Week 9 — The Skeleton & Joints
Why this matters
A future physical therapist checking how far a shoulder can lift and a dancer wondering why a hip holds steady both read this week's map of 206 bones and the joints between them.
In plain language
Your skeleton is 206 bones, and every one of them belongs to one of two groups. The axial skeleton (the bones down the middle of your body) holds up your head and trunk and guards your brain, spinal cord, heart, and lungs. The appendicular skeleton (your arms, your legs, and the bony rings that hook them on) does most of the moving. Where two bones meet you have a joint (a meeting place of bones), and each joint makes a trade between how far it can move and how firmly it holds. This week you sort the bones, name the joints, and learn the words for every move you make.
- Already covered: Week 1 gave you the anatomical position; Week 7, a single long bone.
- This week: the two divisions, the bones by region, joints by structure and function, and the movement pairs.
- How they connect: medial and lateral now place real bones.
- Where we're going next: Week 10, Muscle Tissue & the Physiology of Contraction.
Focus
How do we sort every bone into a system, and how does each joint trade stability for movement?
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- [ ] sort any bone into the axial or appendicular skeleton
- [ ] place the radius and the tibia from the anatomical position
- [ ] classify a joint by structure, function, and type
- [ ] name a movement by its pair
To-do
Plan your week
- Read Chapter 9 (about 50 minutes), then the lecture and slides.
- Work the tutorial (60–90 minutes) and practice set (20 minutes).
- Do the A&P Lab & Inquiry (two hours), the discussion, and the assignment.
- Take the quiz.
This week's checkpoint: sort the scapula and a rib into their divisions and say why.
You've got this
Ask your instructor early if you get stuck.
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