If you’re interested in taking a life sciences class dedicated to human anatomy, functions, and systems, you may enjoy taking Nancy Day’s Human Biology class. From testing your own heart rate to dissecting someone else’s heart, this class is full of hands-on activities that may spark your interest.
Day noted that the cardiovascular system is her favorite unit, and said, “There’s so many really fun labs, and it’s identifiable to the students because they get to measure their own body.” Right now, the class is learning about the circulatory system. In this unit, Day said, “we’ll do a dissection of a heart, a blood-typing lab, and measurements of the body. Anything that’s actually administered they get to personalize—measuring their own heart rate, their own breathing rate, etc.”
Additionally, the class is relevant to your own life. Day said, “You’re going to walk around in your body your whole life, so you should be able to take care of it and know how it works. Knowing how the body works—and when there’s malfunctions, what could be going wrong—is important for everyone’s life.”
Human Biology can also be important to people who want to pursue post high-school careers in medicine. Junior Fabiola Molina said, “I took Human Biology because I want to go into the medical field and I think learning about the human body will give me an insight on what I will learn in college.” For those who plan on taking a similar course post high-school, this class can be a good introduction to what they may expect. Junior Ellie Portugal said, “I took Human Biology because it relates to what I want to study in college and I like that you’re learning about your own body.”
Human Biology tends to be composed mainly of junior and seniors, although there are a few sophomores who want to double up on science classes. While there are no formal prerequisites for the class, M-A’s Science Department recommends that students pass Biology and Chemistry with a C or higher before taking it. As for workload, students can expect minimal homework if they complete their work in class. Day said, “As long as students are productive and working in class, they should be able to finish everything with very little outside work.”
If you’re intrigued by the topics and activities covered in this class, you may want to sign up for Human Biology.
