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Biology journal Cambridge IGCSE 0610

Cells under the microscope · 3 parts · syllabus 2.1, 2.2

What does a microscope reveal inside a cell?

Peel the skin of an onion, stain it and lower a coverslip. Focus the microscope from low to high power, compare cheek cells and a pondweed leaf, then measure one onion cell.

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An onion scale with its thin, see-through inner skin lifted on the tip of a knife, light shining through it. (enlarge)

Follow the idea

  1. Plant and animal cells

    Plant, animal and bacterial cells: what a microscope shows and what each structure does

    Not started

  2. Specialised cells and organisation

    New cells from cell division, specialised cells and the levels from cell to organism

    Not started

  3. Magnification

    Magnification and actual size, in millimetres and micrometres

    Not started
A school light microscope with a stained slide clipped on its stage and the lamp in its base lit.

The experiment · Prepare, focus and compare three slides; measure a cell

Run it yourself, or project it for the class

Use the apparatus step by step and look closely at what happens. The whole experiment fits one screen, so it works on a projector too.

Open the experiment