Taxacom,

[Don McAllister]

I second Dave's suggestion about use of a hand lens.  An additional reason is that binocular microscopes are not affordable in most developing country schools - where even basic teaching needs are in short supplies.

We are developing a Greater Caribbean Coral Reef Care Manual and will add a section in on using a hand lens to look at plankton and benthic life.  And add a hand lens to budget proposal for those copies going as a school kit along with a video, the manual and a poster.

Your suggestion about lens power is very helpful, Dave.

don
Don McAllister
www.ovi.ca

Dave Jefferies wrote:

> Can I suggest as a first stage that the use of the hand lens is
> encouraged. In the UK we can get very workable x8 and x10 lenses for
> about 5GBP ($8?). I have found the the x8 is a bit easier for
> beginners to use but that x5 is usually not sufficient to open up the
> world. The advantage of a hand lens is that it can be taken outdoors
> as well as being used in the lab.