Introduction to Mitosis & Cell Division: Microscope Lab
An online microscope lab for middle school and high school science on StudyScope. Students work through 3 real prepared microscope slides in order: Onion Root Tip Mitosis (Longitudinal Section), Ascaris Female (Cross Section), and Cotton Leaf (Cross Section).
- Grade level
- Middle school and high school
- Subject
- Cell Biology
- Slides
- 3
- NGSS
- MS-LS1-1, HS-LS1-4
NGSS alignment
- MS-LS1-1: Provide evidence that living things are made of cells, either one cell or many different types of cells.
- HS-LS1-4: Model the role of cell division (mitosis) and differentiation in producing and maintaining complex organisms.
Lab steps
-
Mitosis in Plant Cells (Onion Root Tip LS)
Slide: Onion Root Tip Mitosis (Longitudinal Section)
- Load the Onion Root Tip LS slide and scan the tip region where cells are actively dividing. Locate one cell where the dark chromosomes are lined up across the middle (Metaphase). Locate another cell where the chromosomes are being pulled apart toward opposite sides (Anaphase). Sketch both stages in your notebook and label the chromosomes.
-
Mitosis in Animal Cells - Ascaris Eggs CS
Slide: Ascaris Female (Cross Section)
- Open the Ascaris Eggs CS slide. Zoom in on a dividing cell and locate the dark chromosomes being separated. Observe the outer shape of the cell—notice how animal cells pinch in the middle during division instead of building a flat wall.
-
Non-Dividing Resting Cells - Cotton Leaf CS
Slide: Cotton Leaf (Cross Section)
- Open the Cotton Leaf CS slide and focus on the rectangular mesophyll cells in the middle. Look for the intact nuclei resting inside each cell. Notice how uniform and organized these resting cells appear compared to the actively dividing root tip from Slide 1
Slides used in this lab
- Onion Root Tip Mitosis (Longitudinal Section)
- Ascaris Female (Cross Section)
- Cotton Leaf (Cross Section)
Teach it live or assign it
Present the lab live and every student screen follows your slide, zoom, and current step, with students joining by room code on Chromebooks, iPads, or any browser, no student accounts. Or share a link so students work through the steps at their own pace. Add the lesson to your library to edit the steps, reorder slides, and add your own teacher notes.