Life science learners need to be able to use a microscope. With this comprehensive resource, they first experience how lenses and magnification work, and then get familiar with using a compound microscope. Tremendous background...

What better way to learn how to use a microscope than building your own? A lab investigation has scholars use lenses from magnifying glasses and sheets of cork to design their own compound microscopes. They calculate focal length...

Students examine parts of a microscope and how to use a microscope at five lab stations. They identify parts of a microscope by describing the differences between low power and high power. They visit Internet sites (included in the...

In this biology lesson, students label and identify the different parts of a microscope. They complete 16 short answer questions about each part's function and complete 12 review questions in the end.

Young chemists grow ionic crystals, metallic crystals, and supersaturated crystals in three different lab experiments. Observing these under a microscope allows pupils to compare the various structures. 

Students use a light microscope to observe the organisms living in a sample of ocean or fresh water. Students create a drawing of the organisms that they observe. Students then discuss the different body plans of the organisms and the...

Create the perfect conditions for osmosis. Young scholars use a microscope to observe plant cells exposed to distilled water or sodium chloride. They observe how osmosis creates turgid or plasmolyzed cells.

The big world is full of tiny surprises. Classes discover all things big and small while completing the second lesson of a five-part series comparing macro- and micro-objects. Learners collect items from around the room including things...

Take your class' understanding of cells to the next level... or levels! Demonstrate the levels of organization using a variety of engaging methods. The teacher's guide includes the materials you'll need to execute a flower...

After drawing and labelling a microscope, forensic science explorers use one to solve a simulated murder mystery. They examine each piece of evidence and draw what they observe at each magnification. Working in groups of four, your...

Students do an experiment using a microscope. In this lesson, about cells, students examine different slides using a microscope. Students look at an onion skin, cheek cells, and potato cells. In each of these, students find cell walls,...

High schoolers use microscopes to examine fly families and analyze their genetic inheritance. In this genes lesson plan, students also use the chi square for comparing genes and compare the class results as a whole.

In the first of two activities, your charges prepare wet mount slides of cork and bean sprout cells in imitation of Robert Hooke's historical investigation. An excerpt from his notes is included. Then, investigators compare animal cells...

Ninth graders observe, compare, and classify various microorganisms using a microscope. They answer discussion questions, and record their observations on a chart.

In China, hibiscus is known as the shoe flower because it is used to polish shoes, while in Hawaii, it is honored as the state flower. Young scientists learn about the structure and function of flowers. They dissect hibiscus...

The 1590s saw the invention of the first compound microscope. Scholars learn about how microscopes work and how to properly focus one. The lesson stresses the science fields that use microscopes and the difference between electron...

Teenagers will never complain about cleaning their rooms after this activity. In the first instructional activity of a four-part series, budding scientists collect samples of dust, chalk, and other particulates from various areas of...

As a activity on scientific observation, have your class investigate the features of a penny and a nickel. Working in pairs, they practice writing detailed descriptions using their senses and a ruler to gather information. This is an...

Students explore the world of the very small using a Flash plug-in Virtual Electron Microscope. They complete and discuss an activity in which unknown samples are placed under the computer simulated microscope to determine where the...

Take a close look at the world around you with an activity that magnifies everyday objects. Five explorations examine items under intense magnification and pose a series of questions that encourage critical thinking and following...

Students explain how to use a light microscope, describe how to care for a microscope, and solve a forensic science problem, using a microscope to analyze data and draw conclusions.

In this microscope usage activity, 7th graders complete an introduction packet that takes them through several lab activities that helps introduce and familiarize them with using the microscope.

Have you ever wanted to know the true structure of E.coli? Does the thought of peering into its "small world" sound exciting? Here is a lesson that allows pupils the ability to do just that. Blossoming microbiologists use...