Cardiovascular System Worksheet
The cardiovascular system is also known as the circulatory system. The prefix ‘cardio’
refers to the heart, while ‘vas’ refers to vessels. This means that the cardiovascular system
consists of the heart, blood vessels and blood. It is the body’s transportation network and
is responsible for delivering oxygen and nutrients to every cell in the body. Additionally, it
removes the waste products of cellular respiration, like carbon dioxide. Without it, your cells
would not be able to function properly.
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Cardiovascular System Worksheet
Key Components of the Cardiovascular System
The Heart:
The heart is a muscular organ located in the centre of your chest. It
is situated slightly to the left of the centre and is approximately the
size of your closed fist. The heart acts like a pump that continuously
pushes blood through the vessels to every cell in your body. This
pumping action is strong enough to force the blood to the cells and
back to the heart again.
Blood Vessels:
Blood vessels are the tubes that carry blood throughout your body.
There are three types:
• Arteries: These are thick and muscular vessels that carry the
oxygen-rich blood away from the heart and to the rest of the
body. They are designed this way to help the heart move blood artery
by squeezing and forcing this fluid along.
• Veins: These are thin-walled vessels that carry deoxygenated
blood from the body back to the heart. The veins don’t squeeze
like arteries; however, they have specialised structures known
as valves that prevent the blood from moving in the opposite
direction. vein
valve
movement of blood
• Capillaries: These specialised vessels
are only one cell thick. This allows these
vessels access to every cell of your body,
providing them with oxygen and nutrients
while removing the waste products
of cellular respiration such as carbon
dioxide. The capillaries are the point of capillary
exchange between the arteries and veins. network
capillary
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Cardiovascular System Worksheet
Blood:
Blood is the fluid that circulates in your
body. It is made of plasma, red blood cells,
white blood cells and platelets. Each one of
these plays a vital role. For example, the red
blood cells are the structures responsible
for carrying oxygen in the blood, while
the white blood cells help your body fight
infection. Platelets are cell fragments that
form clots by clumping together to prevent
bleeding when a blood vessel is damaged.
Lastly, plasma is the liquid that carries
water, hormones, nutrients and these other
blood components.
Conventionally, when we draw the
cardiovascular system, oxygenated blood in
the vessels that are moving away from the
heart are depicted in red. Conversely, the
deoxygenated blood in the vessels moving
toward the heart are indicated in blue.
This simplified diagram illustrates the
movement of oxygenated and deoxygenated
blood around the body. Did you notice that
the section moving away from the heart and
to the lungs is coloured in blue? This special
artery is known as the pulmonary artery and
goes from the heart to the lungs. It is the
only artery that carries deoxygenated blood.
This is because the blood receives oxygen as
it passes through the lungs before moving
back to the heart. This also means that the
pulmonary vein is the only vein that carries
oxygenated blood back to the heart.
Did You Know?
Your heart is an amazing muscle and
beats about 100 000 times every day!
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Cardiovascular System Worksheet
Questions
After reading through the information, complete the following questions.
1. Describe the main function of the cardiovascular system.
2. Identify what the prefixes ‘cardio’ and ‘vas’ mean.
3. Name the three main components of the cardiovascular system.
4. Describe the structure and function of the heart.
5. Match each of the following blood vessels with their function and image.
These thick and muscular vessels
carry the oxygen-rich blood away
Artery from the heart and to each cell in
the body.
These specialised vessels are only
one cell thick. This allows these
vessels access to every cell of your
Vein
body, providing them with oxygen
and nutrients while removing
the waste products of cellular
respiration such as carbon dioxide.
Capillary These thin-walled vessels carry
deoxygenated blood from the
body back to the heart.
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Cardiovascular System Worksheet
6. Identify the main components of blood.
7. Colour the following simplified diagram to demonstrate oxygenated blood moving away
from the heart and to the body and deoxygenated blood moving away from body and
back to the heart. The oxygenated blood should be red while the deoxygenated blood
should be coloured in blue.
Hint: Remember that the pulmonary artery and vein are different.
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