Our 7th grade students dissected worms and frogs in science class this week.

These two labs are a capstone to what students have been learning in class all year.

“Dissection is the culminating event of the year that brings together all that we have studied,” says David Collins, 7th grade science teacher. “We start with the cell, which is the smallest unit of life, and take it all the way to an organism.  The dissections that we do brings all of this together and they get a hands on look at how all of the systems we have studied work together.”

Students began class by examining their specimen and making observations. Students then cut into the abdomen, peeling back layers of skin, then muscle, to examine the organs. Dissection is certainly gross to some of our students, but once they got into it, many students were fascinated by the process. It was a great opportunity and a memorable week for our 7th graders in science class!

One special component we added this year was a virtual frog dissection. Using Surface Tablets, Coach Collins and his students with the help of Ms Cameron walked through the dissection process digitally so that students already had an idea of the process and what to expect later in the week. This helped our students walk into the lab with greater confidence and the ability to focus more on observation.