How to Use a Microscope

Using a microscope effectively is a skill. There’s a fine art in getting an image in focus and visible through the microscope. But once you’ve got it and seen it I promise you, your kids will be in awe. So here’s my guide on how to use a microscope inspired by teaching my own kids and groups of students in homeschool groups and the classroom.

Microscope Knowledge

Before you start it’s really worth going over the parts of the microscope with your kids and getting them to label them as well as what the parts do. So that when you talk through the process they know what each part is called and don’t call it things like the “turny bit at the side”!

If you have read my article on choosing a microscope then you’ll see my recommendation all of them are very similar the main different being the type of magnification they may have or the light source.

The microscope is made up of

• An eyepiece
• Objective Lenes
• Stage
• Stage clips
• Coarse focus knob
• Fine focus knob
• A light source either a mirror or an LED

But what does each part do.

The Eyepiece

Apart from the obvious of it’s the way to look at the specimens it’s also the first magnification – the eye piece on some microscopes can be interchanged and on others remains the same but normally has a magnification of x5 or x10.

Objective Lenses

There are normally 3 lenses of different magnification on the microscope – these could be x5, x10 and x20 or up to x100. The magnification is normally embossed on the side so check out what it says.

Stage

The stage is where your slide will sit. It has a hole in the middle directly under the lenses which is where the light will come through to illuminate the specimen on the slide from underneath. This is perfect for viewing cells.

Some microscopes may also have a light from above which is great for viewing 3D objects but most microscope work will be using the bottom light source.

Stage Clips

These are little metal clips that rotate and go over the slide to hold it in place. They are especially important on the light microscopes that use a mirror for the light source as often you have to angle the microscope to get the right amount of light in to see the specimen.

Coarse Focus Knob

At the side of the microscope you will find 2 dials of different sizes the larger is normally the coarse focus knob. It’s use is to bring the stage up and down and let you focus. It’s important to know the difference as without due care and attention you risk breaking the slide.

Fine Focus Knob

The smaller of the dials is the fine focus knob and this is a much much smaller adjustment that the coarse focus knob. It can bring different layers of cell in focus from the bottom of the specimen to the top so you can see different aspects.

Light Source

This is either an LED light – which means apart from maybe changing the intensity of the light or even the colour to show different aspects you really don’t need to do much with it. Or it’s a mirror – a mirror you will use to reflect light from a window or lamp up through the stage and into the lens and your eye.

How to Use A Microscope

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It’s good to teach good habits with microscopes. If you start with a basic microscope by the time they get to use something a little more advanced they will have skills ingrained and you won’t have to worry about broken lenses or slides.

When I first start using a microscope with kids it’s always a good idea to use prepared slides rather than jump in and try and use your own straight away. We have a set at home that has about 60 different specimens on. It’s got a mixture of plants and animals as well as human cells which is great for exploring in more detail.

Step by Step Using a Microscope

1. Start by giving the eyepiece lens and the lenses a quick clean with a lens cloth.
2. Then place the prepared slide on the stage with the specimen over the hole.
3. Clip it in place to secure it.
4. Don’t look down the eyepiece yet. Position the lens with the smallest magnification in place (the lenses normally rotate).
5. Using the coarse adjustment bring the stage as close as possible to the lens.
6. Now you can look down the eyepiece and use the coarse adjustment to get the specimen in focus.
7. Adjust with the fine focus until everything is clear.

You can then switch the lenses and make small adjustments with the fine focus knob to see more detail of the specimen.