So Many Bones!

Smarty Party! Most grown-ups: two hundred and six! Babies start with more, you know. Some bones fuse—join together— As we grow, grow, grow! Cranium—a helmet for your brain. Mandible swings down and up again. Ribs guard your heart and lungs inside. Sternum—breastbone, with ribs each side. Vertebrae, the bones along your spine— All those little pieces in a line! So many bones! So many bones! Over two hundred, from head to toes. Holding us up as we move and grow— So many, so many, so many bones! So many bones! Clavicle—collarbone, out to each side. Scapula—shoulder blade; watch it glide. Humerus, shoulder down to elbow. Radius, ulna, in the forearm below. Carpals in your wrist, little bones in a band. Metacarpals form the palm of your hand. Phalanges in your fingers, one by one— A whole little crowd when you wave to someone! So many bones! So many bones! All that in a hand? And there's more below! Pelvis at your hips, holding you strong. Femur in your thigh, sturdy and long. Kneecap—patella; tibia—shin. Fibula beside it, slender and thin. Tarsals near your ankle and heel below. Metatarsals reach out toward your toes. Phalanges in your toes, all in a row— More little bones wherever we go! Grown-up hand and wrist: twenty-seven! Twenty-six in a grown-up foot! Both hands, both feet—one hundred and six! More than half! Now that's a lot to fit! So many bones! So many bones! Hands and feet? Whoa, whoa, whoa! Bone is living tissue, changing day by day. Muscles pull through tendons—bones move that way. Muscles shorten; at the joint, we bend. Working all together, reach and bend again. Support, protect, and help us move— Living bones, we've got so much to do! So many bones! So many bones! Over two hundred, from head to toes. Holding us up as we move and grow— So many, so many, so many bones! All that in one shoe? All that in one shoe? Smarty Party Songs! Like, subscribe, PARTY!