MedTeach I

I've gotten involved in a program called MedTeach where groups of medical students teach a few lessons at local elementary schools. I really like working with Stephanie and Sarah as well as two fantastic teachers at Alamo Elementary in the Richmond district. We teach 4th and 5th graders, and they are absolutely wonderful and cute. They're enthusiastic, excited, and smart! This whole program is funded by a grant which allows us to get resources like organ specimens, posters, models, and kits.

We have taught 3 of 4 lessons so far. We structure our lessons with 4 stations for small groups of students to rotate through. Our first lesson was on the cardiovascular system with stations on anatomy, heart disease, blood cells, and pulse. It was really fun! I ran the anatomy station, and I had an actual heart for all the students to see and touch. In the pulse station, we taught the kids where to feel major pulses and to see how exercise changes pulse. We were able to get fake microscopes ("microslides") to show pictures of red blood cells and white blood cells. And we had a good station on atherosclerosis.

The kids are super receptive to the program. They really like the interactive nature. They ask good questions and some of them have a lot of background knowledge. It's really fun to work with them, and I think the teachers appreciate it too. Hopefully we can get them interested in science.