Introduction

How much air can your lungs hold?

This woman is undergoing a spirometry (spy-ROM-uh-tree) test to assess how well her lungs work. This test measures how much air you inhale, how much you exhale, and how quickly you exhale.

Your lungs can hold a specific amount of air. This amount can improve with physical training or decrease with lung diseases. The amount of air you breathe in and out can be measured using a spirometer as seen in the image.

You will learn about these volumes and discover your own lung capacity, not by using a spirometer, but by using a balloon and math. Let's get started!

 

Lesson Objectives

Following successful completion of this lesson, students will be able to...

  • Define the respiratory volumes and capacities.
  • Calculate from a hands-on activity your vital capacity and tidal volume.

Enduring Understandings

  • The organs of the respiratory system move air in and out for gas exchange.
  • The respiratory system maintains homeostatic levels of gases and blood pH within the body.

The above objectives correspond with the Alabama Course of Study: Anatomy and Physiology standards: 9

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