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My Favorite Anatomy Study Tips

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I know that Anatomy can be daunting. So I put together some of my favorite tips to help you study.

1. Flashcards

Personally, I am a big fan of flash cards. I make flashcards for anything I’m studying. They are great because you can carry them with you anywhere. There are a couple options for making anatomy flashcards; you can just write the name of the muscle on one side and then have all the information on the other side that you need to know about the muscle, such as its origin, insertion, and actions. You could also include antagonist muscles if you wanted. Another option is to draw or cut out a picture of the muscle, glue it to one side, and include the name with all the information you need to know on the other side. This is an excellent option for learning bones as well, have the same picture on both sides, but one side is labeled, and the other with just letters.

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If you don’t have time to make your own flashcards, the ones from the Trail Guide book are amazing! There are 2 sets you should get. Set 1 has the bones and actions, while Set 2 is the muscles.

2). Make it

My favorite activity in the classroom teaching anatomy and physiology is making bones out of play dough. Taking that 2d image that you see and creating it in 3d helps you to see it better.

You can make the muscles and add them to mini skeletons with the playdough as well. These are the ones we use in class. Mini Skeleton here.

3. Draw it

Drawing out the bones and muscles and labeling them is a great way to see them. If you aren’t an artist, that’s ok. You can trace the muscles or bones using tracing paper or check out these really cool See Through Post It Notes. There are other brands, but I’m partial to post it note brand because my dad worked for 3M.

If you don’t want to just draw them on paper, you can also draw them on yourself or someone else. Use dry-erase makers, and it just rubs right off. 🙂 Sometimes, seeing the muscles drawn on a body helps to understand them more.

What other tips and tricks do you have for learning anatomy? Leave me a comment down below!