1. Mouth Did you know? The tongue moves food around in the mouth and from there it is crushed and slowly moves the esophagus. Amylase is the enzyme found in saliva that chemically digests carbohydrates (starches into sugars). Saliva glands produce that saliva Mechanical: Chewing and mixing of food with the tongue and saliva Chemical: Saliva contains an enzyme that chemically digests food. That is so cool. The tongue is a slide down into the esophagus where it is slowly moved down into the small intestine

2. Esophagus Here is the 2 nd part of the slide. It is a long tube that connects the mouth and the stomach. wow That’s weird, but very cool. Did you know Food is squeezed down the esophagus by smooth muscle contractions called peristalsis.

3. Stomach The stomach is a wrinkled bag of smooth muscle that expands and stretches as food enters. The stomach is the swimming pool filled with hydrochloric acid. Mechanical Digestion- Food is mixed and churned by peristalsis Chemical Digestion- Hydrochloric acid and the enzyme pepsin begin to digest proteins into amino acids Did you know that the stomach is lined with mucus to protect the stomach lining from digesting itself.

4. Small Intestine Mechanical Digestion: Fat particles are mechanically broken down by bile which is produced in the liver. Chemical Digestion: Carbohydrates and proteins continue to be digested. Fats are chemically broken down into lipids by an enzyme called lipase which is produced in the pancreas (also produces insulin which regulates the amount of glucose in blood/ cells) Did you know The small intestine is longer in distance than the large intestine. The large intestine is bigger in diameter. Also peristalsis advances food through the small intestine. Structure The narrow, longer part of the intestines, comprising the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum, that serves to digest and absorb nutrients. This is the roller coaster. Then slowly is pushes it down into the large intestine. When food is digested it is absorbed in the blood stream through the villi. Then the nutrients are delivered to all cells.

5. Large Intestine Did you know? NO digestion takes place in the large intestine. Access water is absorbed back into the blood. After food passes through the large intestine, it is compacted and goes out the anus. This is the rock climbing wall.