Author:
Jamelyn Denny
Subject:
Health, Medicine and Nursing, Anatomy/Physiology, Biology
Material Type:
Activity/Lab
Level:
High School
Tags:
License:
Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial
Language:
English

Education Standards

Muscle fatigue and roles of the respiratory and circulatory systems

Overview

Learning Outcome: Students design and conduct an investigation on muscle fatigue in order to surface the roles of the respiratory and circulatory systems in maintaining a dynamic equilibrium.

 

EXPLORE: LAB        Topic: Muscle fatigue and roles of the respiratory and circulatory systems 

Teacher Plan - Adapted from New Visions for Public Schools

Nebraska’s College and Career Ready Standards for Science - Biology 

Structure and Function: SC.HS.6.1.C. Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.
Structure and Function:
SC.HSP.6.1.B. Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.

Nebraska Advanced Health Science Standards
Standard 3: Students will survey basic human structure and function and disease processes.        Benchmarks 3.1 and 3.2 Students will appreciate the support and transportation systems of the human body.

Generating observations and identifying patterns regarding how body systems interact in order to maintain homeostasis

Learning Outcome: Students design and conduct an investigation on muscle fatigue in order to surface the roles of the respiratory and circulatory systems in maintaining a dynamic equilibrium.

 

Materials Handouts - print handouts or make an assignment on Canvas or Google ClassroomLab Materials
  • Per lab group:
  • stopwatch
  • Test tube clamp, dumbbell, or heavy object (depending on experiment setup)
  • One-to-one computers if lab is being done online or via Zoom
Pre-WorkStudent Grouping
  • Lab groups of 3-4 students
This lab will take approximately one block period (80 minutes). 

 

Instructional Sequence
1Pre-lab: Launch students into an exploration of the relationship between the circulatory and respiratory systems. Walk through the introduction together, using these slides. Have a short discussion with students about what types of muscle fibers are most used in their favorite sports.
2Confer with students as they work in a collaborative group. Suggested conferring questions (these should push students’ thinking around establishing relationships, observing patterns, identifying variables, and questioning events):
  • What are the independent and dependent variables in this experiment?
  • Why does the heart pump faster when you are exercising?
  • Why do your legs feel shaky after you have exercised for a long period of time?
3Students are asked to design an experiment to investigate their experiment question. This is a great opportunity to review and strengthen students' understanding of experimental design, data collection, and scientific inquiry.
4

 Plan forward based on the various understandings that students or student groups have articulated. It is appropriate to go onto the next phase once students have had a chance to make sense of the data.

 

 

Modifications:

  • Give students examples of potential experimental questions that they could use.
  • Allow students to use the example procedure or help them write out their own procedure.
  • Give students the chart in which they will record data.
  • Be purposeful in assigning lab groups.
Notes for virtual learning:
  • If school is taking place remotely, make use of breakout rooms in Zoom for lab groups. As the instructor, you can move in and out of the rooms to check in with students and answer questions.
  • For students doing this lab at home without access to test tube clamps or dumbbells, any heavy object such as a milk jug, backpack, or large book can be used to add load to an exercise such as squats. Or students can perform bodyweight exercises such as push-ups or lunges.

 

 

 


Student Lab Handout:

 

Muscle Fatigue Lab: Circulatory & Respiratory Systems

Intro to Health Sciences

Name:

Date:

Sources:

Lab adapted from New Visions for Public Schools Circulatory and Respiratory System 5E 

Slides for pre-activity presentation: https://www.cusd80.com/cms/lib/AZ01001175/Centricity/Domain/8147/Muscle%20Fatigue%20Lab.pdf
Good resource: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5668469/

Introduction
  • Skeletal muscles move the bones in the skeleton. When the muscles contract, it makes the joints able to move and lets us engage in physical activity of all kinds.  Chemical energy is needed to cause muscles to contract. The chemical energy is a result of cellular respiration.
  • Skeletal muscle is made of two different kinds of fibers: fast twitch (FT) and slow twitch (ST). On average, we have about half ST fibers and half FT fibers. However, elite athletes have different amounts of ST and FT fibers. Depending on their sport they may have much more of one type than the other.
  • Fast twitch fibers use up energy very quickly. The muscle fibers contract very fast. They are used in activities that are short, but intense. Stop-and-go, change-of-pace movements in many team sports depend on FT fibers. Sprinting and other quick, forceful movements also use the fast twitch fibers
  • Slow twitch fibers do not get tired as quickly. They are used during prolonged, low to moderate intensity activities. Athletes with good endurance and aerobic capacities, like marathon runners and cross-country skiers have very high percentages of ST fibers.
  • Dark and White Meat:
  • Chickens have fast and slow twitch muscle, too. Dark meat, like in chicken legs, is mainly made up of slow twitch fibers. White meat, like in chicken wings and breasts, is largely made up of fast twitch muscle fibers. Chickens use their legs for walking and standing, which they do most of the time. This doesn't use much energy. They use their wings for brief bursts of flight. This requires lots of energy and the muscles involved tire very quickly.
Purpose of this Lab: Demonstrate how muscle fatigue works

Experimental Question:

 

 

 

HypothesisA good hypothesis has this format and punctuation: If __________________, then __________________ because __________________.

 

 

Independent VariableDependent Variable
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  •  
Control GroupControlled Variable(s)
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  •  
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Procedure EXAMPLE: (You need to write your own)
  1. Create a chart to show the data collected in this experiment.
  2. Work with a partner.
  3. Hold the test tube clamp in the hand that you use to write (your dominant hand). (You could also generate muscular fatigue with a dumbbell or bodyweight exercise like push-ups.)
  4. Squeeze the clamp with your thumb and first two fingers until your fingers meet.
  5. Relax your grip until the clamp is back in its original position. This is one squeeze.
  6. Using the timer, your partner will record the number of squeezes (or exercise repetitions) you can do every 30 seconds for a total of 150 continuous seconds (5 trials).
  7. Count the number of squeezes (or reps) out loud.
  8. At the end of the first 30 second period your partner will record the number of squeezes you made in your data chart. You continue to squeeze the clamp. Record the number of squeezes after 60, 90, 120, and 150 seconds.
  9. Switch. Now your partner does steps 3-8.
  10. Copy down your partner’s data.

Your Procedure:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

Results - Create your chart below

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Analysis & Conclusion: Was your hypothesis supported?  Be sure to explain your reasoning! (Sentence starters: “Yes, my hypothesis was supported.  I know this because…” or “No, my hypothesis was not correct.  It was proven to be false because…”)
  • What did your results show?
 
  • My hypothesis was / was not supported…

 

  • How did your experiment design compare to other groups’ designs?

 

  • How did your results compare to the results of other groups?

 

Think - Talk - Open Exchange

Describe
  • Describe what you did in the lab below. Why do you think that this lab was done in class for this unit?
Explain
  • Explain the phenomena that you observed during this lab. How does this relate to what we are studying in this unit?
  

 


 

Construct a Scientific Explanation

 

Using the steps below and the information in the boxes you have completed, write a scientific explanation.

 

Scientific Explanation = Claim + Evidence + Scientific Reasoning

 

  1. State your claim
  2. Explain the evidence (from the Explore) that supports your claim
  3. Explain the science concepts that support the evidence
  4. Explain the scientific reasoning that links the evidence and science concepts to the claim

 

Scientific Explanation