I don’t know which was more fun, seeing plasmolysis in action or seeing all our Incredible Edible Cells! The students all did a great job on their project this week.
In Experiment 6.1, we looked at the differences between plant and animal cells. Here is what we discovered:
We had a hard time slicing the cork thin enough to really see the individual cells, but after trying again the next day I was able to see the cells more clearly. The next part of the experiment involves cutting onion, and I for one, was happy no one broke out in tears. I wrestled a tiny piece of the epidermis unto the slide, added Iodine to stain the cell and here’s what we were able to see:
Next we compared some plant cells (Zea Mays and Ranunculus) to animals cells (Hydra). Because of the 3D quality of the Hydra, it was difficult to get a good photo, but here goes:
We loved the geometric quality of this specimen. Reminds me of my old favorite toy, the Spirograph! Next up was the Ranunculous root:
The Hydra cells did not resemble the plant cells in any way:
In Experiment 6.2, we were fortunate to observe Cytoplasmic Streaming and Plasmolysis! I attempted making a video, but haven’t figured out how to edit it yet. It’s a little long, so once you’ve watched long enough to see the chlorplasts and the cytoplasmic streaming, you can fast forward about half way through the video. At that point, a salt water solution was introduced and you can see what happens:
For the final part of the experiment, a banana was introduced and we reminsced about Donkey Kong! Ba-Na-Na! Who can ever look at bananas the same again? We made our banana smear and stained it with Ionine. You can clearly see the large cells with the darkly stained Leukoplasts:
Ignore the air bubble and he’ll go away!
And lastly, no study of the cell would be complete without the Edible Cell Project. I was secretly hoping for something gooey and disgusting, but they all did an amazing job! You can click the picture to see a larger image.
Mindful Ramblings 
#1 by Melissa on November 30, 2010 - 5:09 pm
Thank you so much for posting these photos! My daughter is using Apologia as well, but since we are missionaries and far from a microscope we’ve had to miss out on these experiments. Thanks again!
#2 by jlsgrant on November 30, 2010 - 5:20 pm
Thanks for visiting! I’m glad the photo’s for Biology are helpful to you. We moving on to Module 8 next week, so keep checking back for updates!
#3 by Cherie on December 2, 2011 - 5:22 pm
The banana photo was especially helpful! Thanks!
#4 by athaschool on February 28, 2012 - 1:52 pm
Was looking for inspiration for Module 6. I’m a missionary, too. Finding materials is rough. I have some small microscopes fortunately!
#5 by jlsgrant on February 28, 2012 - 4:24 pm
Thanks for stopping by the blog! Hope you were able to find everything you need. We had a great time with the curriculum, hope you’re enjoying it.
#6 by Mary Palos on May 19, 2014 - 9:52 am
I am very thankful for your pictures and videos of the experiments. I’am a homeschool Mom from Mexico living in US. sometimes is hard for me to understand the experiments and your website save me!
I really appreciate that you share with us all your experience. Blessings!
#7 by jlsgrant on May 21, 2014 - 7:12 am
Mary, I am so glad that Mindful Ramblings is helpful to you! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. God Bless!
#8 by Charleton Lepkofker on January 28, 2016 - 5:51 pm
hey i am a njhsa student who goes to a co-op and this was pretty good, but I was missing the banana smear before iodine was added. other than that it was great, images were crystal clear and ten times better than I could get on my microscope thanks so much
#9 by Adria Holden on November 15, 2019 - 1:14 pm
Thank you so much for posting your experiments! I only have one student going through this right now by himself. I feel bad he doesn’t have other kids to do it with but it is what it is. Anyway, there have been more then one experiment we have not had the supplies to preform ourselves. It has been a blessing for him to be able to still see all the results.