you grow! When you eat foods like milk and cheese, your bones get stronger and bigger.
                
                    Koko:
                    So eating my cheese helps my bones? Mom is going to be so happy when I tell her that.
                
                    Owlo:
                    I think she will be very pleased. Now, we have learned a lot today. Can you tell me what you remember?
                
                    Koko:
                    Okay! So, my skeleton is all the bones inside me. Bones give my body its shape, so I am not all wobbly like a beanbag.
                
                    Koko:
                    My skull protects my brain like a helmet, and my ribs protect my heart and lungs. And my bones and muscles work together so I can move!
                
                    Owlo:
                    Wonderful summary, Koko. You remembered everything perfectly.
                
                    Koko:
                    And bones are alive and they grow when I eat good food! Next time I want to learn how many bones I actually have, because I think it is a LOT.
                
                    Owlo:
                    It is indeed a lot. That will be a very exciting lesson. Well done today, Koko. Your curiosity makes me very proud.