Multi-Age, Multi-Use Digital Microscope from Southern Science Supply {Review & Coupon Code}

My Experience with a Southern Science Supply Digital Microscope

This microscope would be perfect for homeschools or families in general. You can use it with a computer or TV. It’s super-simple to use, since you just have to use the USB cable to plug it in. It turns on automatically once it’s connected to the computer.

It would work wonderfully with many unit studies. I was doing a mini cotton unit with Zoey, so I set up the computer with a cotton specimen on the microscope (shown on the left side of the computer) and an image of a cotton field (shown on the right). The microscope can be hand held, although I used the stand to simplify the work for a preschooler.

The basket near the back of the table holds a number of specimens (butterfly wing, river shrimp, flies, rooster feather, rabbit fur, down, penny, sea sponge, cockle bur, lichen, dried seaweed, and feldspar {fool’s gold}) that came with the microscope and some other slides I had purchased previously. Southern Science Supply has a number of themed specimen kits (that look awesome) available for purchase.

I had Zoey feel each of the specimens before looking at it on the computer. She felt a cotton ball, cotton swab, and cotton shirt of hers while looking at a small piece of cotton I had on a slide.

Zoey enjoyed feeling all the specimens. The sensory experiences alone were fabulous, and seeing an image like the fool’s gold magnified (very glittery!) entranced Zoey.

Zoey loved that she was even able to adjust the specimens on the microscope herself. Of course, you would have to be sure your preschooler would be careful with the microscope to allow this.

Zoey enjoyed the microscope work so much that she insisted we go through ALL the specimens I had. It was fun to see her apply this experience to experiences we’ve had previously. For instance, she loves the book Two Bad Ants . In the book, sugar looks like crystals to the two ants. With the microscope, Zoey could understand what the ants were seeing.

After our work with the microscope, Zoey and I watched a short YouTube video about where cotton comes from. Zoey really enjoyed that, too. Then I made a nature tray with the cotton field image, image of the magnified cotton from our work, magnifying glass (which magnified the cotton but not nearly as much as the microscope), cotton boll from the Montessori By Mom Shoots and Sprouts Toolbox, cotton ball, cotton swab, and 100% cotton shirt of Zoey’s.

Zoey’s other grandparents are from North Carolina. So is the cotton field in the photo. So we used our globe to look at where cotton grows. This work is on Zoey’s cultural shelf now. We’ll be reading a couple of books about cotton, too.

My granddaughter and I are both in love with Southern Science Supply microscopes and supplies! I highly recommend them for both families and classrooms. If you’re an adult with a hobby like stamp collecting, you’ll love them, too!