Easy-View Microscope ~ Lakeshore Learning Review & Giveaway

In my years teaching preschool in the public school system, Lakeshore Learning was one of my favorite catalogs to browse through and find fun things to add to my classroom. Recently, Lakeshore Learning contacted me and asked if I would be interested in sharing one of the items from Lakeshore Holiday Brochure with you all ~ and I was so happy to find the Easy-View Microscope.



The Easy-View Microscope {$49.99} has a magnification of 640X and comes with a 10X and 16X eyepiece that can be interchanged. The main lens includes 4X, 10X and 40X objectives which rotate to the viewing position. The lamp and mirror are underneath the slide area and the slides are held in place with two metal clips. The microscope comes with 19 additional accessories including:

~ prepared & blank slides
~ a Petri dish & stirring rod
~ tweezers, scalpel, spatula and dropper
~ collecting vials and more

The microscope requires 2 AA batteries {not included} to run the lamp. The intended age range is for 8-11 year olds, but adult supervision is still recommended.

Our Thoughts

Truth be told, I was a little scared to pull things out of the box. I may not have mentioned it before, but biology…not some of my most well-loved subject in school. My husband on the other hand is a biology nut {he majored in it} and has a very long history with microscopes from his work in the lab.



 

The microscope itself is really nothing to be afraid of {don’t ask me why I was scared}. It is very easy to figure out how to use, comes with a short instructional guide and a variety of prepared slides with samples of cola, coffee, tea, and foam. My husband pulled everything out for us to use the first time and get the microscope set up so we could use it together.



  

We have been catching fruit flies around our house in anticipation of seeing them up close and personal. We were able to see the wing pattern on the flies and so many other fun things {I tried so hard to get an up-close picture…but it just wouldn’t work!}.

When using slides that have transparent or translucent liquids/items on them, the light is able to shine through the objects and you can see them clearly. Because the light comes from below the object, it is more difficult when attempting to look at opaque objects {like our fruit flies}, although not impossible. We could see through the wings, but the head was a little harder because of the opacity.

My husband was really happy with the microscope overall and said that it will be a wonderful help for the kids and I to use in our science studies. Based on the intended age/grade range {ages 8-11 or grades 3-6} it is a great quality microscope, especially for the $49.99 price.

Find Out More

You can purchase the Easy-View Microscope {$49.99}, as well as many other great items, online from Lakeshore Learning or find a store near you. Be sure to check out the Lakeshore Holiday Brochure as well as their fun new educational apps {currently free until 12/30/11}.

The Giveaway 

Lakeshore Learning offered to giveaway an Easy-View Microscope to one of my readers!! This would be such a FUN Christmas gift for your children or a wonderful addition to your classroom!  To enter, simply follow the directions in the widget below. You can earn multiple entries, so start clicking to enter!




 

Visit these great companies!

• Red Wagon Tutorials….Science classes for junior and senior high
• What’s in the Bible? ~ Save 50% with this great Christmas special! 

I received an Easy-View Microscope from Lakeshore Learning to review in exchange for my honest opinion. I was not paid for this post and do not need to return the microscope. All opinions in this post are solely mine or those of my family.