Introduction
Most people associate microbes with a negative connotation. After all, microbes cause deadly diseases and make people sick. However, microbes have many lesser-known positive functions. It is important to teach my students about microbes because microbiology is one of the areas in science that is really untapped. Microbes also are the first form of life to evolve on our planet. About 2.5 billion years ago, cyanobacteria "developed the trick of oxygenic photosynthesis." 1 This adaptation led to increased oxygen levels in the atmosphere, and allowed for life on land to follow even though it would take several hundred million years. 2 Not only are microbes the first form of life, they are the most biodiverse form of life, and they impact every ecosystem on Earth. Microbes are capable of solving problems: cleaning up oil spills, generating energy, eating pollution, eating plastic, eating nylon, metabolizing methane gas, killing cancer, treating depression and anxiety, and reducing acid run-off. 3 There are likely hundreds of thousands of microbes that have yet to be discovered. They exist in every part of the world, and the benefits of the microbial world to environmental and medical problems seem to be limitless. Students need to learn at a young age the potential benefits microbes have to offer.
As a self-contained fourth grade teacher in an urban school system, my students are at the perfect age to learn about microbes. My students are eager to learn. They enjoy hands-on science activities, and are able to work in groups in a semi-independent manner. Unfortunately, due to schedule demands and the emphasis on state testing, science gets minimal attention at my grade level. By combining many science skills as well as language arts and math skills, the time will be well spent.
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