Issued:  2025-2026

Type:  Teacher grant

Amount:  $1,350

Reach:  150+ students each year

Applicant(s):  Mary Ellen Chaffin

Description:

 I am in my 5th year teaching Anatomy and Physiology and have done so using diagrams, pictures, small models and 18-inch skeletons. The 18-inch skeletons are ineffective for whole class instruction because only students seated at the front of the room can see it. For the same reason we have large whiteboards at the front of the classroom, a life-sized skeleton would be visible to all students in the classroom. 

It can be difficult for students to understand anatomical structures and the relationships between body systems; the fact that one body system cannot function effectively without others working in concert. (The cardiovascular system and respiratory system work together to circulate oxygen and remove carbon dioxide). 

SAM the skeleton is a life-sized model that would give my students the ability to see the interactions of bones, muscles and ligaments in the human body. In addition, SAM would allow them to visualize real-life anatomical relationships. Examples include but are not limited to: the relative size of the femur vs. the bones in the lower leg (tibia/fibula), the actual size of the rib cage and the organs and body systems it protects, identification of bones and muscle origins and insertions, human pelvis anatomy which they often struggle to understand (pelvis, hip, ilium, ischium and pubis bones), kinesiology and joint motion. There are absolutely no limits to the impact this could have on my instruction and my students’ learning. My Biology classes would benefit from SAM as well because we talk about body systems, cellular hierarchy, and homeostasis. I could give you page after page of the enormous impact(s) SAM would have on student engagement.