Mississippi Science HAP.9.3

ScienceGrades 9–12Human Anatomy and Physiology

The Standard

HAP.9: Students will analyze the structure and functions of blood and its role in maintaining homeostasis.

Research and analyze the causes and effects of various pathological conditions (e.g., anemia, malaria, leukemia, hemophilia, and blood doping).

2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Blood

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Research anemia, malaria, leukemia, hemophilia, and blood doping using short health sources. For each, connect the cause to a change in blood and a symptom or health risk.
What Mastery Looks Like: Given a patient case, students name the likely condition and point to evidence for their choice. They explain how the condition affects oxygen delivery, normal blood cell production, or clotting.
Common Misconceptions: Students may think anemia always comes from low iron or that malaria is caused by bacteria. They may think hemophilia makes blood thinner, or that more red blood cells from blood doping carry no risk.
How to Assess It: Give students two short source cards, one on malaria and one on leukemia. Ask: What causes each, which blood cells are affected, and what effect follows? Cite one detail from each card.

Lesson moves

Give pairs five patient cards and blood component tiles; have them match each condition to its cause, affected blood component, and likely effect.
Ask students to write why both low hemoglobin and an unusually high red blood cell count can cause problems, using two source excerpts.
Read five patient clues aloud; have teams write the condition, its cause, and the affected blood function on mini whiteboards.
Give students a mock athlete profile describing EPO use; ask them to explain one performance effect and one health risk.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to HAP.9.3, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

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