RACE Strategy: Our Largest Organ

Our skin is actually the largest organ of the human body. Most of our skin is around 2mm thick. However, it can be thicker or thinner depending on the part of our body. For example, our eyelids have much thinner skin than the bottom of our feet! Your skin protects you from germs and bacteria. It keeps the bad stuff out, and the good stuff in! It also plays an important role in our senses. Our skin uses receptor cells to send information to the brain when something feels smooth, hot, cold, or causes us pain. Our skin also helps us control our body temperature. When it is too hot, our body sweats to cool us off. When we are too cold, our blood vessels narrow to help keep us warm.

Using the RACE Strategy, answer the following question. How does our skin protect us?

What is the largest organ of the human body?

What is one function of our skin?

How does our skin help us when it is too hot?

How does skin communicate information to the brain?