Description
Forensic Anatomy Course Overview:
This class is approved by the NCAA.
What is a bone sleuth and how is the study of bones used to solve crimes and help bring closure to families?
This Forensic Anatomy course will address these questions and instruct students how forensic anthropologists are able to determine age, gender, stature, and nationality of human remains.
In addition, students will learn how this important branch of Forensic Science goes beyond the study of fingerprints and blood spatter to help establish time of death, as well as both cause and manner of death in an investigation.
In this course, students will study human anatomy with special emphasis placed on the knowledge and skills used by Forensic Anthropologists by reading accounts of the famed Dr. Bill Bass, who created the world's first laboratory dedicated to the study of human decomposition.
Students will learn basic introductory human anatomy through coloring, a proven method for improving your memory by building strong visual relationships. A variety of online and hands-on activities will supplement the core course curriculum.
Prerequisites
- No prerequisites
Grade Levels
- 10-12
Curriculum
- Beyond the Body Farm, by Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson, ©2008 Harper Paperbacks, ISBN 9780060875282
- Human Anatomy Coloring Book, by Margaret Matt and Joe Ziemian, ©1982 Dover Publications, ISBN 9780486241388
Required Equipment
- A list of consumable supplies will be made available to students at the beginning of the semester. Care will be shown to ensure that needed supplies are easy and inexpensive to obtain.
Learning Activities and Experiments
- While there are several hands on assignments, this class is not considered a lab course.
Course Topics
- Determining Nationality & Systems of the Human Body
- Skull Morphology & Skeletal System
- Using UV Light to Illuminate Identity & Spine & Axial Skeleton
- Interpreting Teeth and Trauma & Appendicular Skeleton
- Dealing with Mass Disaster & Muscular System
- Determining Time Since Death & Torso and Limb Muscles
- Frontal Sinus Fingerprint, Bite Marks & Circulatory System
- Forensic Entomology & Pulmonary Circulation
- Determining Race & Arteries and Veins
- Electron Microscopy & Respiratory System
- DNA Evidence & Trachea
- Searching with Sonar & Nervous System
- Facial Reconstruction & Digestive System
- X-Ray examinations & Endocrine, Lymph Systems
- DNA testing & Course Review
Estimated Workload
Students will cover one chapter in the primary textbook (Beyond the Body Farm) each week and 2 to 4 coloring pages in the secondary textbook (Human Anatomy Coloring Book). In addition an online assignment is given each week to reinforce or expand the learning. Students should expect to spend 30 minutes each day on Forensic Anatomy, but time varies greatly depending on individual aptitude and ability.
