Life Science
To schedule a visit, drop off or for additional questions, please contact Leslie Leckvarcik (814-641-3665 or email).
| Life Science |
| Animal Tracks: Make casts of the tracks using
plastic molds then Use a key (Petersons Field Guide) to identify common animal tracks found in PA. |
| The Effect of Osmosis on an Egg - Hypotonic and Hypertonic Solutions : The selectively permeable membrane you will use to study osmosis is the membrane within an eggshell. It allows water to pass through in response to concentrations of the solutions on either side of the membrane. |
| DNA Extraction of Strawberry: This DNA extraction results in a large quantity of white spoolable DNA. It is an easy investigation and there is almost no way for students to make a mistake that would affect the results. It is much more effective than extracting DNA from any other source. |
| K'nex DNA: Using the DNA K’NEX kit students can perform any number of lessons dealing with the following subjects: the structure of the DNA molecule, replication and transcription, coding, translation and mutations. |
| Born Fighters: This investigation requires students to explore antibodies and immunity. The students analyze the blood serum of a family in order to determine who in the family has Tuberculosis and who has the antibodies. |
| Mysterious Disease: The year is 1854, hundreds of people in London, primarily in the Soho district, are dieing of a horrible disease with an unknown origin. The students use this activity to investigate a fast spreading disease in order to determine its origin. |
| Contagious Town Meeting: This lab is intended to generate questions about the spread of disease. Students will simulate a town meeting using plastic cups and colorless liquid. |
| Lactose Digestion - By the Enzyme Lactase : In this investigation you will observe the effectiveness of a milk-treatment product that contains lactase by testing milk samples for the presence of glucose. |
| Observing Water Transport in a Celery Stalk: As water evaporates from the leaves of a plant, more water is drawn up by osmosis from the tissues below to replace it. By observing this, students will be able to calculate the rate of travel in a celery stalk. |
| Leaf Chromatography: The mix of pigments in a leaf may be separated into bands of color by the technique of paper chromatography. |
| Population Estimate by Random Sampling: Population Estimate by Random SamplingT_N: Revised In this lab, students will calculate a population estimate using random sampling then compare their estimate to the actual population count. |
| Measuring Plant Transpiration: Transpiration is the movement of water molecules from the plant into the air. Most water loss is through the stomata when they are open for photosynthesis. Environmental conditions can cause changes in the opening and closing of the stomata. Some environmental conditions will increase the rate of transpiration, while others will slow it down. Students will investigate four environmental conditions. |
| Light Intensity and Photosynthesis: In this experiment you will measure the effect of light intensity on the rate of photosynthesis. You will expose Elodea samples to various light intensities, and determine the relative rates of photosynthesis by observing changes in pH. |
| Finding the Optimal Salt Concentration For Hatching Brine Shrimp: Brine shrimp are small arthropods which live in tidal pools, estuaries, and salt lakes.The salt concentration of these environments can vary greatly. In this experiment, you will hatch brine shrimp eggs in different salt concentration solutions to find the optimal salt concentration for brine shrimp eggs to hatch. This lab will take 5 days to complete (not including the solution preparation). |
| Intro to Microscopy with Microviewers: Let you students have the experience of using microscopes (almost) and viewing prepared slides. Slides come with fact sheets and a worksheet to be completed while using the microviewers. We currently have the following slide sets: Mitosis, Meiosis, Chromosomes & Genes, Cell structure, Cells of the Body, Cells of plants, Life in a pond, Five Kingdoms |
| Insect Biodiversity (Not appropriate for winter): Use the insect bait trap to capture insects and use the keys to identify them. Supplied with this lab: Insect trap, Butterfly nets (needed), Bug houses (needed), Small containers for holding captured insects (needed), Forceps, Calipers, Petersons Field Guide to Insects, Petersons Field Guide to Butterflies Supplies are still needed for this lab. |
| Who Will Survive: Students perform investigations of natural selection with models to calculate which insects will survive in a variety of environments. This lab relates to camouflage and adaptation. Colored paper insects are dropped on a variety of material samples. Students compute predator prey relationships and breeding patterns for the insects in their sample environment. |
| Natural Selection in Woolyboogers: Students perform investigations of natural selection with models to calculate which species is the most fit in a given environment. The lab requires students to use various utensils in order to simulate the different mouth parts of woolyboogers. |
| Turkey Trouble: Characteristic traits of the wild turkey will be investigated to determine which traits will be passed on to off spring to enable the species to flourish or be "in trouble." Colored beads will be used to support this data. Students answer questions and plot data for the experiment. |
| Visualize the Ear: 3D model of the Ear. Provided with a worksheet involving labeling the parts of the ear. |
| Visualize the Eye: 3D model of the Eye. Provided with a worksheet involving labeling the parts of the eye. Here is a more advanced activity for visualizing the eye. |
| Visualize the Heart: 3D model of the Heart. Provided with a worksheet involving labeling the parts of the heart. |
| Visualize the Plant Cell: 3D model of the plant cell. Provided with a worksheet with a cell related activity. |
| Visualize the Animal Cell: 3D model of the plant cell. Provided with a worksheet with a cell related activity. |
Teach with the Teaching Tanks: These are clear acrylic tanks 12 X 12” and ½ “ wide. Three books of activities involve many areas of science. The following are examples: life science activities, such as growing plants or unicellular life, earth science or weather, physical science and chemistry. Expansion foam for widening the tanks is also available. |
| Roots Activity Set: Includes a large model of the root and activity guide |
| Flower Model Activity Set: Includes a large model of the flower and activity guide |
| Germination Activity Set: Includes a large model of seed germination and activity guide |
| Teeming with Life: Teeming with LifeT_N: RevisedThis activity is suitable for the youngest middle school students as an intro to diversity and similarities and differences in life. It involves various sound producing materials in film canisters. Two students match similar sounds to find their mate. |
| StarLab – The Cell Cylinder: Portable Planetarium for Life Science with cylinder to visualize the parts of the cell. |
| Effects of Chemicals on Daphnia: This lab is used to investigate the affect of over the counter drugs on Daphnia motility and heart rate. |
Digital Stereo Dissecting Microscopes: Use these microscopes to look at anything from pond water to rocks. Includes microscopes, laptop computers and all necessary equipment. You may request these scopes with any lab. |
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