BACKGROUND:
The microworld is different
than the world we live in. A grain of sand can become a boulder to
a protozoa that wants to get around it. A small obstacle for humans
can be a challenge to the microworld.
Very small organisms look different
because they have different requirements than we do. Their bodies
look different than ours because they have adapted to a very small world.
There are microworlds in our refrigerator, in our bathroom, in our carpets,
and in our hair! Germs, which include many different types of organisms,
are also part of the microworld.
The book, Greg's Microscope,
will get students excited about looking through a microscope. Greg
and his family have so much fun, students will anticipate the coming lab.
 PROCEDURE:
- Read the book,
Greg’s Microscope to students. This reading exercise explains that
microscopes make small things seem large. Explain that the microscope
is a tool to see items in more detail. Our eyes are limited in the
amount of detail it can see. If we didn't have these tools we could
not see the microworld.
- Discuss that the prefix
" micro-" means small. Anytime you see this in a word you should
think "small." The opposite of "micro-," is "macro-," which means
large. The terms microbe (small organisms), microbiologist (a scientist
that studies small things), micropaleontology (the study of small fossils),
and even microscope (a scope that looks at small things) are examples.
- The coloring
exercise is to prepare the students for what they might see under the microscope.
Discuss what sand, a leaf, and a feather will look like under the microscope.
If you have the appropriate objects have the students look at them.
Have them draw a line from the word and picture to the appropriate magnification.
|
