4 mistakes learners make with hormones and the endocrine system, each one named and explained.
A hormone is a chemical message carried in the blood, and most of them have nothing to do with reproduction.
Asked to name a hormone you offer only oestrogen and testosterone, and you describe the endocrine system as the reproductive system.
Hormones are met first in the context of puberty, and that is the lesson that sticks.
Question. Name a hormone that has nothing to do with reproduction.
A common answer. there is not one. Hormones control reproduction
The answer. insulin, adrenaline or thyroxine
Why. Hormones control blood glucose, the response to danger and the rate of metabolism, among much else.
Learn three non-reproductive ones by name. They come up far more often.
You say blood glucose only matters during exercise, and that at rest the body does not use any.
Glucose is talked about as fuel, and fuel is something you picture being burned while moving.
Question. Does the body need glucose while you are asleep?
A common answer. no, it only needs it for exercise
The answer. yes. Every cell respires all the time
Why. Respiration never stops, so glucose is being used even at rest, which is why the level still has to be controlled.
Respiration is constant. The level is controlled around the clock.
You explain how blood glucose is brought down, and treat a low level as nothing for the body to do.
The lesson usually starts with the level being too high, and insulin is the hormone everybody remembers.
Question. Blood glucose falls too low. What does the body do?
A common answer. nothing. It waits until you eat
The answer. the pancreas releases glucagon, which raises it again
Why. Negative feedback corrects a change in either direction, which is what keeping it steady means.
Every control has two hormones or two responses. Name both.
You write that type 1 diabetes is caused by eating too much sugar.
Diabetes is one word in everyday use, and the lifestyle link that belongs to type 2 gets attached to both.
Question. What causes type 1 diabetes?
A common answer. a diet too high in sugar
The answer. the pancreas stops producing insulin, usually from childhood
Why. Type 1 is not caused by lifestyle and cannot be prevented by diet; it is treated with insulin.
Say which type before you say anything about cause.
WAJD spots these patterns in your child's answers and names the one behind their wrong answers, instead of just marking them wrong.