With preregistration approaching, students will have the opportunity to meet with their counselors to choose their classes for next year. Many students struggle to pick which science course to take. Mrs. Smith and Ms. Chamber’s would like to show students that Anatomy & Physiology is a great science class for anyone.
While this class requires some memorization, Anatomy & Physiology is mainly a hands-on class with case studies, dissections, and labs. Students are able to learn about the body in ways that aren’t just writing down the information.
Mrs Smith explains, “Students should consider taking Anatomy because not only is it the most fun science class (in my completely unbiased opinion), but it’s so relevant to everyone. Everybody has a body that functions in almost exactly the same way, and everyone at some point or another has gotten sick, injured, or works to keep their body healthy. Anatomy directly relates to everybody’s ‘real life.’”
In this class, each of the body systems has a case study to go along with it. During these studies students are given an imaginary patient to diagnose and treat based on data. Students must use all of their resources to come up with the best diagnosis possible. These studies allow students to be creative as they research and create a treatment plan. This type of exposure lets students feel like they are in a real life situation. Students even use methods that real professionals use when they create a diagnosis.
Junior Kaden Moya is currently a student in Smith’s Anatomy & Physiology class. He enjoys working with his table-mates to complete dissections and other group projects.
“Anatomy & Physiology is a great class, you can definitely learn a lot of new information from it. I think that the workload is light-medium. It’s not bad but students should definitely take time to study outside of class and stay on top of their work. Overall, I have a lot of fun in this class.”
Other than case studies, many dissections take place along the year. This includes one full body dissection on a specimen at the end. Students will learn about the structure of the human body during these labs while learning how to properly use medical tools and effectively communicate with their classmates.
If doing dissections and labs doesn’t make students feel like they are a real doctor, Smith’s canvas page will. The canvas page is “Grey’s Anatomy” themed, with a homepage that says “Welcome doctor. It’s a beautiful day to save lives!” Her page also includes “Daily Appointments,” “Clock in,” “Pick up shifts,” and much more. Mrs. Smith’s canvas is especially helpful because of the “Cafe” section. This is where students can earn extra credit by doing assignments. These assignments turn into reward points that can be used to “buy” something at the Cafe for extra credit.
Junior Talor Gitman says, “Honestly, I rarely ever find myself having to stress about assignments for this class. Mrs. Smith gives us time in-class, as well as the opportunity to share the workload with classmates. This really helps, especially when I find myself cramming homework between classes.”
The workload of Anatomy & Physiology is relatively light for most. Students are assigned classwork and they only have homework if it is not completed in class. Although, both Smith and Chambers try to give students enough time to finish, so the assignment is usually pushed onto the next class instead. Students are also able to complete extra credit assignments for a grade boost. Ultimately, it is up to the student to stay on top of their work so that they do not fall behind.
Smith continues, “I make new favorite memories every year, but I love seeing kids have the “lightbulb” moment where something clicks and they finally understand the material. Sometimes it happens slowly through repetition and practice, and sometimes it happens fast through group work and labs, but I love the confidence it gives them.”
Students have a lot to gain from choosing Anatomy & Physiology. This class may build a foundation of knowledge in preparation for a future career, working with others, using problem-solving skills, and more.
