What are cell cycles?

A cell cycle is like a fun game that cells play to grow and make more copies of themselves.

Imagine you have a toy box full of building blocks, each block represents part of the cell. When it's time for the cell to grow or split into two, it goes through steps similar to how you build a tower with your blocks. First, the cell gets bigger by using up some of its blocks, then it copies all the blocks so both new cells will have their own set.

The cell cycle has different parts:

• In one part, the cell grows and makes more copies of its inside stuff, like when you add extra blocks to your tower.
• In another part, the cell splits into two, just like when you divide your tower into two smaller towers.

This game happens all day long in our body, helping us grow and heal. Every time a skin cell divides or a muscle cell gets bigger, it's playing this cell cycle game!