Ideas for Teaching a class titled "Pre-Med"

[Jccripe]

Guys, I am teaching this class in two weeks, and the students are gifted 7/8 to gifted High-Schoolers. I have 2.5 hour classes for two weeks. I need to make the class fun. What Kind of activities could I do other than dissections. I want to focus on the pre-med since I just graduated. What activites like, ethic discussion, mock interviews, or whatever. Thanks for the ideas.

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[jochi1543]

Some ethics cases would be interesting, indeed. Also, maybe tell them about various specialties - or even have THEM do research on several specialties and present it to the class. Let them play doctor by presenting some sort of imaginary case and giving them a list of possible diagnoses to pick from.

 

[OncoCaP]

There are many ways to approach this. You could use ER, Scrubs, etc. episodes as the basis for cases, specialty types, etc. This could provide a fun theme that leads into more serious educational topics that you need to cover in your class.

 

[smeagol]

7 and 8th grade!? Just play Operation

 

[maestro1625]

teach them the importance of not being dick-sucking little pricks... something they will need to remember along the way, and a skill that so many pre-meds would have benefited from if only they had learned a skill at an early age.

 

[greg1184]

You could add something on the whole application process and the politics of medical school.

 

[GuitarHero1]

teach them the importance of not being dick-sucking little pricks... something they will need to remember along the way, and a skill that so many pre-meds would have benefited from if only they had learned a skill at an early age.

Right on, very important. I'm sick of those stuck up undergrads. Also teach them the process of applying, and a timeline of what they could do each year in college so they have some kind of idea how to manage their time.

 

[jochi1543]

Just don't tell them about SDN.

 

[maestro1625]

Just don't tell them about SDN.

aww, but the 8th graders are always so amusing...

 

[SB100]

Start teaching organic chemistry and calc based physics...

 

[diosa428]

Have them do some critical reading. Maybe see if you can get your hands on an old SAT practice book and use the verbal passages. Not super fun, but a good skill to work on. You can even play games/give out candy to make it more fun.

 

[DrBowtie]

Scut them.

 

[Jacks Mannequin]

Give out a practice mcat section every day. Tell them if they think that's hard, they should quit while they can.

 

[63768]

Scut them.

amen.

 

[baylormed]

Why not be realistic in your approach?

Give them an overview of the following:

Biology
Physics
Chemistry
Organic Chemistry
Calculus/Statistics
Biochem

Also, you should have them do a few practice MCAT passages, fill out a couple of medical school secondary applications, write an essay on "why they want to be a doctor," and then make sure to have mock interviews with each of them.


Good luck!

 

[smeagol]

Don't scare them away

Otherwise, I won't get to see college premed_1832 declare sociology as their newfound passion after having taken General Chemistry.

 

[SoCuteMD]

Scut them.

Please, I am DAYS from Step 1. I've waited two years to be scutted. Those little nose-pickers can wait in line after ME!

(clearly SOMEONE is bored)

 

[AppleseedCast]

show them episodes of HOUSE MD

 

[custard]

Tell them to start keeping journals if they don't already. This will give them a wealth of information to work with when they start writing their personal statements. Also, I agree with the poster who said that you should get them to write about why they want to be doctors. Maybe you could also talk a little about those fast-track programs where you apply to med school from high school and get a BS and an MD in 6 or so years.

 

[ssquared]

If you can, get a local ambulance and EMTs to come visit. Nothing's cooler than being able to see the inside of an ambulance.

Also, see if you can get your hands on any surgery videos. Local schools/libraries might have some tapes, and there are a few web sites with videos. Those would be highly entertaining.

 

[jace's mom]

You might tell them a little bit about public health medicine and how epidemiology works. The CDC has some good online example epi lessons that are interesting...all these people ate at a wedding and got sick, look at the data and figure out what made them sick, etc. You'll have to simplify it a bit for the kids to use, but the lessons are always fun because it's like solving a logic puzzle.

 

[sosarah]

1) Start out boring. Try the Krebbs Cycle.

2) Wait for somone to fall asleep

3) Break his legs

4) Let everyone else treat him

I love this, but seriously, you could teach them how to do H&P on each other and have them take a "what's the right specialty for me?" quiz. I think there's a few on the net. Learning about lifestyle and ethics would also be great I think. Not that you want to discourage these kids from going pre-med, but I think that the sooner they are presented with reality the better. At that age, many of them are probably thinking that it's just 9-5 job with a huge paycheck. You and I both know that that's not right and that no matter what size the paycheck in, just TRYING to be a physician is a lot of work and stress. They need to realize that all their friends majoring in Elementary Ed. are going to be really hard to socialize with when their biggest homework assignments in college consist of coloring inside the lines and reading Harry Potter. Teach them that it takes dedication and passion.

 

[eagleeye]

I love this, but seriously, you could teach them how to do H&P on each other and have them take a "what's the right specialty for me?" quiz. I think there's a few on the net. Learning about lifestyle and ethics would also be great I think. Not that you want to discourage these kids from going pre-med, but I think that the sooner they are presented with reality the better. At that age, many of them are probably thinking that it's just 9-5 job with a huge paycheck. You and I both know that that's not right and that no matter what size the paycheck in, just TRYING to be a physician is a lot of work and stress. They need to realize that all their friends majoring in Elementary Ed. are going to be really hard to socialize with when their biggest homework assignments in college consist of coloring inside the lines and reading Harry Potter. Teach them that it takes dedication and passion.

The H&P is a good idea. If you know how to take bp, then you or your school can purchase cheap bp kits at a pharmacy. Otherwise, you can ask an EMT, paramedic, or ED Tech to demonstrate what they do in their jobs. Since many people working in these areas are premeds as well, they can say they volunteered their time to teaching 7th and 8th graders.

You could also have the students act as an admissions committee. You can make up the applications and have the students meet in committees, then make a decision about acceptance, rejection or waitlist.

Some fun simple experiments include the egg drop, the super needle balloon, and the simple motor. All of these experiments are on the web. I'll briefly describe each.

Egg Drop
Materials- 3 sheets of paper, one yard of tape, scissors, 1 egg.
Purpose of the experiment is to use the allotted materials to make a container for your egg. The container should be strong enough to protect the egg when it is dropped from 2 meters. Teaches students about safety belts and airbags.

Super Needle Balloon
Materials- A pack of wooden skewers, a bag of balloons and petroleum jelly.
Purpose is to blow up a balloon with air. Take a skewer and insert the pointed end of the skewer at the densest part of the balloon. At this point the balloon should have popped because the petroleum jelly acts to make a seal. With a new blown up balloon put a dab of petroleum jelly at each of the densest part of the balloon. Reinsert a skewer at the densest part of the balloon at one end, go to the other side and exit the balloon. Take the skewer out and pop the balloon for effect. Teaches students about proteins and permeabilty.

Simple Motor
Materials- Cup, tape, copper wire, 5 magnets, leads, 2 paper clips and a battery.
Purpose is to make a simple motor.
Teaches students about magnetic fields, circuits and balancing.