Unit 3.1 Cardiopulmonary Connection: Cardiovascular and respiratory systems, blood vessels, heart structure, EKG interpretation.
What to do if absent- CER:
- Claim, Evidence, Reasoning — make a claim, back it with evidence, explain your reasoning.
- SOP:
- Standard Operating Procedure — the exact steps to follow (especially in a lab).
- Tracker:
- Your PLTW progress log where you record completed evidence.
- myPLTW:
- The PLTW course site where you do the online activities — you open it through Schoology.
Week overview - Cardiopulmonary Connection: heart structure and reading an EKG
Trace blood flow through the four chambers of the heart and interpret the basic features of an EKG tracing across the cardiac cycle.
- 1Label the atria, ventricles, and major vessels on a heart diagram or model.
- 2Define artery, vein, and capillary and describe what each type of vessel does.
- 3Trace one drop of blood from the body through the heart, lungs, and back out to the body.
- 4Identify the parts of the cardiac cycle and connect them to a heartbeat you can feel as a pulse.
- 5Examine a sample EKG and locate the repeating pattern that marks each beat.
- 6Compare a normal EKG to an irregular one and describe one visible difference.
- • You will be able to trace blood flow through the four heart chambers.
- • You will be able to distinguish arteries, veins, and capillaries by function.
- • You will be able to identify the repeating pattern in an EKG tracing.
Daily lessons this week
Open any day for its full lesson, the work due that day, and guided notes.
Written ranking of transplant allocation criteria with a one-sentence justification for the top criterion and acknowledgment of one tradeoff.
Annotated heart diagram with blood path traced from right atrium through the pulmonary and systemic circuits, labeled with chamber names, major vessels, and cardiac cycle phases.
Annotated EKG trace with P, QRS, and T waves labeled and linked to cardiac cycle phases, plus a data table recording resting pulse and blood pressure with units.
Written CER comparing EKG and blood-pressure data to normal reference ranges: specific claim, two measurement evidence entries, mechanism-based reasoning, and one factor that could alter readings.
Completed weekly progress tracker showing submission status for the blood-path diagram, EKG trace, and CER, plus a written reflection naming one mastered concept and one to revisit.
Quick intro to the week
- Hook: your heart beats about 100,000 times a day, and an EKG lets a clinician read every one of those beats.
- Today's goal: trace blood through the heart and read the basic shape of an EKG.
- This week's Monday bioethics debate: who should get priority for a heart transplant when organs are scarce?
- Reminder: your graded cardiovascular data check lives in the PLTW course shell, not on loose paper.
Your PLTW coursework this week
Do this: Advance the PLTW Cardiopulmonary Connection benchmark by completing the online evidence on heart structure and EKG interpretation in the course shell.
- • Blood flows through the heart in a fixed path between atria, ventricles, lungs, and body.
- • Arteries, veins, and capillaries each play a distinct role in circulation.
- • An EKG records the electrical activity of the cardiac cycle as a repeating pattern.
- • Trace blood flow through the chambers of the heart.
- • Identify the basic features of a normal EKG tracing.
📋 PLTW evidence due: cardiovascular data check tracing heart blood flow and labeling EKG features, submitted in the course shell.
All PLTW activities are completed inside the PLTW course environment — this page only gives direction.
This week's PLTW tracker
Your week at a glance. Check off each deliverable as you finish it, then submit so Mr. Mendoza can see how the class is pacing.
Use the code Mr. Mendoza gave you, not your name. Saved on this device.
| Day | Date | Focus | Key deliverable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Fri, Apr 16 | Heart transplant allocation debate | Written ranking of transplant allocation criteria with a one-sentence justification for the top criterion and acknowledgment of one tradeoff. |
| Tuesday | Mon, Apr 19 | Heart structure and cycle | Annotated heart diagram with blood path traced from right atrium through the pulmonary and systemic circuits, labeled with chamber names, major vessels, and cardiac cycle phases. |
| Wednesday | Tue, Apr 20 | Heart model and EKG | Annotated EKG trace with P, QRS, and T waves labeled and linked to cardiac cycle phases, plus a data table recording resting pulse and blood pressure with units. |
| Thursday | Wed, Apr 21 | Cardiac data CER analysis | Written CER comparing EKG and blood-pressure data to normal reference ranges: specific claim, two measurement evidence entries, mechanism-based reasoning, and one factor that could alter readings. |
| Friday | Thu, Apr 22 | Submit tracker and evidence | Completed weekly progress tracker showing submission status for the blood-path diagram, EKG trace, and CER, plus a written reflection naming one mastered concept and one to revisit. |
- M: Philosophy for Kids / John Carroll bioethical debate
- T: teacher background notes + PLTW launch task
- W: lab / data or model work
- Th: analysis / CER or design revision
- F: submit tracker + weekly evidence
Due by week's end: Cardiovascular data check.
Lab day — what to bring & watch
This explainer accompanies the PLTW lab protocol — watch it before lab.
What to do when absent
Most days, this class is your PLTW coursework — and PLTW is online and individual. So being out usually just means doing exactly what we did in class, from home.
Open Schoology (CMSD) and keep goingHow to get there: open the CMSD website, click Clever, sign in with your Microsoft (district) account, then open Schoology from Clever.
You can't do those from home — do this instead: Teacher-posted data/model packet, same objective. Supplemental: Khan: circulatory system; EKG basics teacher-selected.
Class still runs. A substitute will post today's plan — complete the online activity above; it's built to be self-guided. Need the concept taught without a teacher? Use this authoritative explainer:
MedlinePlus: Electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG)Vocabulary
Virtual resources
Standards this week
WebXam practice
Drop your Week 12 here. Use a clear file name (your initials + project). Routine work still goes to Schoology (via the CMSD portal).
Upload a project