These interactive slides on blood were created for pandemic teaching in 2021. Slides can be posted on Google Classroom or other learning management systems.
My class are hybrid, where I have a mix of students watching from home and those in class. Students all have Chromebook and as we go through the slides, I’m explaining things or doing demos on video.
I have a plush blood cell to show students the shape of a normal blood cells and what it looks like when it is sickled. Students in person usually follow along on their chromoebooks while watching me fill in the slides on the overhead projector.
My anatomy class is set up to use mini-cases to explain a health condition related to the topic. In this case, students follow the story of a boy who is diagnosed with beta thalassemia. Students build their understanding by focusing on hemoglobin, the shape of blood cells, and their role in transporting oxygen to tissues. To keep the “lecture” short, these slides do not go into white blood cells or platelets (saved for another day).
The last few slides focus on the color of hemoglobin (oxygenated and deoxygenated) and has students compare the color of blood in various samples. It remains a common misconception that blood in the veins is blue, so I really focus on that, showing that blood is always red, just a brighter or darker red depending on whether it has oxygen.
After the lesson, students complete a Blood Feedback Loop diagram that shows the relationship between blood cell formation and erythropoietin. This is a drag and drop activity for this year, though I do have a paper version from previous years. Students should already have an understanding of homeostasis from previous chapters.