Anatomy, Physiology and Health Care Science Lesson Plan - ECGs

Time: 60-80 minutes

Summary of Lesson
Students will look at 4 different ECG strips and determine whether each is displaying regular or irregular
rhythm. The beats per minute, as well as, the occurrence of each part of an ECG wave will help the students
draw their conclusions.

NGSS Science Standard

HS-LS1-3 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.
[Clarification Statement: Examples of investigations could include heart rate response to exercise, stomate response to
moisture and temperature, and root development in response to water levels.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does
not include the cellular processes involved in the feedback mechanism.]

Objectives
1. Students will determine the beats per minute shown on an ECG strip
2. Students will identify if each part of the ECG wave is consistent (P wave, P-R interval, QRS complex,
Q-T interval, and T wave)
3. Students will use information they gather from the ECG strips to determine if the strip is showing a
regular or irregular heart beat
4. Students can work with partners on this activity or in small groups. Each group can

Materials
1. Lab handout (one per student) ** Handout can be found through Flinn Scientific
2. ECG strips (Case studies 1-4, 15 each)

Procedure
1. The background information was covered in a previous class period but students should be encouraged
to refer to the information as needed. Be sure to bring attention to the part of the instructions that talks
about calculating beats per minute. If throughout the lab the students struggle calculating bpm, they can
count the number of QRS peaks that occur within 6 seconds and multiply that number by 10 to get the
bpm
2. Give the students a few minutes to complete the pre-lab questions before starting the lab.
3. Students will work with one ECG strip at a time since there are not enough for each student to have
one of each.
4. Students will analyze each ECG strip and answer the associated questions in the lab handout. There
are questions that correspond to each case study.
5. Once every student has finished, the instructor will go over each case study with the students.