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Protozoa: A Poseidon Adventure!
Join the "fingerprint people as they go on their best adventure ever! Their rental boat turns out to be a shrinking machine that makes them small enough to go fishing for protozoans like Paramecium and Ameba. After learning how to measure very small things in units called microns, they interact with many bizarre-looking creatures. Pond scum turns out to be tiny living organisms that sometimes have complex and sociable lives!
The protists you will meet in this book include ciliates (Paramecium, Stentor, Spirostomum, Dileptus, Loxodes, and more), flagellates (Euglena, Chilomonas and a few others), green algae (Chlorella, Spirogyra, Zygnema, and others), diatoms, dinoflagellates, cyanobacteria, and ameboids (amebas, heliozoans, radiolarians, foraminiferans and slime molds), and, in an optional epilogue, some harmful protists (malaria, Giardia, Trypanosoma, Entamoeba histolytica). You will learn a lot about cells and what their organelles do, and you'll meet autotrophs who make their own food, heterotrophs who must eat food, and some cells that do a little of both. In addition to the "science-y aspect of these creatures, we'll also take time to appreciate their beauty.
The first part of the book is a student text (about 80 pages with both B&W and color illustrations), giving you all the information you'll need. At the end of each chapter there are some pencil and paper activities such as word puzzles. Also, you will be directed to a playlist that was set up on YouTube just for this book, where you will be able to watch real protozoans in action. (This means you don't need a microscope. If you have one, that's great, but you don't need one.) As an added bonus, we'll highlight the vocabulary words from that chapter that came from Greek or Latin (staged as a funny battle between Zeus and Jupiter).
The second part of the book is a teacher/parent section that has additional activity ideas such as crafts and games. Many of the games are best done in a group, so it works well when done with a group, but it can also be used individually. Activities include making a Paramecium pillow, playing many card games (including a review game called "Protozoo), playing "Volvox Volleyball, making a diatom box and desmid ornaments, and playing a chess-like game called "Pond Scum.
Author Ellen McHenry is known for her straightforward approach to a variety of science topics. This curriculum is full of age-appropriate explanations, hands-on activities, and the familiar Ellen McHenry fingerprint characters and cartoons. The author discusses the difference between observable facts and inference, focusing on the facts. Courses are well-written, allowing children to understand more complex topics easily. Student activities vary and may include pencil-and-paperwork (like word puzzles or quizzes), internet links or a hands-on project. Illustrations are a mix of black and white, and color.
One book is required for the course, and includes the reproducible Student Text with activities , and a Teacher Section. Additional Student Books are available for most courses. This is a great option for parents/teachers with multiple students-like in a co-op or classroom. Activity pages in the core book are reproducible for families or single classroom use. The author has set up a YouTube® channel with a myriad of short videos to accompany the courses. Worth mentioning, the courses are completely doable without this bonus internet content. An exceptional science option for upper elementary and middle school ages to learn topics with more depth compared to many other science programs.
Product Format: | Paperback |
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Brand: | Ellen McHenry's Basement Workshop |
Grades: | 5-10 |
ISBN: | 9780988780859 |
Length in Inches: | 11 |
Width in Inches: | 8.5 |
Height in Inches: | 0.375 |
Weight in Pounds: | 0.95 |