Lab Skills of Vet Techs

Inform students that they should now use their knowledge of lab equipment and lab safety to conduct an experiment. Organize students into small groups of 3–4. Show slide 14 and ask students in which beaker of water (hot, cold, or room temperature) they think the food coloring will most quickly diffuse. Have groups discuss the question and distribute one copy of the attached Color Diffusion Lab handout to each student. Preview the activity by explaining to students that they will make predictions about in which beaker of water (hot, cold, or room temperature) the food coloring will most quickly diffuse.

Have students conduct the experiment by following the instructions on their handouts. Actively monitor students during the experiment.

As groups begin to finish the lab, transition to slide 15 and have students follow the instructions for lab clean-up. Once clean-up is complete, move to slide 16 to discuss what students learned during the lab experiment.

Display slide 17 and have students think about which careers involve laboratory equipment and animal encounters. Have students then follow the Think-Pair-Share strategy by discussing their responses with a partner, then sharing their responses with the class.

Show slide 18 and share with students that they will be investigating a sample from a local body of water. Distribute one copy of the attached Pond Water Observations handout to each student. Show the water sample you collected from a pond or lake to students. Ask students to make predictions about what they think they will see if they examine the sample under a microscope.

Organize students into small lab groups of 3–4. Show slide 19 and demonstrate to students how to prepare a glass slide of pond water. Have students study their prepared microscope slides of water and make observations about the sample. Encourage them to compare these observations to their earlier predictions.

Display slide 20. Have students place the prepared slides under the microscope at 30x magnification. Guide students to adjust the focus as needed. Have students describe what they see under the microscope and draw a representation of their observations on their handouts. Have students increase the magnification to 100x and repeat the process, drawing and describing their observations. Encourage each group member to look through the microscope at each magnification. Monitor students’ use of equipment and assist them if they have trouble focusing the lense or cannot find organisms.

As groups begin to finish the lab, transition to slide 21 and introduce the instructions for clean-up. After students have cleaned up their stations, move to slide 22 and discuss what students found in the pond water.

Display slide 23 and introduce the owl pellet investigation by explaining what an owl pellet is. Distribute one copy of the attached Owl Pellet Investigation handout and one copy of the attached Bone Identification Chart handout to each student. Show slide 24 and have students collect the necessary equipment including an owl pellet, a baking sheet, tweezers, toothpicks, a ruler, and gloves. Instruct students to write a description of the owl pellet’s appearance on their handouts. Have students then use the supplies to measure the length, width, and mass of the owl pellet.

Move to slide 25 and ask students to make predictions about what may be inside the owl pellet. If time allows, invite a few volunteers to share their responses and their reasoning.

Transition to slide 26 and have students dissect the owl pellet using the materials provided. Monitor students as they separate the bones in the pellets. Assist them in using their Bone Identification Charts to identify the types of bones and the organisms they came from.

As groups begin to finish the lab, transition to slide 27 and introduce the instructions for clean-up. After students have cleaned up their stations, move to slide 28 and discuss what students found in the owl pellets.