Use the science to investigate a real source, explain the evidence, and communicate a defensible conclusion. The guide supplies the actual reading, data, task, and chosen level before the unit begins.
| Strand | Required evidence |
|---|---|
| History, Reading, Writing | Use an approved source in context and a student-authored response. Separate the original evidence from later explanations; do not force a single-hero story. |
| Geography and ethics | Include location, social context, or ethical trade-offs where they genuinely support the scientific question. |
| Elective extensions | Choose additional depth in data, technology, economics, or art. Extensions do not replace the core work. |
| Quantitative science | Use the unit's mathematical lane at the agreed level. Supply units, denominators, and model conditions; required science is assessed as science. |
Integration is reported separately and cannot lower the science grade or block a science demonstration pass. Science and practical criteria determine that pass.
Use the same approved task in both formats. The web guide explains the source, data, assumptions, student work, and evidence checklist; this packet is its portable summary, not a different assignment.
Use the web guide's approved unit assignment.
| Unit | Microscopy big idea | Integration anchor |
|---|---|---|
| 01 The Microscope | Objective and ocular both shape the image; record the part labels before interpreting. | OpenStax Microbiology; unit path. |
| 02 Magnification & Measurement | Scale claims need calibration and a resolution limit, not nominal magnification alone. | OpenStax Microbiology; unit path. |
| 03 Wet Mounts | Approved wet-mount evidence separates specimen variation from bubbles, folds and thickness artifacts. | OpenStax Biology; unit path. |
| 04 Staining & Contrast | Contrast choices are approved, documented changes to the specimen or optical path. | OpenStax Biology; unit path. |
| 05 Plant Cells | Plant counts need calibrated field area and a clear specimen-level sampling unit. | OpenStax Biology; unit path. |
| 06 Animal Cells | Histology images are educational evidence, not diagnoses or personal health records. | OpenStax Biology; unit path. |
| 07 Microorganisms | Microorganism claims require approved sources, total magnification and biological-source limits. | OpenStax Microbiology; unit path. |
| 08 Micrography & Scale | Image evidence needs scale, source, crop/resize/edit notes and artifact honesty. | NCBI; unit path. |
Read approved Hooke or Leeuwenhoek excerpts, then use prepared slides, recorded images, or approved teaching specimens. Do not grow unknown environmental cultures for a reenactment. Calibrate the ocular scale against a stage micrometer, report what the image resolves, and write an observation letter distinguishing evidence from inference and instrument limitations.
Math never drives a unit, but microscopy uses measurement constantly — always anchored to what the student sees at the bench. Here is the quantitative skill each unit actually uses, done inside the lab context rather than as a parallel curriculum.
| Unit | Applied math at the agreed level |
|---|---|
| 01 The Microscope | Total magnification = objective x ocular; 100x objective with 10x ocular = 1000x total. |
| 02 Magnification & Measurement | 450 micrometres x 0.36 = 162 micrometres; repeat calibration mean = 100.7 micrometres per 10 divisions. |
| 03 Wet Mounts | 2 remakes / 5 attempts = 40%; clean fields average 40 visible cells. |
| 04 Staining & Contrast | Approved stain contrast = 9 units; gain over unstained = 7 units. |
| 05 Plant Cells | 120 cells / 0.60 mm^2 = 200 cells/mm^2; chloroplast-rich fraction = 83.3%. |
| 06 Animal Cells | 28 nuclei / 0.15 mm^2 = 186.7 nuclei/mm^2; total supplied nuclei = 58. |
| 07 Microorganisms | 18 cocci / 30 counted bacterial shapes = 60%; six motile protists tracked. |
| 08 Micrography & Scale | 50 micrometres / 125 pixels = 0.4 micrometres/pixel; 180 pixels = 72 micrometres. |
Students do the magnification arithmetic while working the scope, the field-of-view calibration while measuring a specimen, the scale-bar math while drawing what they found. The number always means something because it is attached to a specimen they observed — never a worksheet detached from the bench.
Integration is its own strand. Track each unit’s integration level across the year — Developing, Proficient, or Mastery — separate from the technique-mastery rubric. Record the evidence reference and date in the final column.
| Unit | Developing | Proficient | Mastery | Evidence / date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 The Microscope | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 02 Magnification & Measurement | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 03 Wet Mounts | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 04 Staining & Contrast | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 05 Plant Cells | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 06 Animal Cells | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 07 Microorganisms | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
| 08 Micrography & Scale | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ | ______ |
A student who walks through all eight anchors finishes understanding that microscopy is how humans first saw the invisible world, and that every skill on the ladder was once a discovery someone fought to be believed — the version of the subject a student keeps.