Microscopes

[ck1]

I need some interesting objects for my kids to look at through a microscope, we've done leaves, bits of a wasp, spiders web...

[Hypognosis]

Other classics from school days that I recall include: -

onion epithelium (the slippery skin between layers)
cheek cells (use lolly stick as a scraper) *
blood cells (know any diabetics?) *

* - these ones will not be as good as you might recall because they need special staining solution(s) to show up features like cell nuclei. As well as being substances too toxic to keep at home, the fact that schools and labs are the only real customers for the product means they'll be correspondingly too expensive for casual users.

There, that's all the boring suggestions out of the way. Now wait for better suggestions to come rolling in. :O)

[neodarwinian]

Any fresh water pond will yield a whole world of wonder. Assuming you have a decent light microscope.

Also mounted slides can be purchased and have a wide variety of objects to view.

[ukanonymous]

I remember all the boys at school used to look at there bogies and found it very entertaining. If you could find a split end in your hair that might be interesting? Or if you have a diamond ring with a code of authenticity on it to relate to a certificate then that is interesting :)

[Maydup]

A piece of skin
Fingernail
A hair
A peppercorn
Slice of grape or anything with a pip

[Mosaic]

Sand and gravel from different locations
soil from flower beds or pot plants
broken shells (where you can see a cross section)

[ck1]

Some great ideas there, thanks very much!!

[jomifl]

If you want to stain living pond creatures to make them more visible try 'methylene blue' which you can get from aquarium shops.

[woofgang]

sugar, salt, flour, baking powder, talc.

[jomifl]

You need quite a high magnification to see blood cells.What kind of microscope is it?

[ck1]

It's one of these

Amazon.co.uk User Recommendation

[Clanad]

Anything crystalline in nature... especially, coarse grained salt, brown sugar, common blackboard chalk, and... orange juice... you'll be amazed as will the kids...

[jomifl]

OK, ck1, 500X s enough to see blood cells, the way to make them easy to see is to place a drop of blood on end of a clean slide then use the end of another to drag the blood along the slide so that you get a very thin film of blood. Ths will dry quite quickly so can be easily handled for viewing. Be careful when using maximum power not to wind the objective lens through the slide. To avoid doing this carefully lower the oblective towards the slide whilst watching the clearance as it approaches near zero, then wind it slowly away whilst looking through the eyepiece for the moment of focus.

[I_Hate_Infinity]

My favourite is a woodlouse. Real interesting creatures up close!! Easy to catch too. Turn over a log or pick up a plant pot. (sry I haven't read thru but...) What magnification is it?

IHI

[royalking]

Check it here http://microscopesworld.com/