Now follow these directions to classify the insects specimen. start by putting on your gloves and goggles. then, using the forceps remove the all 15 insects specimens from the jar and put them in a petri dashes. be very careful when removing the insects. wings and body structures can be easily damaged. choose 10 insects that you want to classify using the dichotomous keys, and put the remaining insects back into the solution.

the dichotomous key that came with the Edmentum lab kit has descriptions and "refer to" numbers. start up space 1, and determine whether your specimen has wings. jump to the "refer to" space to further classify the organism. continue until you reach the insects order. If you're not using an Edmentum lab kit, follow the instructions for other specific dichotomous key.

now follow these steps to further classify each specimen. Right your notes in the chart using the exact wording from the dichotomous key. an example is given in the chart.

1. use the magnifying glass to identify the body parts of each insect, such as the mouth or wing structure. use the microscope on the lowest or second lowest setting to observe the body parts of small insects.

2. place it insect in a petri dish lid, and then place it on the microscope. (The bottom part of the petri dish is too tall to fit under the microscope. adjust the under microscope light instead of the base light. then move the dish around until you can see the specimen.)

3. in some cases, an insects metamorphosis will determine its final order. use credible websites to look up the metamorphosis of insects belonging to different orders, and match your specimen accordingly.

4. after you have studied all 10 insect, Make sure your classification chart is complete and that you have used the exact wording from the dichotomous key.
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