My Favorite Biology Supplies

The beginning of a new school year is a good time to take stock of your lab materials in preparation for biology lessons to come. Often, funds are available at the start of school that will rapidly diminish, so being prepared with a wish list is a good idea. I have taught in schools with few resources, and others with ample supplies. I have found the following items to be indispensable in a biology lab class.  The lesson plans linked to each item will give you ample inspiration, without breaking the bank.

Microscopes – Though expensive, microscopes are an essential investment in any biology class. The microscope revolutionized biology and is its most significant technology. If your school has good ones, make sure that care is taken with them and make sure that they are cleaned and inspected regularly. If your school is lacking a good class set, and there are no funds available, search out a grant to help pay for some. In addition to standard compound light microscopes, you may also want some dissecting microscopes for larger organisms.  If all else fails, buy a digital microscope to connect to your computer for whole class viewing.

Plain and Prepared Slides – Once you have good microscopes, plain glass slides and cover slips are essential in viewing live organisms and objects. Equally useful are certain prepared slides purchased from a supplier. While you can make your own slides using just about anything, some things are easier and safer to leave to the supply company.  I would recommend a class set of the following:  human blood (since it isn’t a good idea to make your own slides), frog blood (the red blood cells have a nucleus), sickle cell blood (to compare for genetic diseases), and onion root tips (for mitosis, though you can make your own).

Chemicals – Some of these can be obtained from the local drug store, others need to be ordered through your science supplier. 

• Benedicts, Lugols (Iodine), and Biuret Reagents to test for simple sugars, starch, and protein, respectively, in foods.
• Bromothymol Blue is an acid indicator that will change color in the presence or absence of carbon dioxide.  Use it in labs for everything from photosynthesis and respiration to the carbon cycle and global warming.
• Meat Tenderizer can be used with gelatin for a quick enzyme lab or demo.
• Hydrogen Peroxide is another option for an enzyme lab.  The bubbles formed when hydrogen peroxide is poured on live tissue indicate catalase enzyme activity.  Use raw and cooked liver and potatoes, as well as yeast, to show how heat can denature enzymes and stop them from working.
• Isopropyl Alcohol and detergent can be used to extract DNA from a strawberry.

Berlese funnels  – Buy these from a supplier or construct your own.  Placing a light source over the funnel causes soil invertebrates to crawl downward, eventually falling out of the soil into the water or alcohol below.  In a mere 24 hours, you can find an entire ecosystem to amaze your students with.  Then use your dissecting microscopes and field guides to identify the organisms and learn more about them.

Field guides – Even though my students think I know everything, there are many times when I just do not know the identity of an organism. Plus, students always remember something better if they have to figure it out themselves. These do not replace dichotomous keys, which I think students should be able to use as well, but make an acceptable way to quickly identify most finds. Buy a few of each type that you can find for your area. These will add up quickly in cost, so seek out a grant or buy just a few each year as your funds permit. My favorites are wildflowers, trees and shrubs, mushrooms, insects and spiders, reptiles and amphibians, birds, mammals, and protists. A class set of hand lenses, sweep nets, and collection jars will also come in handy for collecting and studying your finds.

Modeling clay – If you purchase a kind that won’t dry out and you keep the colors separated, this will last you through many lessons.  Many of the processes in biology are difficult for students to view and conceptualize.  Having students model a process with clay will help them understand and remember it.  I use it especially with mitosis.

What other items do you find essential for teaching biology?