Microscope Lab

Environmental science labs are in-depth inquiry-based sessions in which students actively participate in conducting experiments, collecting data and analyzing results. Emphasis is on a direct involvement with the natural world through activity-oriented use of specialized equipment and techniques.

Length of Session: 1.5 hours

Number of Students: 30 maximum

Fee: (includes self guided visit of permanent exhibits)

Contract Schools-Please call for information

Non-contract schools-$11.50 per student ($275 minimum)

For more information or to make a reservation, call the Reservations Coordinator at 757-595-9135 Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. or fill out the on-line request form.

Funded in part by VuBAY FOUNDATION.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 LS.1 LS.5 LS.9 BIO.1 BIO.5

Frogs and toads, lizards and snakes—compare their similarities and differences in a study of two major vertebrate classes: amphibians and reptiles. Investigate live specimens to identify structural and functional characteristics. Discover amazing adaptations for survival through locomotion, feeding and reproduction.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 LS.14 ES.2 ES.8 ES.10 BIO.8

Travel back in time to discover the secrets of prehistoric life. Examine remains and traces of marine animals such as arthropods, mollusks and echinoderms. Bones, teeth and tracks provide clues about land animals that lived millions of years ago. Discover what fossils can tell us about life today and the distant past and learn about some of the challenges paleontologists encounter.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 6.5 6.7 6.9 LS.1 LS.7 LS.9 LS.10 LS.11 LS.12 ES.1 ES.2 ES.3 ES.9 BIO.1 BIO.9

In this inquiry-based program, students work in teams to tackle real-world environmental  issues. Using the Museum's lake and Environmental Lab Classroom, studenst gather data on current watershed land-use, perform water quality analysis (turbidity, dissolved oxygen, pH, etc.) and debate proposals for "future projects" and how they might affect the watershed's biotic and abiotic systems.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 LS.5 LS.9 LS.10 BIO.1 BIO.5

Compare marine vertebrate and invertebrate phyla to discover the amazing diversity of life in the Bay. Identify and classify live and preserved specimens such as sea stars, anemones, whelks and crabs, as well as bony and cartilaginous fish. Animal adaptations and survival strategies are emphasized.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 6.9 LS.1 LS.6 LS.7 LS.9 BIO.1 BIO.5

Investigate the ecology of life in a pond. With dip nets, plankton nets, bottom dredges and other specialized apparatus, collect live pond animals such as predaceous diving beetles, giant waterbugs, dragonfly larvae and other pond life in their natural habitat. Using microscopes and sorting trays, students learn to identify and classify collected specimens to discover specialized interactions within the pond community.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.2 LS.1

Journey into the fascinating hidden world of nature with the aid of a microscope. While reviewing the fundamentals of light microscopy, students learn and practice proper techniques for the use of dissecting and compound microscopes, then solve nature's micro-mysteries while searching for clues from fossil sands, pond water and much more!

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 ES.2 ES.5 ES.6

Study the earth's natural history in a "hands-on" introduction to geology that examines nature's building blocks...minerals! Identify and classify common minerals including diamonds and gold through basic analytical tests for hardness, specific gravity, cleavage and color. Become a lab geologist and make decisions about the identity of unknown specimens, while also discovering the importance of minerals in everyday life.

Grades 6-12

SOLs ES.2 ES.13

Equipped with anemometers, psychrometers, thermometers and barometers—students investigate basic weather phenomena to learn about our "air-conditioned" earth from atmospheric circulation to the formation of clouds and weather systems. Through laboratory demonstrations and experimentation, students investigate how temperature, pressure and winds produce and affect weather conditions.

Grades 6-12

SOLs 6.1 LS.5 BIO.5 BIO.7

Bring your biology class "to life" with a comparative overview of the vertebrates. Using live animals and real museum specimens, students will enjoy a "hands-on" learning experience as they compare and contrast the structures and adaptations of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

Grades 6-12

SOLs LS.14 ES.2 ES.4 ES.8 ES.10 BIO.8

Make earth science come to life with an exciting trip through Virginia's ancient past. Using different regions of the state as pieces of the puzzle, students construct an overview of Virginia's amazing geologic history that includes colliding continents, ancient seas, volcanoes and ice ages. "Living Fossils" and geologic specimens are correlated to these prehistoric events.