Review last week's homework.
Discuss the 3 body cavities.
Use the human body puzzle to demonstrate the location of the different organs.
Start reviewing the organ systems based on Nikki's interests.
Learn the musculature of the abdomen and thorax.
Assignment
Draw and label the digestive and circulatory systems of the bird.
Session Minutes
120
Minutes Student Attended
120
Lesson Comments
Nikki turned in her drawing of the face and some of it's musculature with beautiful cut-out renditions. She understands how the different types of muscles cause different movements.
Next we focused on the body cavities: thorax, abdomen, and pelvis. We used the Human Body Puzzle game to see how the organs fit into the cavities. We chose to start with the digestive system, discussing both form and function. Then we moved on to the cardiovascular system, with particular attention to the heart and major vessels.
Nikki and I illustrated theses systems on the dry board. We looked on the internet to find what differences might exist between humans and birds.
Lastly, we discussed the superficial and deep musculature of the abdomen and thorax.
I explained to Nikki what I have learned over twenty years of parrot care. We discussed parrot first aid, feeding, cages, training, and life-span. We also discussed the adaptations to flight that makes parrots so special. We also discussed 3-D printing of prostheses for parrots.
My wife, Suzanne also came down to share her knowledge with Nikki and showed her some tips on training parrots. There was no assignment.
Assignment
See lesson outline
Session Minutes
90
Minutes Student Attended
90
Lesson Comments
Nikki is very knowledgeable about parrots and their behavior, anatomy, and special needs. I expect to hear great things about her in the future.
Today, we started with a review of Nikki’s homework. She drew a skeleton of a dragon and labelled the anatomical position, the relational terms, and body parts. We clarified the differences in the nomenclature of the bones of the hands and the feet, and added some more labels to our skeleton. Nikki did an amazing job on her first assignment. A+ work...!
Next we talked about the types of joints that exist in the body and how they move. We looked at the ligaments of the ankle and saw how they attach bones. We saw that tendons attach muscles to bones, and looked at different types of muscles.
Our focus was primarily on skeletal muscles. Nikki wanted to start from the top and work our way down the body, so today we looked at the muscles of the head and neck. We examined them on our own body and felt their movements.
I showed Nikki some of the amazing drawings done by Frank Netter, MD.
Nikki’s homework is in layers (a la some of Dr. Netter’s drawings): draw a skull,
draw a skull with the muscles on it, and draw a skull with the skin on it.
I also asked Nikki to look up Frank Netter so that she could learn a little more about him and so that she could investigate some of the drawings herself.
In the next lesson we will talk about the muscles of the trunk. Then we will look at the anatomy puzzle that places all of the organs inside the different body cavities. This will lead into a discussion of the brain and nervous system so that we can talk about how the brain tells our musculoskeletal system to move, and ultimately can lead us to the musculature of the limbs. (All of that will take more than one session.)
Today we started by defining terms that will help us in the discussion of anatomy. We talked about the Anatomical Position, anatomical planes, points of reference and direction of motion. Nikki illustrated those concepts on her own with stick figures and animal drawings. We looked at pictures of MRIs as examples of the body cut into different anatomical planes. We then moved on to the skeleton and identified key bony structures. Next we identified the different body cavities. We also talked about anesthesia and some of the components of what makes up an anesthetic, such as pain control and amnesia.
Nikki’s assignment is to draw a skeleton of an animal of her choice, and to label as many parts as she can. She was invited to be as creative as she wants.
Next week we will put the muscles on the bones, talk about tendons and ligaments, and about how muscles work.
