May at OLu means AP testing, senior activities, busy spring sports and a smell that begins to permeate the science hallways. The source of the smell? Cat and pig dissections. In the Anatomy classes all students dissect a cat. As they explore the different anatomical features they are answering one question: What parts are involved in a simple movement such as hitting a baseball? They start off thinking that it is just the muscles but quickly learn that the lungs have to get oxygen to send to the muscles, the heart has to pump the blood that carries the oxygen, the brain has to send a signal to the muscles, there has to be fuel from the digestive system to power the muscles…. quickly students realize that all parts are involved. Their cat dissection will culminate with a final presentation that includes many pictures of the structures in the cat.
In all of the Biology classes, students are dissecting a fetal pig. Just like in the Anatomy courses, this exposes students to all the features of the body. One students said, “I had no idea the liver was that big! I didn’t even know what it did until today!” From another, “Did you know the diaphragm separates the cavities of the body?” There is many “lightbulb” moments happening in the Biology rooms!
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