PRIMARY
P5 and P6 Science
Revision on Air and
Set 3 the Respiratory
System
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Air and the Respiratory System
Air and its Composition
1 Air is matter and humans need it to survive.
2 It consists of various gases such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and water vapour.
3 The composition of air is as shown below.
4 Oxygen is required for burning (combustion) and respiration.
5 Carbon dioxide is needed for photosynthesis.
Breathing and Respiration
6 Breathing is the physical process wherein living things take in
(inhale/breathe in) oxygen and give out (exhale/breathe out) carbon dioxide. It
is also known as the exchange of gases between the surroundings and our body.
7 Respiration is the chemical process by which living things utilise oxygen to break
down food to release energy.
8 Breathing and respiration are NOT the same process.
9 The oxygen inhaled through breathing is absorbed into the blood in the lungs. The
blood carries oxygen to all parts of the body to release energy through respiration.
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10 The composition of the inhaled and exhaled air is different. The table below shows the
changes in the exhaled air compared to the inhaled air.
Changes
Amount of oxygen Decreases, but still more than carbon dioxide
Amount of carbon dioxide Increases, but still less than oxygen
Amount of water vapour Increases
Amount of nitrogen Remains the same
Temperature Increases
Human Respiratory System
11 The diagram below shows parts of the human respiratory system.
nose
mouth windpipe
lungs
diaphragm
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12 The table below shows the functions of the parts of the respiratory system.
Part Functions
allows air to enter and leave the body
contains fine hairs and mucus to filter out the dirt (or dust
Nose
particles) in the air before it reaches the lungs
warms and moistens the air we breathe in
Mouth through which air can also be inhaled or exhaled
channels the air in and out of the lungs
Windpipe and
windpipe contains fine hairs and mucus to trap the dust
air tubes
particles and kill germs in the air that we breathe in
allow exchange of gases between the body and the
surroundings in the air sacs (or alveoli)
Lungs
absorb oxygen from inhaled air
release carbon dioxide and water vapour as exhaled air
contracts downwards () to suck air into lungs when breathing
in
Diaphragm
relaxes upwards () to push air out from lungs when breathing
out
Gaseous exchange of living things
13 Fish breathe using their gills. Water enters the mouth of the fish and is directed towards
the gills which contains a high concentration of blood vessels. Dissolved oxygen is
absorbed into the blood and dissolved carbon dioxide is removed from the blood.
The water is then expelled from the gills.
14 Plants respire all the time. Gaseous exchange occurs through tiny openings called
stomata which are mostly found on the undersides of leaves.
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Let’s Practise!
1. Alice wanted to find out which gases are taken in and given out by animals. She placed
10 mice in an enclosed tank for an hour.
Which one of the following graphs most likely shows how the volumes of gases in the
tank changed after an hour?
(1) (2)
Volume of gas Volume of gas
oxygen
oxygen
water vapour
carbon dioxide
carbon dioxide
water vapour
Time Time
(3) (4)
Volume of gas Volume of gas
oxygen
oxygen
water vapour water vapour
carbon dioxide
carbon dioxide
Time Time
( )
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2. The diagram shows how the tiny flaps on the gills of a fish are covered with blood
vessels.
tiny flaps
covered with
blood vessels
Which of the following explains why there are many tiny flaps on the gills of a fish?
A: Increase the surface area for the absorption of oxygen
B: Enable gaseous exchange to take place at a faster rate
C: Enable gaseous exchange to take place at a slower rate
D: Increase the surface area for the absorption of carbon dioxide
(1) A only
(2) A and B only
(3) C and D only
(4) A, B and D only ( )
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3. Yasmin placed some fish into a container of water and positioned the container beside
a lamp as shown below.
fish
lamp
She observed that the fish kept going up to the surface of the water. What could she
do to reduce the number of times the fish go up to the water surface?
(1) Add stones into the water.
(2) Add more fish into the water.
(3) Add water plants into the water.
(4) Move the lamp further away from the container. ( )
4. Which one of the following shows the pathway of air in the human body
system during inhalation?
(1) nose → windpipe → lungs
(2) nose → mouth → windpipe → lungs
(3) nose → windpipe → gullet → lungs
(4) mouth → nose → windpipe → lungs ( )
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5. Jasper conducted an experiment with three healthy plants of the same type and size.
He applied oil on different parts of the leaves. All three plants were placed side by side
in a garden and given the same amount of water each day.
oil coated on oil coated on the oil coated on the
underside of all upper side of all upper side and
leaves leaves underside of all
leaves
Plant A Plant B Plant C
Jasper observed that only plant C died after some time.
(a) Explain why plant C died after some time. (2 m)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
(b) How does placing the plants side by side in a garden ensure a fair test?
(1 m)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
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Jasper measured the mass of plants A and B after one week. He found that
they had almost the same mass after one week, and they looked equally healthy.
(c) What can Jasper conclude based on the observations on plants A and B after
one week? (1 m)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
6. Celine placed a mouse in a sealed glass container. A hollow tube was
connected to the small opening of the container and a drop of blue ink was
placed in the tube as shown below.
glass container
substance X
that absorbs
carbon dioxide
hollow tube
(a) State and explain what would happen to the amounts of oxygen and
carbon dioxide in the container. (2 m)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
(b) Explain why the ink drop will move along the tube towards the container.
(1 m)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
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