30/09/2026
Our Grade 10 Life Sciences pupils have recently been studying the Human Cardiovascular System, and Support & Movement of the body. Thank you to Mr Currie for offering lessons that are interesting, relevant, practical, and memorable!
There is nothing to beat opening a sheep heart, and identifying the various structures: the four chambers and their heart valves, as well as the major arteries that transport blood away from the heart. The almost transparent membranes forming the heart valves are always a talking point. By the end of the lesson, each dissected heart must have labels pinned to the various structures. This, together with the actual dissection, is evaluated as part of their practical.
“The learning experience and value of a practical like this is worth ten ordinary lessons in the classroom, and these pupils will probably never forget what they have learnt through this dissection.” - Mr Currie.
They also recently investigated bones - there were various stations, and they had five minutes at each station to identify various bones and X-rays from different animals, and they needed to identify the bones and relate bone structure to function. For example, the tortoise shell: the vertebrae are fused, the ribs are fixed to the vertebra, and the shell is fixed to the ribs, to protect the creature. They also looked at dentitions – carnivores versus herbivores, and related that to their diet. Herbivores will have flat molars and premolars to grind the plant matter, whereas Carnivores will have long and sharp, well-developed canines and generally sharp teeth.
