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What are all of these things for?
300X/600X/1200X Microscope – The microscope holds samples of very
small things on clear glass slides. It shines a bright light from its mirror
through the small sample, and then lenses make the sample look very
big. This microscope can make things look 300 times, 600 times, or even
1,200 times bigger than you can see them with just your eyes.
Scalpel – A scalpel is a sharp blade that is used to cut very thin pieces
of material so you can look at them with your microscope.
Spatula - The spatula has a large flat blade, but it is not as sharp as the
scalpel. It is used for scraping off bits of material for testing and to push
down on soft samples to mash them flat.
Tweezers – The tweezers are like little pinchers. They are used to pick
up small samples and to handle samples that you don’t want to touch
with your hands – like slimy mold! Yuck!
Specimen vials – These are little plastic bottles with tight-fitting lids.
They are used to carry your samples from where you collected them to
where you have your microscope set up.
Test tube with cap – This thin, clear tube is used to hold liquid samples
when you want to see if anything is happening, like when a sample
changes color.
Petri dish – This is a round, flat dish with a clear cover. It is used to
grow and observe samples such as mold.
Pipette – This is a plastic device that you can dip into a liquid to transfer
a drop or two to a slide for examination.
Prepared slides – These are glass slides that have samples on then
that have been prepared by professionals for you to examine.
Blank slides – These are the clear slides that you will place prepared
samples on for examination under your microscope.
Slide labels – These are little pieces of paper with sticky backs. You can
write on them and stick them on your slides to record information such as
when the sample was prepared.
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Plastic slide covers – These are little circles or squares made of thin,
clear plastic. They are used to cover very small samples on a slide.
When they are clean and dry they stick to the glass slide with a static
electricity charge.
Dye vials – In your set you will find two small plastic bottles intended to
hold dyes for staining samples. If you add a drop of methylene blue dye
to a sample, like a thin slice of an onion, you will be able to see the cells
much more clearly. methylene blue dye can be obtained from an
aquarium supply shop.
Spare lightbulb – This spare bulb will replace the one in the illuminator
lamp when it eventually wears out.
Stirring rod – Use this rod to mix liquids until they are well blended. An
example is when you mix salt in with water.
Magnifying glass – This is useful for taking a close look at a sample
before you examine it under the high-power magnification of your
microscope.
Measuring graduate – This plastic cup is marked with measuring lines
so that you can accurately measure quantities of liquids in your
experiments.
Storage and carrying case – This heavy-duty case has been specially
made to hold the components of your microscope set safely and securely.
Camera adapter – Now you can take pictures through your microscope.
This device attaches most single-use 35-mm cameras and many
compact 35-mm cameras directly to your microscope.
Projection / viewing device – This device lets you project an image of
the slide you are examining either on a white wall, onto its own small
viewing screen, or onto a piece of white paper. You can share your
discoveries with friends or trace the image to create your own drawings.
