Dissection: joints, tendons and muscle

Our biology lessons turned into a practical in the kitchen today.  We've been using the Sonlight Science F books to learn about how our bodies work, and we've especially been enjoying the experiments set out in the book Blood and Guts by Linda Allison.

I set both children up to do this, even though Maestro had done this before.  If you have an older homeschooler, then it's a great way for them to share their knowledge and test if they do remember what they've learned a few years before.

To start with, take the thigh and leg (Maryland cut) from the chicken.  Notice the feather bumps on the skin.

Carefully pull off the skin, and you can see the underlayer with fat and capillaries.  There is also some thin connective tissue.

We flexed the leg to notice how the muscles contracted and relaxed, then found where the tendons connect the muscle to the bone.  The ligaments are the pearly white sheets surrounding the muscles.

Next, the children very carefully cut between the thigh and drumstick.  There were a few 'eeww's from Mariposa when hers made a loud 'click' and squelch sound.

Maestro shows the joint exposed, but not yet fully separated:

Finally separated:

Here's the book to show you what we followed for instructions.  This has been a great book for simple explanations and fun experiments which can be done at home.

The experiment over, the children washed up thoroughly and we then turned those chicken pieces into a delicious crockpot curry.


Until next post!

Catherine