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Things you will need:
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Threads or fibers from cloth made of some of the following: wool, cotton,
nylon, linen, silk, polyester, blends.
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slides and cover slips
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water and dropper
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scissors and tweezers
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labels and pen
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a compound microscope like THIS or any of THESE.
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your science journal (download HERE.)
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lint from a clothes dryer
Procedures:
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With tweezers, place a few 1/4" to 1/2" pieces of one of your fibers in a
drop of water on a slide. Cover with a cover slip and label the kind
of fiber. (See "Wet Mounting" if necessary.)
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Observer the fiber under the microscope and write a description and draw
a sketch of it in your journal. Use careful observation skills.
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Repeat this with each of your other fibers, until you can distinguish
among them based on appearance.
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Now place a tiny amount of lint from a clothes dryer in a drop of water on
a slide. Cover with a cover slip and label.
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Observe these fibers under the microscope and write descriptions of the different
fibers you see.
Questions:
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How many of the dryer lint fibers can you identify by comparing them with
your labeled fibers?
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What are these fibers?
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Can you think of any type of work that such a comparison skill might
be useful in?
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What differences did you notice between the man made fibers, plant fibers,
and animal fibers?
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What similarities did you notice?
Author:
Marcia Williams, Homeschool Grandmother (10/98)
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