Microorganisms

A teacher recently asked if I could find some Internet sites that help reinforce the 6th grade curriculum on microorganisms. First I have included the Utah Core Curriculum on microorganisms, then I have listed some of the sites I was able to find:

Core Curriculum on UEN
Science Benchmark: Microorganisms are those living things that are visible as individual organisms only with the aid of magnification. Microorganisms are components of every ecosystem on Earth. Microorganisms range in complexity from single to multicellular organisms. Most microorganisms do not cause disease and many are beneficial. Microorganisms require food, water, air, ways to dispose of waste, and an environment in which they can live. Investigation of microorganisms is accomplished by observing organisms using direct observation with the aid of magnification, observation of colonies of these organisms and their waste, and observation of microorganisms' effects on an environment and other organisms.

Standard 5 : Students will understand that microorganisms range from simple to complex, are found almost everywhere, and are both helpful and harmful.

Objective 1: Observe and summarize information about microorganisms.

1. Examine and illustrate size, shape, and structure of organisms found in an environment such as pond water.
2. Compare characteristics common in observed organisms (e.g., color, movement, appendages, shape) and infer their function (e.g., green color found in organisms that are producers, appendages help movement).
3. Research and report on a microorganism's requirements (i.e., food, water, air, waste disposal, temperature of environment, reproduction).

Objective 2 : Demonstrate the skills needed to plan and conduct an experiment to determine a microorganism's requirements in a specific environment.

1. Formulate a question about microorganisms that can be answered with a student experiment.
2. Develop a hypothesis for a question about microorganisms based on observations and prior knowledge.
3. Plan and carry out an investigation on microorganisms. {Note: Teacher must examine plans and procedures to assure the safety of students; for additional information, you may wish to read microbe safety information on Utah Science Home Page.}
4. Display results in an appropriate format (e.g., graphs, tables, diagrams).
5. Prepare a written summary or conclusion to describe the results in terms of the hypothesis for the investigation on microorganisms.

Objective 3 : Identify positive and negative effects of microorganisms and how science has developed positive uses for some microorganisms and overcome the negative effects of others.

1. Describe in writing how microorganisms serve as decomposers in the environment.
2. Identify how microorganisms are used as food or in the production of food (e.g., yeast helps bread rise, fungi flavor cheese, algae are used in ice cream, bacteria are used to make cheese and yogurt).
3. Identify helpful uses of microorganisms (e.g., clean up oil spills, purify water, digest food in digestive tract, antibiotics) and the role of science in the development of understanding that led to positive uses (i.e., Pasteur established the existence, growth, and control of bacteria; Fleming isolated and developed penicillin).
4. Relate several diseases caused by microorganisms to the organism causing the disease (e.g., athlete's foot -fungi, streptococcus throat -bacteria, giardia -protozoa).
5. Observe and report on microorganisms' harmful effects on food (e.g., causes fruits and vegetables to rot, destroys food bearing plants, makes milk sour).

Science language students should use: algae, fungi, microorganism, decomposer, single-celled, organism, bacteria, protozoan, producer, hypothesis, experiment, investigation, variable, control, culture

Websites:

• UEN Educational Links, Standard 5
• UEN Educational Links, Standard 5, Objective 1
• UEN Educational Links, Standard 5, Objective 2
• UEN Educational Links, Standard 5, Objective 3
• BBC Bitesize Science - Microorganisms - Interactive activity about helpful & harmful microorganisms
• Science NetLinks - Invisible Allies: Microbes That Shape Our Lives - Book
• Science NetLinks - Microbes 1: What's Bugging You? - Lesson
• Science NetLinks - Microbes 2: Louis Pasteur - A Microbe Discoverer - Lesson
• Science NetLinks - Sanitation and Human Health - Lesson
• Microbe World - Meet the Microbe - Informational site
• Microbe Zoo - Digital Learning Center for Microbial Ecology
• National Geographic - Creepy Critters - Quiz/game identifying microorganisms that live on the human body
• NOVA - Disease Detective - Webquest-type activity to identify which microorganisms caused an illness in some campers
• Harmful Algae - Informational site about the harm algae can cause
• Utah State University - Microorganisms in the Macrocosm - Series of lesson plans, handouts, and other resource links
• American Museum of Natural History - Infection, Detection, Protection - Several activities and informational sites about microorganisms and the connection to diseases
• The Children's University of Manchester - Microorganisms - Collection of interactive learning modules and quizes about various types of microorganisms