Lesson Plan: Components of the Blood Biology
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to describe the structure and function of the major components of the blood.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- recall that blood is a fluid connective tissue that transports useful and waste substances around the body, helps maintain homeostasis, and protects the body from injury and disease,
- recall that the average human adult has around 5-6 liters of blood in their body,
- state the components of the blood as being red blood cells (erythrocytes), plasma, platelets, and white blood cells (phagocytes and lymphocytes),
- describe the composition of blood as being largely plasma (containing water, salts, proteins, and waste products), with a large proportion of red blood cells and a small volume of platelets and white blood cells,
- describe the structure of red blood cells as being biconcave and having no nucleus,
- describe the function of red blood cells in binding to and transporting oxygen around the body,
- recall that the function of white blood cells is to protect the body from disease,
- recall that the function of platelets is to help the blood form clots at the site of injury.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- the fact that blood is transported around the body,
- the fact that the heart pumps blood.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- phagocytosis or the immune response,
- oxygen loading/unloading,
- the mechanism of blood clotting.
