Fetal Pig Dissection

We dissected fetal pigs.

As educators of our own children, many of us are intimated by the highly technical high school course work such as biology with dissection. Despite our reservations, creating opportunities in these fields can have a profound effect on our children.


Recently, my daughter experienced biology via dissection. A local mom put together a series of classes designed to teach biology. Over the course of several weeks, my daughter dissected a pig eye, a sheep's heart, a sheep's brain, sheep's kidney, created marrow slides from the long bone of a cow, and dissected a fetal pig. Some of the specimens were ordered through a school scientific supply company and others were obtained from a local butcher.

Since there were around twenty children involved in the class, who eagerly participated, several doctors were invited to assist with the final class. There was an overwhelming response from the medical community. In fact, some offers had to be turned down. In the end, three doctors and two veterinarians met with the kids to teach them more about anatomy.

Having the doctors there was wonderful. They were able to point out different internal parts and answer questions which would have taken parents lots of time to research. Not only that, they explained how different parts of the pig related to their jobs and experiences in medical school. In school, they had to dissect very carefully (not in a destructive way), so they could use their specimen over and over again throughout the course. They taught the kids to cut a little, and then dissect with their fingers. It had been a long time since they had done a dissection, and were just as excited as the kids. Several of them admitted to brushing up on their pig anatomy before coming to class.

Once the detailed lab was complete, both the kids and doctors were interested in viewing the brain and spinal chord. They all worked an extra hour to uncover the brain and spinal column visible in the above photo. Overall, the kids spent about 2 1/2 hours dissecting their pigs.

I'm still intimidated by dissection, but have a few years before it will be necessary to revisit the topic. Now I see how vital this exposure is and will make sure my younger kids get a similar opportunity.




Finishing Strong - Homeschooling the Middle and High School Years
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Sheep's Heart Dissection

We dissected sheep's hearts.

Materials

Tray for the heart

Goggles

Tweezers

Scalpel

Scissors

Colored Straws

The kids began by identifying the apex of their heart, the ventricles and the coronary blood vessels.

Next they peeled the pericardium off the heart which was something like a thick layer of plastic wrap.

The straws were used to label veins and arteries entering and leaving the heart.

They cut through the heart to see the valves inside the chambers.

If you're looking for a related heart project, or one to do before dissection, see our Human Body Heart lesson from last year.

Pig Eye Dissection - Dissecting with Children

We dissected pig eyes.

Biology with laboratory is a subject that can be intimidating to many home educators. Some parents don't feel confident in their own knowledge of the subject, and others aren't excited over figuring out where/how to secure the materials. Fortunately, the most important part for kids is the opportunity to explore. A textbook, library book on the subject or videos such as these can be the teacher. That just leaves supplying the dissecting materials for the parents.

Eyes

Human eyes are similar to the eyes of other mammals, but there are some differences. They all have optic nerves in the back which connect to the brain and muscles surrounding the eye which work to alter the shape of the lens for focusing and moving the eye within the socket. The white part of the eye, known as the sclera, is not visible on most mammals, but is clearly visible on humans.

Rods and cones are the photoreceptor part of the central nervous system located in the back of the eye. Humans have around 120 million rods which are very sensitive to light, but only about 6.5 million cones which are sensitive to color. Most fish and underwater reptiles have no cones, thereby making them colorblind.

Eyes don't grow or change size with age. Instead, the muscles surrounding the eyes change creating the illusion that the eyes grow. Most mammals have only four ocular muscles surrounding the eye, but primates have six which allows them to roll their eyes.

 

Filling a plastic bag with water acts like a magnifying glass and the lens of the eye. The lens actually looks just like a sack filled with water, only it's much smaller.

An important prerequisite to dissecting is preparing a dinner which contains meat. This is very important for cutting skills.

The pig eyes were obtained from a local butcher and since they were fresh, they did not have a strong smell.

Dissection of the pig eye was accomplished in only about four steps.

1. The excess fat and skin was cut off.

2. The cornea was punctured to drain the aqueous humor.

 

3. The sclera was punctured and then cut around the perimeter to create two halves of the eye.

4. Once the eye was separated into the two halves, the iris, cornea and lens were pulled out and inspected.

The kids found the vitrious and aqueous humor within the eye had the consistency of egg white.

Really - it wasn't gross. Several kids couldn't wait to get at the eyeballs. Handling them wasn't much different than handling uncooked meat to be prepared for supper.

 He has three eyes!

To see more of our biology unit study please visit our science page. Also on the science page are several human body science projects geared for younger children which provide a good foundation for this activity.