When East Tipp Middle School students lean over their lab tables, science comes into focus thanks to new microscopes purchased through a grant from the SIA Foundation.

In Christina Schmidt’s eighth grade science class, students extract cheek cell samples and view their own cellular makeup under the new microscopes, carefully adjusting the knobs to bring each image into focus.

For student Elsie Breon, the difference is immediate.

“I was surprised at how well the coarse and fine focus worked,” Elsie says. “For someone with not the best eyesight, it was cool to see something clear.”

She says the clarity makes it possible to see far more detail than before.

“On the old microscopes, we were only able to see the cell shape. Now we can see organelles, cell walls, the nucleus and more,” Elsie says.

Student Atticus MacLaverty also notices the upgrade.

“The lenses were more precise. It was more user friendly,” Atticus says. “With the old microscopes, it was harder to see what you were meant to. With the new ones, it is much easier to see and understand what you are looking at.”

Schmidt replaced microscopes that were more than 30 years old and no longer met the needs of today’s curriculum. The grant funded 17 digital microscopes, a mobile storage cart and prepared slides and slide making materials. The equipment is used across grade levels in science, as well as in special education and technology classes.

The difference in student engagement is immediate.

“The students have been really excited to use them this year,” Schmidt says. “They understand the privilege it is to have access to this type of technology, so they have been using them very carefully. I think they would love to use them every day if we had the time.”

Seeing cells and chromosomes firsthand makes lessons on mitosis, meiosis and DNA more tangible. Students who once struggled to picture abstract processes begin connecting the dots.

“Students have a hard time understanding concepts that they cannot see,” Schmidt says. “Being able to use these microscopes and look at their own cheek cells and bacteria allows them to truly experience what we have been discussing.”

After viewing their own cells, students quickly want to examine hair and fingernails, eager to explore more of the microscopic world.