Cell Facts for Kids

A Picture of a Human Cell
  • Name: Cell (biological unit)
  • Location: Throughout the human body
  • System: All human systems have some sort of cells
  • Purpose: Wide range of functions, including oxygen transportation and protection
  • Types of Cells: Around 200 different cells in the human body
  • FMA ID: 68646

23 Cell Facts for Kids

  1. Cells are the smallest biological unit of life found in all organisms.
  2. Cells are sometimes referred to as the “building blocks of life”.
  3. Between 1632 and 1723 the first protozoans and bacteria were observed by Antonie van Leeuwenhoek.
  4. In 1665, Robert Hooke first observed cells by looking at cork under an early compound microscope.
  5. The word “cell” was coined by Robert Hooke in 1665, in a book he published call Micrographia.
  6. Cell theory was a theory suggested in 1839 that all living organisms were made up of cells.
  7. The cell theory was developed by Theodor Schwann and Matthias Jakob Schleiden.
  8. Organisms can have one of two classifications, unicellular or multicellular.
  9. A unicellular organism only has one cell. An example of a unicellular organism is bacteria.
  10. A multicellular organism has more than one cell. An example of a multicellular organism is a human.
  11. There are two different types of cells, eukaryotic or prokaryotic.
  12. Eukaryotic cells have a nucleus can be a unicellular or multicellular organism.
  13. Prokaryotic cells do not have a nucleus and are unicellular organisms.
  14. Cell division is the process where one cell divides itself into two or more cells.
  15. The division of cells was first observed in 1835 by Hugo von Mohl.
  16. It’s estimated cells first appeared on Earth around 3.5 billion years ago.
  17. It’s estimated the average human body has about 40 trillion cells.
  18. It’s estimated the human brain alone contains 80 billion cells.
  19. The human body has around 200 different types of cells, like blood cells, bone cells, fat cells, skin cells and stem cells.
  20. Blood cells in the human body include red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
  21. Bone cells in the human body include osteoblasts, osteoclasts, osteocytes, and osteoprogenitor cells.
  22. The branch of biology that deals with the study of cells is called cell biology.
  23. A person who studies cell biology is known as a cell biologist or a cellular biologist.

Additional Resources on Human Cells

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