HOW TO USE A

MICROSCOPE
Cat. No. 533V

DUPLICATING MASTERS
Directions: Label the diagram of a microscope with the words at the bottom of this page.
Purpose: To create a simple magnifying lens using water.

Materials: 1. waxed paper

2. supply of water
3. medicine dropper
4. newspaper

Procedures:
1. Place a piece of waxed paper on top of the newspaper.

2. Use the medicine dropper to place small drops of water on the waxed
paper. Make a variety of drop sizes from very small to large. Space them
so they do not run together.

3. Look through the drops at the newsprint.

Observations:
1. Which drops magnify the most, the small or large ones?

2. Sketch a side view of these water drops:

Purpose: To compare and contrast salt, sugar, and sand.

Procedures:
1. Place a few crystals of salt on a microscope slide. A cover slip is not
needed.

2. Examine them under low magnification.

3. Try lighting the crystals from the side or above. (To do this place a
piece of dark paper under the slide and use a small light or even a
flashlight.)

4. To observe the salt dissolving in water follow these steps: a. Put a cover
slip over the salt crystals, b. Collect some water in the medicine dropper,
c. Release a drop or two of water on one side of the cover slip. It will
slowly move under the cover slip, d. Observe what
happens as the water and salt mix.

5. Repeat everything with sugar and sand.

How To Use A Microscope © 1989 United Learning

Purpose: To examine live plant cells containing chloroplasts. Chloroplasts are the
structures that contain the green pigment called chlorophyll that produces food
for the plant.

Materials: 1. elodea plants (most pet shops sell this plant for aquariums)
2. slide and cover slips
3. microscope
4. medicine dropper

Procedures:
1. Place a small leaf of the elodea plant on the microscope slide.
(Choose the leaf from the tip of the plant)

2. Use the medicine dropper to collect some water from the container holding
the supply of elodea. Add a drop of this water and a cover slip to the slide.

3. Examine the specimen under the microscope.

Observations: Observe the leaf under low and high magnification.

The green chloroplasts will move between the cell's membrane and the interior
cell vacuole. It is the cytoplasm that moves the chloroplasts along.

If the cytoplasm is not moving you may have to wait 5 to 10 minutes for the
specimen to become adjusted to the slide and mount.
Purpose: To compare a variety of textile fibers under the microscope.

Materials: 1. textile fibers such as: cotton, wool, silk, polyester, rayon, linen, dacron, or
nylon.
2. microscope
3. tweezers
4. pin

Procedures:
1. Collect fiber samples carefully. You only need a small amount. Cotton
thread from a spool will do fine. Wool can come from a ball of yarn. Silk
can be obtained from a silk tie or a silk dress. Other samples can be
snipped from clothing.

2. When setting up each fiber follow these steps: a.

Use tweezers to hold the thread on a slide, b. With
the pin carefully spread the fibers. c. Add water to
the thread, d. Place a cover slip over the thread
and water.

3. Place the slide under the low magnification. Later you can switch to high
magnification.

Observations: Draw what each of the fibers you have selected look like under low and high
magnification.
How To Use A Microscope © 1989 United Learning
Purpose: To observe snowflakes under the microscope.

Materials: 1. a day with falling snow

2. microscope
3. black construction paper or black velvet

Procedures:
1. Cut the construction paper or velvet to the size of a microscope slide.

2. Place the paper or velvet in a refrigerator or outside so that it gets cold. Half
an hour should be adequate.
3. Move the microscope to an open window or to a sheltered place
outside.

4. Catch snowflakes on the cold paper or velvet.

5. Place the paper or velvet under the microscope without a cover slip.

6. Use the low power of the microscope to examine the snowflakes.

Observations: Draw what some of the snowflakes look like.

How To Use A Microscope © 1989 United Learning

Purpose: To examine the normally invisible world of protozoa and algae found in pond water.

Materials: 1. microscope 4. wide-mouthed jar

2. slide and cover slip 5. pond water
3. medicine dropper

Procedures:
1. Collect some pond water in a wide-mouthed jar. Look for water that has
green material in it. Collect some dry hay or dry grass and place it in the
jar with the pond water sample. The hay will become a food source for
bacteria. The protozoa will feed on the bacteria and multiply. This takes
about a week.

2. Set the jar near a window for sunlight.

3. Use the medicine dropper to collect some of the water near the top of the
jar.

4. Place a drop of this water on a slide.

5. Examine with a microscope.

Observations: See if you can identify some of the following examples of protozoa and
algae in your sample of pond water.