Fun Way to Introduce the Concept

The author presents a thorough plan for introducing students to the concept of magnification. The students will enjoy looking at objects through tools with various magnification levels. Alth... See More

The author presents a thorough plan for introducing students to the concept of magnification. The students will enjoy looking at objects through tools with various magnification levels. Although they would enjoy it, it might be a bit simple for middle school students.

Teaching about size and scale

Students love to look at things under the microscope, especially at the middle school level. This is an interesting approach, using several different types of equipment and different objects... See More

Students love to look at things under the microscope, especially at the middle school level. This is an interesting approach, using several different types of equipment and different objects. In a similar activity, we looked at object using a simple hand magnifier, and 40X-400X microscopes. Unfortunately, most schools that I am aware of do not have digital microscopes, which allow students to take shots of what they see. We used a single digital hand-held microscope and a DVR to share. This is a great activity to get students to understand scale, especially with insects and items that students found outdoors. Sugar and salt crystals are fascinating to them as well. Because my students were late elementary with a few middle school kids, we didn't get into the optics very much, but they did notice how the image is reversed. I thought that discussion was a lot to cover, at least with the younger students. Lots of good external links, and several interesting extensions, especially if you do not have access to all the equipment.