This activity helps students understand the significance of programming and also how the LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT robot's sensors assist its movement and make programming easier. Students compare human senses to robot sensors, describing similarities and differences.

Students are introduced to various types of hearing impairments and the types of biomedical devices that engineers have designed to aid people with this physical disability.

To gain a better understanding of the roles and functions of components of the human respiratory system and our need for clean air, students construct model lungs that include a diaphragm and chest cavity. They see how air moving in and out of the lungs coincides with diaphragm movement. Then student teams design and build a prototype face mask pollution filter. They use their model lungs to evaluate their prototypes to design requirements.

Attention Saskatchewan high school science teachers!

Looking for some FREE resources and opportunities that will connect the curriculum with real-world applications as it pertains to: health and wellness; medicine, nursing, & biomedical engineering?

Check out these 3 resources for science teachers to use to help reach students who might be interested in healthcare careers (these are available gratis):

1. Science teacher hub that gives teachers access to 50+ resources that they can use in the classroom (medical mystery cases, mentorship videos, what different medical specialists do etc..) (https://www.premedskl.com/teacherhub/)

2. Quarterly Medical Bs for high school students - which are case-based competitions (think Jeopardy meets WebMD!). (https://www.premedskl.com/medicalb/)

3. IDEA Scholarships to PreMedSKL, a 1-year advanced curriculum and mentorship program for high school students interested in exploring a career in medicine and healthcare. The IDEA Scholarship is for students from communities that are traditionally under-represented in medicine (ie Indigenous, Black, LatinX and other communities). (https://www.premedskl.com/idea-scholarship/)

Students reinforce their knowledge of the different parts of the digestive system and explore the concept of simulation by developing a pill coating that can withstand the churning actions and acidic environment found in the stomach. Teams test the coating durability by using a clear soda to simulate stomach acid.

Students design and build prototypes for protective eyewear. They choose different activities or sports that require protective eyewear and design a device for that particular use. Students learn about the many ways in which the eyes can be damaged and how engineers incorporate different features and materials into eyewear designs to best protect the eyes.

This resource has been created by Carla Cooper and has many resources for Biology 30 including:

Biotechnology
Genetics
Life & Evolution
Organization of Life

"Secrets of the Sequence is a library of videos hosted by Virginia Commonwealth University. It features 50+ 8 to 10-minute videos and accompanying lessons to help teachers incorporate the latest developments in the area of genetic research into their teaching."

Click on "Watch and download videos" to get started.

Students participate in a variety of activities modeling different disabilities. They gain a better understanding of physical limitations while performing tasks at workstations without the use of their thumbs (taped down), impaired vision (various glasses) and impaired mobility (using crutches and wheelchairs). After discussing their experiences, they work in teams to create or improve on an adaptive device. Like biomedical engineers, students are challenged to design with the purpose of helping make a particular task easier for another person.

Students consider human senses and the many everyday human-made sensors so common in their lives. They learn about the three components of biosensors—a special type of sensor—and their functions and importance. With this understanding, students identify various organs in the human body that behave as sensors, such as the pancreas. Using LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT robots, provided rbt robot programs and LEGO sensors (light, ultrasonic, sound, touch), students gain first-hand experience with sensors and come to see how engineer-designed sensors play important roles in our daily lives, informing people of their surroundings and ultimately improving our quality of life.

Students follow the steps of the engineering design process to create their own ear trumpet devices (used before modern-day hearing aids), including testing them with a set of reproducible sounds. They learn to recognize different pitches, and see how engineers must test designs and materials to achieve the best amplifying properties.

Students discuss several human reproductive technologies available today pregnancy ultrasound, amniocentesis, in-vitro fertilization and labor anesthetics. They learn how each technology works, and that these are ways engineers have worked to improve the health of expecting mothers and babies.

Students use DNA profiling to determine who robbed a bank. After they learn how the FBI's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) is used to match crime scene DNA with tissue sample DNA, students use CODIS principles and sample DNA fragments to determine which of three suspects matches evidence obtain at a crime location. They communicate their results as if they were biomedical engineers reporting to a police crime scene investigation.

Student teams learn about and devise technical presentations on four reproductive technology topics pregnancy ultrasound, amniocentesis, in-vitro fertilization or labor anesthetics. Each team acts as a panel of engineers asked to make a presentation to a group of students unfamiliar with the reproductive technology. Each group incorporates non-lecture elements into its presentation for greater effectiveness. As students learn about the technologies, by creating a presentation and listening to other groups' presentations, they also learn more about the valuable skill of technical communications.