STEP INTO THE GED
READING PRACTICE: The Circulatory System

RETURN TO: The Circulatory System Passage
 

Answer the questions in the boxes provided.

1. Look the word circulation up in the dictionary. Write the definition.

 

2. Based on this definition, why do you think the circulatory system was named that way?

 

3.  Describe how the heart works in your own words.

 



4. Why do you think the heart is such an important organ?

 

5.  Why do you think the heart has two sides, left and right?

 

6. Why does blood go to the lungs?

 

7. Why do you think a person dies when his heart stops for more than 4 or 5 minutes?

 

8.  What other jobs does blood do?

 

9.  What do the following expressions mean:

  1. “He is all heart,”
  2. “His heart just isn’t in it!”
  3. “It’s with a heavy heart that I inform you …,"
  4. "She is the heart of this family, group, …."
    5.  

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    10.  Do you know any other expressions using a heart?

     

Vocabulary Practice

Readings often give many clues about the meanings of words.  Noticing these clues is an important vocabulary-building skill.  Definitions and clues about meaning are given in many ways.  Here are some of the most common.

1.   Watch for words like "is called," "means," and "that is." (Note:  i.e., and e.g., also mean that is.)  Here are a few more:  "one which/who," " is known as," " in other words," and "that is to say."

Example:  If a scientist can replicate, that is, repeat, a study, people believe it more.

replicate  =  repeat

2.  Explanations can be added to a sentence through commas, dashes, colons, and parentheses.

Example:  Many heart problems occur because of constriction -- narrowing --  of blood vessels. 

Also, many heart problems occur because of constriction: narrowing of the blood vessels.

constriction  =  narrowing

3.  Examples are great ways of giving clues to meaning.  Watch for words like "for example," "for instance," "such as," and "like."

Example:  It is important to recognize the symptoms of a heart attack such as chest pains and an irregular heart beat.

symptoms of a heart attack  =  chest pains and irregular heart beat

The following sentences all give definitions of words or clues to meaning.  In the box, write your definition of the underlined word.  Check your answer.  Look for the meaning of the answer not its exact words.

1.  The pumping action of the heart consists of the diastole, when the heart relaxes, and the systole, when the heart contracts.

2. The connections between arteries and veins are tiny vein-like structures called capillaries.  

3.  Blood carries platelets -- cells that help form clots -- to areas that are bleeding.

4.  A heart artery's blocking and not delivering oxygen and nutrients to the heart muscle is known as a heart attack. 

5.  Pressure is the force of something on something else.  That is to say, blood pressure is the force of the blood on the walls of the arteries.