NASA
Decomposers Get Energy From Dead Things
When life gives you mold, make penicillin. Scholars design an inquiry experiment to determine what causes rotting and mold growth. It also covers decomposers and the important role they play for other living things.
Curated OER
AP: Chapter 9: Respiration - Extra Credit 1
Don't just use this as an extra credit assignment! The two scenarios on this handout give microbiology hopefuls an opportunity to practice critical-thinking skills. They apply their knowledge of cellular respiration and the products of...
Cornell University
Bacteria Take Over and Down
Bacteria outnumber all other forms of life on Earth. Scholars observe the growth of bacteria in petri dishes to understand their role in maintaining good health. Then, they observe the growth of bacteria after they introduce...
University of Florida
Investigating the Fungus among Us
What do you call a fungus that writes music? A decomposer! Here, young biologists explore fungus by tasting fungus (blue cheese) to creating art with fungus to playing a board game centered around, you got it, fungus. Surprise scholars...
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Germs and the Importance of Washing Your Hands
Students observe what happens when bread is handled by dirty hands. They read and discuss the book "Germs." Students participate in an experiment. Students touch bread with a variation of hands: dirty, washed with soap and water, washed...
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Moldy Jell-O
Mini mycologists plan an experiment to determine what affects the growth of mold on gelatin. A list of available materials is provided, but the procedure needs to be designed by the lab group. A data table is also provided in which to...
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Killer Wrapper
Students examine the importance of food safety and the impact it has on their lives. In this health instructional activity students complete an oral report on food poisoning and design a low cost "safe" packing material for bread.
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Effects of Bread Sanitary Conditions on Mold Growth
Students examine fungi and where it comes from. For this mold lesson students determine the percentage of fruit juice in a fruit then identify the different types of mold.
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Why Is My Bread Fuzzy?
Students explore the organisms that live on counters or surfaces in the classroom. In this mold experiment, students observe mold in different conditons. Students record their observations on a worksheet. Students understand how mold...
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Identifying Fossils
Students create model fossils. In this fossils lesson, students view pictures of fossils and compare and contrast these fossils. Students read about fossils and create a database chart with the facts they learn. Students construct...
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This Can't be a Plant
Students grow mold. In this science experiment instructional activity, students grow mold on different pieces of bread by adjusting the moisture, temperature, and light. They record the results to see which grows the most mold.
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Moldy Food
Students investigate how mold grows on food. In this mold lesson, students review the food pyramid before growing mold on different foods in Zip-Loc bags. They create graphs that show how long it takes for mold to grow on different...
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Splendid Spores
Students explore fungi. For this fungi lesson, students take a slice of bread and leave it outside for a day. Students record their observations of the fungi on the bread the following day.
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Bacteria's Role in Food
Students grow bacteria cultures on agar in petri dishes and do a plate count. They participate in a yogurt making lab to see how bacteria produce lactic acid. They prepare a recipe and identify fungi, fermentation and the role of...
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Yeasts and Molds
Learners investigate the characteristics and nature of yeast and molds help to explain how these microorganisms affect food production. They experiment with yeast in sourdough in preparing sourdough pancakes.
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Review of Microorganisms
In this microorganism worksheet students complete a series of multiple choice questions on fungi, bacteria and other organisms.
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Mold
Students explore mold, the different types and the health risks that they pose. In this mycelium lesson students grow different molds and see which type of foods mold the fastest.
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Sculpting
Students use clay, molding, and cardboard to create a sculpture of a bird and a bird house. Students complete 5 steps to making this sculpture.
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Primary Biological Content Area Covered
Students use the scientific method to make predictions about mold growth. In this fungus instructional activity, students use worksheets to help them illustrate predictions and graph mold growth from white to wheat bread. Students first...
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Behold the Mold!
Students explore how mold grows on various food items. In this mold lesson plan, students predict how mold will grow on dry vs. wet food items, and chart their observations daily. Children develop a summary to aid them in a summative...
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Fossils
In this fossil worksheet, students match six terms with their definitions about types of fossils and they circle the proper term to make nine statements true about preservation of fossils.
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Protists
In this protists learning exercise, students will use idea maps about plantlike protist and funguslike protist characteristics to complete 4 short answer questions.
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Protists
In this protists worksheet, students will read about the different kinds of protists including protozoans, algae, and molds. Students will then complete 2 short answer questions and 1 true or false question.
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Fungus Jeopardy
In this fungus instructional activity, students identify different types of fungus given certain characteristics. Students are challenged to write their own fungus question.