I know many of you are struggling to decide whether or not to invest in an expensive microscope. Many families worry they are depriving their kiddos of a proper science education unless they invest in pricy equipment. You aren’t! The purpose in Biology is to learn the names of the microscope parts, how to focus a microscope, and how to sketch images you observe with a microscope.
If you have a bare bones budget, buy a clip-on microscope for your cell phone.
We use USB microscopes with laptops or similar devices all the time. The kiddos focus the microscope, snap a screenshot, and then sketch.
I bought one, nicer microscope from Amazon. (Others I bought used or were donated.). The microscope’s resolution is fantastic. We’ve used it for Biology and Advanced Biology, which has extensive Histology, requiring better microscopes. If you want a splurge, this is a fine piece of equipment.
The first set of microscope slides is for younger kiddos. Do you have limited funds? Shop for a deal on this set, intended for elementary students. Your teen will still have a microscope experience-which is the goal!
This set consists of plain glass slides, intended for DIY slides. Truthfully, we only used prepared slides at Co-op
When I first taught Biology Co-op classes, I bought a set of 25 slides from Amscope. There are cheaper sets; some of these sets turn out to have all botany slides or just histology slides. It’s nice to have a mix of slides for General Biology.
Compare these slides with the set recommended by Apologia.
Look at listings for larger microscope sets. We used a set of 100 slides for Advanced Biology, which has a ton of Histology. I didn’t buy the Apologia set because most of the slides were in the set of 100 I already had.
Stop fretting! Ask friends with kiddos in public or private schools. How often do they use a microscope in their Biology classes? You may be surprised. Just remember your goal is to give your teen a microscope experience—not break your budget.
No comments:
Post a Comment