FROG DISSECTION MANUAL
--- a content rich, teacher written self-paced guide
suitable for middle and high school students
by Keith Wilhelmi
Middle and high school science teachers, are you hesitant to incorporate (or continue using) a frog dissection unit? Do any of the following statements reflect your feelings?
"I’m not really that comfortable with the dissecting steps and anatomical parts / functions!"
"It’s just too exhausting an activity -- so many detailed steps to describe and supervise!"
"It’s too tough to keep all of the students happy. Some students are rarin’ to move on, while others need constant guidance!"
"I’m not sure the students even make the connections between the frog and the human!"
I’m betting that my guide will change your feelings about this very powerful unit. The steps are so detailed and the illustrations so clear that students - working in small teams - will enjoy teaching themselves. The connections between the frog and the human anatomy and physiology are continually pointed out. YOUR time will be spent hearing students "ooh and aaah" (and "ugh" a few times) - and enjoying guiding individuals.
I'm in my 32nd year of teaching Life Science to middle school students - and still find the frog dissection unit to be one of my favorites. About 20 years ago I decided that walking entire classes through this activity - step by step - was just too exhausting, so I put the first version of this self-paced guide on paper. This "final version" is the result of years of noting the stumbling blocks and revising the instructions.
In summer of 2005 I decided that the weakest link was the illustrations I'd been using, so I produced my own drawings. Convinced that my efforts would be of use to others (and to try to help me address some unexpected family medical expenses) I copyrighted my work and began licensing my guide to other teachers. I am happy to report that the feedback from purchasers has been overwhelmingly positive.
In the summer of 2009 I completed the revised edition, incorporating a few more years worth of students’ feedback as well as several suggestions based upon my discovery of the significant advantages of bullfrogs over grass frogs. (Please see "Bullfrogs Recommended".)
I think you’ll be impressed with the level of detail – thirty-three 8½×11 sheets of text and fourteen sheets of large frog illustrations! Your students will be able to read and follow the exact steps for each stage of dissection. Along the way they’ll learn about the anatomy and physiology of the key frog organs and the corresponding human organs. For easier reading, the text pages consist primarily of short paragraphs which are separated by blank lines. For a small number of the more challenging terms I created a "pronunciation guide" after the word: i.e. cloaca (klo ā´kuh).
You’ll note that my frog illustrations (and their labels) are BIG. I created these after years of dealing with difficult to interpret diagrams from other sources.
Whether you are a veteran life science teacher looking to get more out of the frog dissection activity, a new teacher looking to manage your workload while inspiring your students, or someone teaching outside your area of expertise and perhaps needing a bit of help yourself, I'm confident you'll find "Keith Wilhelmi's Self-Paced Frog Dissection Guide" to be well worth the money!
About Using Your Voice to End HUNGER
12% of the profits from the sale of this guide are being donated to the anti-hunger lobbying organization RESULTS - for which I've volunteered for over 20 years. Please check out the RESULTS website and consider adding your voice to those who are speaking out for children (and adults) in dire situations - domestically and globally. I promise that by joining the hundreds of RESULTS activists who are taking small actions (making phone calls; writing letters; meeting with elected officials) you'll make a difference in many lives!
frogdissectionlab.com website by: ktzwebdesign
all content copyright 2005-2010 Keith Wilhelmi