Skeletal System Activity: 8 Hands-On Stations for Teaching Bones, Ligaments, and Tendons (TEKS 7.13A)

Chris Kesler · 8 min read

Tell your 7th graders that they were born with about 270 bones but they only have 206 left, and watch the room go quiet. The other 64 didn't disappear. They fused together. The skull was originally separate plates so a baby's head could squeeze through the birth canal. By adulthood those plates have welded shut into the cranium kids see in every science textbook.

Skeletal is the system kids think they understand because they can poke their own ribs and feel their elbow. They know bones hold them up. They've heard the names skull, ribs, spine since elementary school. But ask them which bones are part of the axial vs. appendicular skeleton, what the difference is between a ligament and a tendon, or why bones are made of two different kinds of tissue, and the surface knowledge falls apart fast.

The Skeletal System Functions Station Lab for TEKS 7.13A closes that gap in one to two class periods. Kids build a model human skeleton from bone cut-outs (skull, backbone, ribcage, pectoral girdle, arms, pelvic girdle, legs), study reference cards on the 27 bones in the human hand, examine the seven types of bone fractures, and sort cards comparing the 80-bone axial skeleton to the 126-bone appendicular skeleton. By the end, they can name the main bones, distinguish ligaments from tendons, and explain how the two halves of the skeleton work together.

⏱ 1–2 class periods 📓 7th Grade Science 🧪 TEKS 7.13A 🎯 Built-in differentiation 💻 Print or Digital

8 hands-on stations for teaching the skeletal system

A station lab is a student-led activity where small groups rotate through 8 stations (plus a 9th challenge station for early finishers) at their own pace during one to two class periods. You become a facilitator instead of a lecturer. You walk around, spot-check the skeleton models, and break misconceptions while kids work through the rotation.

The Skeletal System Functions Station Lab has four input stations (where students take in new info on bones, ligaments, tendons, and the axial vs. appendicular skeletons) and four output stations (where they show what they learned). Here's what's at each one.

📷 Image slot 1 — add screenshot

📷 Image slot 2 — add screenshot

4 input stations: how students learn the skeletal system

🎬 Watch It! —

A short YouTube video walks students through the skeletal system. Three questions follow: what is the function of human bones, how many bones are in the human body, and name three different bones from the video. Visual kids come alive at this station before they ever assemble a skeleton model.

📖 Read It! —

A one-page passage called "The Skeletal System" introduces the five functions of the skeletal system (support, organ protection, movement, blood cell production, calcium storage), names the 206 bones, distinguishes compact from spongy bone tissue, defines ligaments (bone to bone) and tendons (muscle to bone), and splits the skeleton into the 80-bone axial and 126-bone appendicular halves. Three multiple-choice questions follow plus five vocabulary words to define (appendicular skeleton, axial skeleton, ligament, skeletal system, tendon). Comes in two reading levels (Dependent and Modified) plus a Spanish version.

🔬 Explore It! —

This is the heart of the lab. Students build a model skeleton using cut-outs of the main bones. Step 1: Axial skeleton. Place the skull on top of the backbone, then place the ribcage on the backbone below the neck. Step 2: Upper appendicular skeleton. Place the pectoral girdle and arms above the ribcage. Step 3: Lower appendicular skeleton. Place the pelvic girdle and legs near the base of the backbone. Four reflection questions wrap it up: which bone connects the axial and appendicular skeletons, what important organs are protected under the rib cage, how do the two skeletons interact, and what are the three main functions of the skeletal system. Kids end with a complete labeled human skeleton.

💻 Research It! —

Students examine 10 reference cards: a labeled diagram of the entire human skeleton (cranium, mandible, clavicle, scapula, sternum, humerus, radius, ulna, ribs, vertebrae, pelvic girdle, femur, patella, tibia, fibula, carpals, metacarpals, phalanges, tarsals), a card noting humans are born with 270 bones but only have 206 as adults, a labeled diagram of the bones of the human hand (distal phalanx, middle phalanx, proximal phalanx, metacarpals, scaphoid, lunate, triquetrum, pisiform, trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, hamate), seven different bone fracture types (transverse, linear, greenstick, comminuted, oblique nondisplaced, oblique displaced, spiral), and dedicated cards on osteoporosis. Four questions check whether they can compare baby vs. adult bone counts, count hand bones, evaluate fracture severity, and explain why osteoporosis patients have to be careful.

📷 Featured station deep-dive — add screenshot of the Explore It! task card

4 output stations: how students show what they learned

📋 Organize It! —

A two-column card sort. Kids sort 12 traits into Axial vs. Appendicular columns. "Skull, vertebrae, ribs, provides structure, protects vital organs, 80 bones" → axial. "Arms, legs, pelvic and pectoral girdles, allows walking/movement, protects vital organs, 126 bones" → appendicular. The shared trait "protects vital organs" appears in both columns, which forces kids to slow down and think about which organs each half protects (axial protects brain, lungs, heart; appendicular protects pelvis-area organs).

🎨 Illustrate It! —

Students sketch a labeled diagram of the main bones of the axial skeleton plus a labeled diagram of the main bones of the appendicular skeleton. They can do one combined diagram or two separate ones. Even kids who say "I can't draw" surprise themselves here. The diagram locks in which bones go in which group, which is a step beyond just listing them.

✍️ Write It! —

Three open-ended questions: explain the main functions of the human skeletal system and what makes it such an important part of the human body, compare and contrast the axial and appendicular skeletons, and identify several vital organs in the human body that are protected by a part of the skeletal system. The third question forces kids to chain together skeleton-organ connections: the cranium protects the brain, the rib cage protects the heart and lungs, the vertebrae protect the spinal cord, the pelvic girdle protects bladder and reproductive organs.

📝 Assess It! —

Three multiple-choice questions plus a fill-in-the-paragraph that uses all five Read It! vocabulary words (appendicular skeleton, axial skeleton, ligament, skeletal system, tendon). The paragraph reads: "The human ___ contains 206 bones that provide structure, protection, and movement. ___ connect bones to bones, and ___ connect bones to the muscles that allow us to move. The ___ consists of our skull, backbone, and ribcage. The ___ consists of our arms, legs, and pelvic and pectoral girdles." If you're grading the lab, this is the easiest station to grade.

Bonus Challenge It! station for early finishers

🏆 Challenge It! —

Four optional extensions: design a crossword puzzle with at least 10 clues from the lab including axial skeleton, appendicular skeleton, bone, tendon, and ligament. Choose one of the 206 bones in the human body to research and write an informative paragraph (where is it, what type of bone is it, what is its function, why is it important). Build a model of the main bones of the skeletal system from classroom materials and label everything. Or write an acrostic poem for "skeletal system" where every letter contains real information about the system, not random words. Requires teacher approval before they start.

How this fits into a complete skeletal system unit

This Station Lab is the Explore day of our full Skeletal System Functions Complete 5E Lesson for TEKS 7.13A. The complete two-week unit follows the 5E method of instruction and includes an Engage hook, the Skeletal System Station Lab for Explore, PowerPoint slides and interactive notebook pages for Explain, student choice projects to Elaborate, and an Evaluate assessment.

Most teachers grab the full 5E because the Station Lab lands hardest with the days around it. But if you just need a strong hands-on day on the skeletal system, the Station Lab on its own does the job.

Two options

Full 5E Lesson $13.20 Get the 5E Lesson

Just the Station Lab $7.20 Get the Station Lab

Materials needed to teach the skeletal system

Materials beyond what's in the download:

Scissors — one pair per group rotation, since the bone cut-outs for Explore It! need to be cut apart from the print sheet (or pre-cut them yourself once).
A large flat surface at the Explore It! station for assembling the model skeleton (the desk works fine).
Colored pencils or markers for the Illustrate It! station so students can color-code axial vs. appendicular bones in different colors.
Index cards or paper for the Challenge It! crossword and acrostic poem extensions.
Classroom materials for the Challenge It! skeleton model (pasta, pipe cleaners, or popsicle sticks all work; use whatever you have on hand).
Pencils and the printed answer sheets (included)
A device with internet for the Watch It! station and the Challenge It! research extension

Standard covered: Texas TEKS 7.13A —

Investigate and explain the functions of the circulatory, respiratory, digestive, urinary, immune, integumentary, nervous, muscular, skeletal, reproductive, and endocrine systems. Supporting Standard.

See the full standard breakdown →

Grade level: 7th grade life science

Time: One to two class periods (45–110 minutes total). Plan for two periods the first time you run a station lab.

Common student misconceptions this lab fixes

"Bones are dead, hard structures that just hold the body up."
Kids picture bones as the dry skeletons hanging in old anatomy classrooms, dead and lifeless. The Read It! passage names five functions of the skeletal system (support, protection, movement, blood cell production, calcium storage), distinguishes compact bone tissue from spongy bone tissue, and explains that bones are constantly healing and rebuilding. The Research It! osteoporosis card shows what happens when that rebuild process slows down. By the end, kids see bones as living tissue that grows, repairs after a fracture in 1–2 months, and even makes blood cells inside the marrow. The dry skeleton is just one snapshot of what is actually a constantly active system.
"Ligaments and tendons are the same thing, just connecting random parts of the body."
Most 7th graders mash ligaments and tendons together. The Read It! passage gives them a sharp distinction: ligaments connect bone to bone (and limit how much a joint can move), tendons connect muscle to bone (and let muscles pull bones during movement). The Assess It! fill-in-the-paragraph forces kids to plug ligaments and tendons into the right spots, so the difference sticks. Once they have it, the connection to the muscular system also clicks: without tendons there's no way for muscles to move bones, and without ligaments the bones flop around the joint.
"All bones in the body are basically the same and do the same job."
Kids treat the skeleton as one big lump. The Explore It! station forces them to split it in two. Axial skeleton (skull, backbone, ribs) is the central column that holds posture and protects vital organs. Appendicular skeleton (arms, legs, pectoral girdle, pelvic girdle) is the limbs and the joints that connect them, built for movement. The Organize It! card sort makes kids assign every trait to the right column. Once they see the 80-bone axial and 126-bone appendicular have different jobs (structure vs. movement), they stop treating bones as interchangeable and start asking which bone does which thing.

What you get with this skeletal system activity

📷 Inside-the-product — add screenshot of Read It passage or sample answer sheet

When you buy the Station Lab, you get a single download with everything you need:

Print version at two reading levels (Dependent for on-grade, Modified for additional support) plus a Spanish Read It! passage
Digital version as PowerPoint files (works in Google Slides too) at both levels — for 1:1 classrooms or Google Classroom
Teacher Directions and Answer Key for both versions, all keys included
Station task cards ready to print, laminate, and drop in baskets at each station
Reference cards for the Research It! station (full skeleton diagram, hand bone diagram, seven fracture types, osteoporosis cards)
Bone cut-outs for the Explore It! Constructing a Model Skeleton activity (skull, backbone, ribcage, pectoral girdle, arms, pelvic girdle, legs)
Sort cards for the Organize It! station (12 trait cards split between axial and appendicular columns)
Student answer sheets for each level

No login required. Download once, use forever. Reprint as many times as you want.

Tips for teaching the skeletal system in your 7th grade classroom

Two things make this lab go smoother the first time:

1. Pre-cut the bone cut-outs once and laminate them.

The Explore It! Construct a Model Skeleton activity goes a lot faster if the bone cut-outs are already cut and laminated when the first group arrives. Cutting takes about 10 minutes the first time. Once they're laminated, the same set works for every period and every year. Drop them in a manila envelope or zip-top bag at the station and the kids can lay them out, build the skeleton, scramble them, and pass them to the next group in under five minutes.

2. Have students count their own hand bones at the Research It! station.

The Research It! card on the bones of the hand has a labeled diagram. Most kids will skim it. Slow them down by asking them to count out loud how many bones each finger has, then how many bones across the palm, then how many in the wrist. The answer is 27 bones per hand. When they realize their two hands account for 54 of their 206 bones (more than a quarter of their entire skeleton), they tend to remember it for the rest of the unit.

Get this skeletal system activity

Skeletal System Functions Station Lab for 7th grade life science — TEKS 7.13A

Buy the Station Lab — $7.20

Or if you want the full two-week experience with the Engage hook, Explain day, Elaborate extension, and Evaluate assessment all included:

Buy the full 5E Complete Lesson — $13.20

(Station Lab is included)

Frequently asked questions

What does TEKS 7.13A cover?

Texas TEKS 7.13A asks 7th grade students to investigate and explain the functions of all the major body systems, including the skeletal system. By the end, students should be able to identify the main bones of the human body, distinguish ligaments from tendons, separate the axial skeleton from the appendicular skeleton, and describe the five major functions of the skeletal system. This Station Lab focuses specifically on the skeletal system. The other body systems (circulatory, respiratory, digestive, urinary, immune, integumentary, nervous, muscular, reproductive, endocrine) each have their own dedicated Station Lab.

What's the difference between the axial and appendicular skeletons?

The axial skeleton is the 80-bone central column of the body: the skull, the vertebral column (backbone), and the rib cage. Its main jobs are providing structure, supporting posture, and protecting vital organs like the brain, heart, and lungs. The appendicular skeleton is the 126-bone outer half: the arms, legs, pectoral girdle (shoulder bones), and pelvic girdle (hip bones). Its main job is allowing movement: walking, running, throwing, climbing. Together they make the full 206-bone adult skeleton.

How long does this skeletal system activity take?

One to two class periods (45 to 110 minutes total). The Explore It! Construct a Model Skeleton station is the longest part because students have to lay out and assemble the bone cut-outs, so plan for two periods the first time you run a station lab. Once your class has the routine down, most groups can finish all 8 stations in one period.

Do I need to provide my own materials?

Scissors, colored pencils, index cards, and a few classroom craft materials for the optional Challenge It! skeleton model. Total cost for a class of 30: under $5 if you don't already have these supplies. The Watch It! station also needs a device with internet.

Can I use this in a 1:1 digital classroom?

Yes. The full digital version (PowerPoint or Google Slides) works in 1:1 classrooms and Google Classroom. The Construct a Model Skeleton activity can be replaced by drag-and-drop bone cut-outs in the digital version, or you can keep the Explore It! station as the one physical center kids rotate through.