Ernie's Exit Blood Typing Lab

If you teach Blood Typing and you haven't tried "Ernie's Exit" from The Science Spot you're missing out.

Ernie's Exit - The Science Spot

Typical Blood Typing Lab simulations cost around $40 for materials.  This lab costs less than $5 and is incredibly easy to set up.  The only things to purchase are milk, vinegar, red food coloring, and toothpicks.










The lab instructions mention using cups to mix the substances, but I use washable well plates because that's what I have on hand in my classroom.  Students rotate through 6 stations testing three suspects' blood, the victim's blood, and two samples from the crime scene.











The scenario is silly enough that students are engaged but not upset about the crime committed, and the suspects have silly nicknames as well.  Find out if Barbie Doll Jones or Slim Jim Snoot is the criminal!

This also pairs well with the Nobel Prize Blood typing online lab.

Students then have a hands on lab and an effective computer simulation to learn from.  Together with a short lecture or text reading, and the topic of blood types is successfully taught to most students.

I use these every year in combination and my students are engaged and walk away with a better understanding of the blood typing system.


Both Activities above are free online - but if you have interest in seeing the resources available in my TPT store, click on the link to see what free and paid activities I have created.

Dorky Science Joke to send you on your way -  "What's the best blood type for teachers?    A+ !"

The Wonderful World of Task Cards

Toward the middle of last school year, I discovered the wonderful world of task cards.  Now, I'd been forcing my students to move around the room to review stations for some time - but this is much more effective.  Each card has a question and a number, and students can choose which questions they'd like to answer.  They're full color - with engaging graphics, and the students really like them.  Some even have QR codes, or ask students to perform artistic tasks like drawing, writing poetry, or inventing superheroes.

I've been particularly enamored with a few users on TPT, including Surviving Science, Bond with James, Brilliant Biology, and The Science Duo.

After having these printed in full color, and laminating them in the school library (thanks go to our AWESOME librarian), I can keep these for years to come.

My favorite thing to do has been separating them into six categories and pushing my tables into six groups with table tent category labels.  Students are required to spend a certain amount of time at each table and then rotate, recording their answers on notebook paper or the worksheet provided.

So today, when i couldn't find a set of task cards with enough detail for anatomy, I created my own.  The first set is about epithelial tissue types, and I'm working on one about connective tissue types as well.

I chose to make my cards a little smaller than some of the ones on TPT, so it takes less paper and laminating material to make them - although I'm still toying with the idea of making them bigger like the others I've seen.

I hope you give task cards a try in your classroom - they're such an effective strategy!