Unit 5 Reflection

Some of the essential themes from this unit were how the different systems worked together to provide energy for the body and regulate waste and hormone levels. I thought the lymphatic system was particularly interesting because I did not know that there were lymph vessels that circulated throughout the body just as blood vessels do. I also thought the "heart" of the lymphatic system was cool, because it was almost like there was a separate heart pumping the lymph throughout the body. One strength I had throughout this unit was being able to grasp the different systems well and know how each one worked in terms of all its components and its specific functions, as well as how all the parts united to serve its overall purpose. A weakness for me was understanding metabolism; I was confused on the different processes and the organs and steps that were involved and it took me a long time to understand it fully. One activity that I enjoyed this unit was the digestive system lab because through it I was able to understand how large our digestive organs really are when they are fully stretched out. here is a link to the lab questions, as well as a picture of my findings in a table:
http://alexandriatso17.blogspot.com/2016/01/digestive-system-lab-questions.html
Through this lab I was able to learn that the digestive system has evolved to efficiently maximize its space and use by folding up into a tiny structure that can fit within our abdominal cavity. I would like to learn more about the lymphatic system, specifically what the spleen does in general because I felt like we kind of glossed over it with just the big functions and not really how its related to the lymph system, or why its even in the same lecture if it is not considered a part of the lymphatic system.

Here are two videos that I enjoyed watching on the digestive system and lymphatic system to study:

As for my new year goals, I have been sleeping a lot earlier, but I still sleep past midnight quite often. Next steps will include continuing my progress in less procrastination and trying to sleep earlier. now that SATs are over, it should be much easier to catch up on sleep because I have one less thing to study for. My notebook is also more organized; I take more care to write neatly, although sometimes the lecture is a bit too fast and it is hard to keep up, or I am falling asleep. To improve this, I will try to be more awake by sleeping earlier as mentioned before, and also continue writing neatly in all my notebook assignments to maximize organization.