What better way to understand the human body than through dissection comparable organs? I would like to be able to make the abstract idea of how the body functions more concrete for my 6th grade students.
Sixth graders are primed and ready for hands-on science and health activities such as dissection.
Universal Empathy is one of our driving core values so "live" dissections are optional for students and the materials we use for dissection are byproducts of the meat industry. In my experience, students are highly engaged with the dissection process and find it wondrous that their organs look and function in very similar ways to other mammals.
In the past, we have made do with plastic or disposable dissection trays. Using the stainless steel trays asked for here makes the dissections especially sophisticated, which middle school students love. Past students have expressed that organ dissection excited them to pursue careers involving human anatomy.
My Project
Multiple times each year, we engage in dissection. Early in the year, my students will dissect a cow eye and later in the year will have the opportunity to dissect mammalian organs such as kidneys, hearts, and brains. From a past Donors Choose project, we have the dissection kits, but do not have appropriate trays or enough gloves to maintain a healthy, sterile dissection environment.
Participating in the dissection will teach them about the components of various organs and how they function in their own bodies. This makes the abstract more concrete for sixth grade students.
Contributing to this project will allow us to have all of the necessary materials for adequate dissection with middle school students.
Safety is important, so the gloves of varying sizes ensure that all students will have appropriately fitting gloves. The stainless steel trays provide a surface, which can be sterilized for each dissection as well as a sturdy surface to conduct the dissections with scalpels. You could inspire a future doctor!
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Chase and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.