Learning the bones???

AGoodmanRNbound · May 13, 2004

Lumen is good, but I preferred these two for the bones:

http://www.getbodysmart.com/

http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/esp/2002_general/Esp/default.htm

Andrew

Tx-top nurse · May 13, 2004

I took my husband had him lye on the bed and went over every bone in his body, using my colored book as a guide. Got an a in the class. Clue is to keep going over it and over it until you practically are dreaming bones and muscles....

good luck!

Energizer Bunny · May 14, 2004

I photocopied my lab book and practiced, practiced, practiced. We also had skeletons in the lab that I spent lots of time with so I would know it for the practical. It sometimes looks different on the skeleton than on the paper. Good luck!

mauser · May 14, 2004

Sorry, I "short-cut" it to my FAVORITES.

It is http://www.gen.umn.edu/faculty_staff/jensen/1135/webanatomy/

Or you could just type WebAnatomy in google.

shel_wny · May 14, 2004

There is this website called Study Stack at http://www.studystack.com.

It's wonderful for any memorization you'll ever need to do.

It's a virtual way of making flashcards and after you make flashcards you can play matching games and other games with them to help you memorize them.

It has been invaluable to me and it's very simple to use.

I highly recommend it. :)

Shel

bbear · May 15, 2004

Be careful about trying to learn the bones exclusively from books, workbooks, coloring books, etc. I liked the coloring book a lot for memorization, but looking at the bones in books doesn't necessarily lead to a high degree of comprehension. Books represent a 1-dimensional view of the bones, which makes it difficult to see many of the subtle structures and features necessary to comprehend a bone's function or significance. I'm not saying what you're doing is wrong, by any means. I think it's great that you're trying to get a jump on learning the material, but, ideally, I would try to figure out how to get in some extra lab time as well after the semester begins. In doing so, you'll be able to spend more time looking at the 3-dimensional models.

Allow me to illustrate what I'm talking about. The radius and the ulna are the 2 bones of your lower arm. They are fairly easily identified when you see them together in a book. But if your instructor takes just one of those bones, tosses it on a table, and asks you to identify it, and tell him/her which is the anterior vs. posterior aspect, and the superior vs. inferior aspect--well, that's another story entirely (and this is exactly what happens in anatomy lab during tests/quizzes). You don't have any spatial relationships you can use to help you identify what the bone is and where it belongs.

What is difficult to see (or at least appreciate) in drawings/pictures (but is easily seen in a 3-D model) is that the ulna has a "radial notch" on it. This radial notch is where the ulna connects to the radius. Once you find this structure on the ulna you can place the bone in its correct anatomical position because you know that the radial notch of the ulna is a lateral structure of the ulna (because, since it articulates with the radius) it faces to the outside [laterally] when in the correct anatomical position), and you can tell which is the superior (top) part of the ulna and which is the inferior (bottom) part of the ulna, since you know that the radial notch of the ulna articulates with the humerous at the superior end of the lower arm, just inferior to the capitulum (boney projection) of the humerus (upper arm).

Yes, I realize that sounds long-winded and ridiculous if you haven't yet had any exposure to it. I'm just trying to point out that it is simply impossible to be able to do that kind of deductive reasoning with a picture on a piece of paper. So while I'd encourage you to color away, try to figure out how to get some extra time in with some real bones. It will help your comprehension tremendously.

EmeraldNYL, BSN, RN · May 15, 2004

To remember the carpal bones of the hand, try the mnemonic: Some Lovers Try Positions That They Can't Handle (scaphoid, lunate, triquetral, pisiform, trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, hamate)

angelac1978 · May 15, 2004

or you could use this one for the carpals (depending on what names you learned for them, since some have more than one name)

Never Lower Tilly's Pants

GrandMa Might Come Home

(navicular, lunate, triquetirum, pisiform, greater multangular, lesser multangular, capitate, hamate)

we actually had to learn all the names for the carpals.

A

Achoo!, LPN · May 15, 2004

or you could use this one for the carpals (depending on what names you learned for them, since some have more than one name)
Never Lower Tilly's Pants
GrandMa Might Come Home
(navicular, lunate, triquetirum, pisiform, greater multangular, lesser multangular, capitate, hamate)
we actually had to learn all the names for the carpals.
A

some lovers try positions that they can't handle :rotfl:

s- scaphoid

l- lunate

t- triquitrium

p-pisiform

t- trapezoid

t-trapezium

c-capitate

h- hamate

Once I learned the vocabulary it was pretty easy, such as foramen is a hole, spine protrudes out, where fossa is a groove inward, superior, inferior etc..

Kabin · May 15, 2004

I photo copied the textbook sections covering current muscle/bone groups. Then used white-out to cover the labels to pertinent muscles/bones for memory work. I then took a blank paper and wrote out the guessed names in the same pattern/order as the blotted out figures. When the guessing/recall was done, I compared my answer sheet to the textbook. Worked like a charm. :coollook:

jenrninmi, MSN, RN · May 15, 2004

some lovers try positions that they can't handle :rotfl:
s- scaphoid
l- lunate
t- triquitrium
p-pisiform
t- trapezoid
t-trapezium
c-capitate
h- hamate
Once I learned the vocabulary it was pretty easy, such as foramen is a hole, spine protrudes out, where fossa is a groove inward, superior, inferior etc..

That works like a charm unless your instructor chooses to use only one bone. You need to know what each bone looks like on their own. For example, my prof was notorious for doing this. He would just set out a lunate bone (not connected to any of the other bones) and you would need to know what bone it was.

FirePup · May 15, 2004

You might also try to find Netter's Anatomy Flash Cards...They REALLY helped me out. I used them together with the anatomy coloring book...not just the bones, for the whole class. You can find the flash cards on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1929007086/qid=1084658729/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/002-1883208-9171233?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

Also...I found that copying the pages of the coloring book and putting white out over the words then putting a blank overhead over top you can just write what it is by the part and wipe off with water for the next