The boys enjoy dramatic play at home so I thought it was time to add a DIY microscope to their play area. There are so many benefits of imaginative play like developing language skills, social skills and thinking skills. I have a corner in their room that’s filled with items to spark their imagination.
Since we’re learning about sharks all week, I figured this would be a great time to create their DIY microscope. They can use their imagination to exam a shark tooth, shark fin and great white shark under a microscope. I found a tutorial on Instagram a long time ago and finally decided to make it for the boys. You can also check out how Moma Le Blog created her own version of the DIY microscope to exam insects.
Supplies:
Recycled plastic laundry detergent bottle
Recycled paper towel roll or any long cardboard tube
Small piece of cardboard
Craft knife, hacksaw or scissors
Hot glue gun with glue sticks or super glue
Directions:
Cut the middle section of the bottle to create the microscope. I used a hacksaw to start the process then finished with scissors.
Next, remove the inside of the top of the laundry detergent bottle. See picture below for an example.
Use craft knife to a cut hole at the top of the bottle top.
Lean the top at an angle on the bottle then glue.
Push the recycled paper towel roll or long cardboard tube down the opening of the bottle top.
Finally, place the small piece of cardboard in the middle of the bottle. This is where you place items to exam. See pictures below for an example.
Any large laundry bottle will work for this project. I chose white, but use what you have at home. There’s no need to purchase a white bottle just for this DIY microscope.
I wanted to create some slides for the boys to exam. Since it’s Shark Week, it includes a shark fin, shark and shark tooth. Create anything you like for the slides. All you need is extra cardboard pieces cut into a rectangular shape. Next, I used a 1.5 inch circle punch and tape for the exam area. Finally, I added the shark fin, great white shark and shark tooth to each slide on top of the tape. Label each slide using a black marker.
Check out this fun sight words game for kids. It’s a great activity for Shark Week but it can be played all year long. Visit my Pinterest page for more fun activities for kids.
