The Digestive

System
Digestion Story:
An Epic Tale of a Food’s
Digestive Journey
Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

Digestion Story Name: _________________________
An Epic Tale of a Food’s Digestive Journey
You’ve just taken a bite of your favorite food. Where does it
go? What does it see? How does it change? Your meal has a
story to tell about its journey through the digestive tract and
the interactions it has with the accessory organs of the
digestive system. Your job is to express and illustrate this
journey!

What You Do:

For this project you will create an educational story for children from the point of view of a piece
of food moving through the digestive system. Your goal is to generate a well thought, nicely
illustrated account of what food goes through inside your digestive organs. This is a chance for
you to be a gross as you want while using proper language and pictures in order to show the
disgusting but fascinating facts of how your food is broken down. Be creative, it’s worth 150
points!!
Format (CHOOSE ONE) or ask your teacher for permission if you have another idea:
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
Dirty Gerdy
____________________ Smelly Mellie GNLLC
____________________ ____________________
____________________ ____________________ ____________________

Your project must be well-written, illustrated, and address the following ELEVEN elements
using your own materials or the story template provided by your teacher:

1. Introduction - Summary
Include your NAME and CLASS PERIOD. Describe the project in a three sentences with ONE
PICTURE of the whole digestive system

2. Where am I? - The Plate

Show your main character sitting on a plate as a happy piece of food (whatever you choose).
Who is going to eat your piece of food – a person? An animal? Introduce the consumer here!

3. Where am I? - The Mouth: Teeth, Tongue, and Salivary Glands

Show the food as it moves into the mouth and gets changed into a ball of mush called a bolus.
Describe how the accessory organs of the mouth: tongue, teeth, and saliva aid in both
MECHANICAL and CHEMICAL digestion.

4. Where am I? - The Esophagus

Here you should show the food moving out of the mouth and down the esophagus. Explain the
role of PERISTALSIS during your food’s time in the esophagus as it travels to the stomach.

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

Digestion Story Name: _________________________
An Epic Tale of a Food’s Digestive Journey
5. Where am I? - The Stomach
Your food has dropped into a giant sac filled with different GASTRIC JUICES; explain what these
juices are and what they help to break down. Show your food swimming in the pool of juices
along with any previously eaten meals. Discuss how both MECHANICAL and CHEMICAL digestion
change you into chyme before you move on to the small intestine.

6. Where am I? – The Duodenum of the Small Intestine being squirted by pancreatic juices
You are in the duodenum, the beginning of the small intestine. Show your food being showered
by pancreatic juices while inside the small intestine. Remember, food does not pass through
the pancreas, but you should include a picture of this organ and describe ALL of its functions
including how it aids in chemical digestion within the small intestine.

7. Where am I? - The Duodenum of the Small Intestine being squirted by bile

While still in the duodenum, show the food being squirted by bile within the small intestine.
Remember, food does not pass through the liver or gallbladder, but you should include a picture
of these organs and describe ALL of their functions including how they aid in chemical digestion
within the small intestine.
Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC
8. Where am I? - The Small Intestine
Here, your food has finished its short travel through the duodenum and has moved on to the
rest of the small intestine - the jejunum, and the ileum. Describe what happens as food moves
through this long muscular tube lined with VILLI (finger-like projections). Show & describe what
the villi do.

9. Where am I? - The Large Intestine

Here, your food is packed into a large tube with other bits of food as it slowly turns into waste.
Explain what happens to your food in the large intestine and how it becomes a waste product.
Discuss how long food may spend in the large intestine before it moves on to the rectum and
anus.

10. Where am I? - The Rectum and Anus

Describe and illustrate the job of the Rectum and Anus. What has your food now become?

11. Where am I? - The Toilet

Finally, you made it out of the body! What happens next?? The big FLUSH!

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

 Digestion Story Rubric
Category 0 3 5 7 10
Title Page No cover page Cover page present Cover page present Cover page present Page depicts all
showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required required. required.
The Plate No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
plate. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required required. required.
The Mouth: Teeth, No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
Tongue, and the mouth. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
Salivary Glands 25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Esophagus No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
the esophagus. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Stomach No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
the stomach. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Small No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
Intestine the small intestine. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Small No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all

Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC

Intestine being the small intestine showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
squirted by being squirted by 25% of the the elements the elements
Pancreatic Juices the pancreatic elements required. required. required.
juices.
The Small No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
Intestine being the small intestine showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
squirted by Bile being squirted by 25% of the the elements the elements
bile. elements required. required. required.
The Large No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
Intestine the large intestine. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Rectum and No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
Anus the rectum and showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
anus. 25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
The Toilet. No page depicting Page present Page present Page present Page depicts all
the toilet. showing less than showing 25-50% of showing 50-75% of elements required.
25% of the the elements the elements
elements required. required. required.
Organization, Project Project is not very Project is somewhat Project is mostly Project is well
Neatness and disorganized, organized, is not organized, is organized, is mostly organized,
Creativity poorly constructed very well somewhat well well constructed constructed and
constructed and
and lacks creativity. constructed and and shows creative shows great
shows some creative
(0/40) shows little creative effort. (20/40) creative effort.
effort. (20/40)
effort. (20/40) (40/40)

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

WHERE AM I? __________________________________________

Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC

On this leg of the journey…________________________________

______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC
Digestion Story Teacher Key
An Epic Tale of a Food’s Digestive Journey
Lesson Format:
Have students copy down the various ways in which you will accept this project under the
“Format” section of their directions. Ideas include but are not limited to:

Children’s Book Comic Strip

PowerPoint Slide Show Animation (movie)
Travel Brochure Magazine Article
Illustrated Rap/Song/Poem Newspaper Article
Diary or Journal Film (movie)
Prezi Play or Puppet Show

How to Differentiate the Lesson:

To differentiate the lesson and assist students who needs extra support, provide them with the
“Where Am I?” Story Template. Each student would receive 11 of these pages to complete their
story. Simplify the lesson further by eliminating elements #6 and# 7 and have students complete
only one template page for the small intestine.
Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC
To make the project more rigorous, ask students to also include the length of each digestive
tract organ and the amount of time food spends in each organ. They can write it like a journal
or diary entry with a date and time. They can also include the different kinds of enzymes used
in digestion and discuss what types of nutrients they help to break down.

How to Use the Rubric:

Print off a copy of the rubric for all students and they can staple it on the front or back of their
product, making it a breeze to grade. If you would like to conserve copy materials, make a class
set of the rubric or display the rubric somewhere in your room or on your projector while they
work on their stories in class.

Please note that the 11 parts of the project are worth 10 points each. Organization, neatness,
and creativity are worth 40 points making the project worth a total of 150 points.

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

Digestion Story Student Examples
An Epic Tale of a Food’s Digestive Journey

Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC

Digestion Story Student Example using Template
An Epic Tale of a Food’s Digestive Journey

Dirty Gerdy Smelly Mellie GNLLC

© 2014 Getting Nerdy, LLC