Help me give my students a dissection experience. We are learning about the brain, and a sheep brain dissection will enhance their understanding in the most AWESOME and engaging way!!!!!
FULLY FUNDED! Mx. Jenn's classroom raised $989
This project is fully funded
My Project
My 8th graders are brilliant Scientists! We begin each unit of study with a phenomena, and their ideas, questions, and enthusiasm shape the direction and depth of our investigations.
In our current unit on force and motion, students’ ideas, questions, and excitement have led us to an investigation of the brain as a fragile, elastic, and complex object/organ!
We began this unit with a pumpkin smash. Students found the mass, circumference, volume and density of a pumpkin and made a hypothesis to answer the question, “How does the mass of a pumpkin affect its blast radius?” Then we dropped the pumpkins from the 3rd floor of the school, gathered and graphed data, and found that mass is a variable that affects force, kinetic energy, and damage in a collision…and there are many other variables too! As students discussed and investigated more, they began asking and connecting these ideas to their previous study of anatomy, cells, and how the body heals. What happens in a head collision? What variables affect whether someone gets a concussion when they hit their head? Is the brain fragile/sturdy/elastic? How do our brains really work anyway? What protects the brain? How does the brain heal from an injury? We pivoted from a curriculum that mostly focuses on car collisions (and is honestly too basic for them) to designing our own investigation about head collisions. Their deep thinking in class discussions has connected Newtons Laws and an understanding of force and motion to what they already know about biology and chemistry. We researched the brain, built model brains/heads, and tested to find out how they would be affected in different types of head collisions. Many students are asking if we can dissect a brain! Your donation will help me give them this awesome experience!
More than half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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 Mx. Jenn and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.