Course Syllabus · 2026–2027
Mr. Ryan Sajdak
City Honors School
186 E. North Street, Buffalo, NY 14204
Anatomy & Physiology
A detailed study of the human body, system by system, from the chemical level up to the whole organism. Two ideas hold the entire year together: structure determines function, and homeostasis is what keeps you alive. Nearly every disease we look at is a failure of one or the other.
- Teacher
- Mr. Sajdak
- School year
- 2026–2027
- Units
- 16 units · 11 body systems
- Lab work
- Dissection, microscopy, physiology experiments
- Grading
- Numeric · 10-week marking periods
About this course
Welcome. If something isn't working, tell me and we will fix it. Families, reach out any time.
The Buffalo Public Schools curriculum, in an order that builds: tissues before organs, the heart before the vessels it fills, the nervous system before the endocrine system it partners with.
Four threads run through every unit:
- Homeostasis. How the body holds conditions steady.
- Structure and function. Why a part is shaped the way it is.
- Interrelationship. No system works alone.
- Disease and disorder. What happens when regulation fails.
Lab work
Dissection of preserved specimens, microscopy, physiology experiments, and simulations.
Questions we keep coming back to
Every unit, with a different system plugged in.
- Why is homeostasis essential to maintaining the human body?
- How does the body respond to internal and external change?
- How does a diseased state compromise normal physiology?
- How do the 11 body systems work together to stay regulated?
- What is the relationship between a structure's anatomy and its function?
- How is the body organized from the cellular level to the organism?
Units at a glance
The shape of the year. Exact dates live on the weekly schedule.
-
Introduction to Anatomy & Physiology
Chapter 1
How the body is organized, how it keeps itself steady, and the anatomical terms we use all year.
- Levels of organization
- Homeostasis
- Feedback mechanisms
- Anatomical terminology
-
Tissues
Chapter 4
The four tissue types under a microscope, and how damaged tissue signals injury or disease.
- Histology
- Epithelial
- Connective
- Muscle & nervous tissue
-
The Integumentary System
Chapter 5
Skin, hair, nails, and glands — protection, temperature control, and vitamin D.
- Skin layers
- Thermoregulation
- Sensory receptors
- Vitamin D
-
The Skeletal System
Chapter 6
Bones, cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. Bone is living tissue that reshapes itself under stress.
- Bone structure
- Remodeling
- Joints
- Cartilage & ligaments
-
The Muscular System
Chapter 7
How muscle fibers contract to produce movement, posture, joint stability — and most of your body heat.
- Muscle fibers
- Contraction
- Posture & stability
- Heat production
-
The Nervous System
Chapter 8
Brain, spinal cord, and nerves: fast, precise control measured in seconds.
- Neurons
- Brain & spinal cord
- Sensory & motor pathways
- Reflexes
-
The Endocrine System
Chapter 10
Hormones released straight into the blood — slower, broader control measured in hours and weeks.
- Hormones
- Ductless glands
- Receptor sites
- Endocrine disorders
-
Cardiovascular: Blood
Chapter 11
What blood carries and what it's made of: plasma, red cells, white cells, platelets.
- Plasma
- Red & white cells
- Platelets
- Blood typing
-
Cardiovascular: The Heart
Chapter 12
The four-chambered pump and the two circuits it drives — one to the lungs, one to everything else.
- Heart chambers
- Pulmonary circuit
- Systemic circuit
- Cardiac cycle
-
Cardiovascular: Blood Vessels
Chapter 13
Arteries, capillaries, veins. Almost all the real exchange happens across capillary walls.
- Arteries & veins
- Capillary exchange
- Blood pressure
- Circulation routes
-
The Lymphoid System and Immunity
Chapter 14
General defenses versus targeted ones, and how the immune system remembers a threat.
- Lymphocytes
- Nonspecific defense
- Antibodies
- Immune response
-
The Respiratory System
Chapter 15
Gas exchange in the alveoli, moving air in and out, and keeping those surfaces clean.
- Alveoli
- Gas exchange
- Ventilation
- Airway defense
-
The Digestive System
Chapter 16
The tract from mouth to anus, plus pancreas, liver, and gallbladder — how food becomes usable.
- Digestive tract
- Accessory organs
- Absorption
- Nutrients
-
The Urinary System
Chapter 18
Kidneys, bladder, and the nephron: filtering waste and balancing water and salt.
- Nephrons
- Filtration
- Reabsorption
- Fluid balance
-
The Reproductive System
Chapter 19
Reproductive anatomy, gametes, hormonal cycles, and fertilization.
- Gametes
- Reproductive anatomy
- Hormonal cycles
- Fertilization
-
Review and Synthesis
Cumulative
Pulling the year together — how the systems depend on each other, and what happens when one fails.
- Systems integration
- Case analysis
- Cumulative review
Standards
New York State science standards. You are graded on more than naming parts:
- Ask good questions
- Read and interpret data
- Build and use models
- Make an argument and back it with evidence
- Explain your reasoning clearly to someone else
Per-lesson standards are on the weekly schedule.
In this classroom
Lab days add to this, and those rules are stricter.
What I expect
- Be here on time and ready to start.
- Listen to whoever is talking, me or a classmate.
- Say the word out loud, even if you'll mangle it. That is how you learn it.
- Give the work a real attempt before deciding it is too hard.
- Say something when you need help. Each system builds on the last.
- Leave the room the way you'd want to find it, models and slides included.
Phones and devices
- We follow the Buffalo Public Schools cell phone policy.
- Your district laptop, charged, is the device for anything needing a computer.
If you finish early
Check the work with me first, then pick any of these:
- Practice labeling the diagrams for the system we're on. Best use of ten spare minutes in this course.
- The unit's review activities in our class app.
- Read a book, or a medical or science story worth bringing to class.
- Work ahead on your project checkpoint.
- Take a quiet reset.
Grades
A 65 passes. Aim for 85 or better.
Assignments are scored on a 4.0 scale, then weighted and converted to a 100-point grade where 0.0 = 50 and 4.0 = 100. Your course grade is the average of the four marking periods.
| Category | Weight | What counts |
|---|---|---|
| Tests & projects | 50% | Unit tests, quizzes, lab practicals, case projects |
| Work done in class | 40% | Labs and dissections, diagrams, models, notebooks, group work |
| Homework | 10% | Reading, practice, review |
- Participation is not its own grade.
- No single assignment can sink you.
Late and missing work
Need more time? Just ask. You don't need to explain why.
- Up to 5 school days late, full credit.
- After that we set a new date together, also full credit.
- Until you turn it in it shows as Missing, never a zero.
- Long projects get checkpoints.
- Want to redo something you handed in? Ask.
Absences
Everything is posted on the weekly schedule. Labs and dissections are hard to replicate, so see me as soon as you're back about a make-up.
Retakes and corrections
Open to everyone, every unit. No permission and no reason needed.
- Do the corrections first. This is the part that teaches you.
- Then take the retake, a different version of the same material.
- The higher score counts, not the average.
- Ask before the marking period ends. Grades lock when it closes.
What to bring
- A dedicated notebook or binder section for this course
- Pens, pencils, and colored pencils — you will draw and label a lot
- Your school device, charged
- Closed-toe shoes on lab days
Lab expectations
Not negotiable. Specimens are treated with respect, safety instructions are followed exactly, and anyone who can't do that loses the lab.
Academic integrity
Putting your name on work certifies three things:
- The work is honestly your own.
- Any source is properly cited.
- You respected other students' work, which includes not handing them yours to copy.
About AI
Using AI to explain a concept you're stuck on is studying. Submitting what it produced as your own is plagiarism, and it is treated as such.
Cheating and plagiarism are handled through City Honors and district policy. Not sure whether something crosses the line? Ask me before you turn it in.
Getting help
Ask early. A gap in tissues shows up again in every unit after it.
- Every day after school, 3:09 to 3:30. No appointment. Walk in.
- Need a different time? A study hall, a lunch period, or before school. Just ask.
- Student support period. Start homework while I'm still in the building.
How to reach me
Students and families both. You never need a reason.
- Email. rsajdak@buffaloschools.org, answered within one school day.
- Call or text. (716) 222-2016. Text is fastest.
- Schoology. Assignments, tests, notices, messages. Check it daily.
- Weekly schedule. planbook.mrsajdak.com
- Class texts, for families. mrsajdak.com/class-texts. Reply STOP to end it.
- School office. (716) 816-4230, ext. 1301
Grades and official notices live in the district's systems.