Building Bob: A Project Exploring the Human Body at Western Illinois University Preschool Center

When the children at Western Illinois University Preschool Center embarked on a study of human bodies, they decided to build a life-size model of a body, organ by organ from the inside out, to represent some of the things they were learning. This article describes the building of "Bob," the human body model, highlighting the children's problem solving at various points in the construction process. The article also explains other activities that the class engaged in during the three phases of project work. The project culminated in the creation of a classroom book, written and illustrated by all of the children, which could be shared with families and visitors to the classroom.