Post on 11-Mar-2018
“The Tiny Building Blocks of Life”
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Why are cells nicknamed
“The Tiny Building Blocks of
Life?”
What is it made of?
What are its smallest parts?
In Life Science, the concept of a cell is like the bricks that build up a castle wall. Both are the basic parts of the larger system they form.
If you were to look at a tree and a
shark, you would not think that they
have much in common.
However, if you looked closer, (at
their smallest parts) you would see
that they are very similar indeed.
All organisms (living things) are
made up of cells.
Cells are the smallest unit of a living
organism.
They are the tiny living things that make
up all the plants and animals on the
earth.
Some plants and animals are made up
of only one cell! You can’t see those.
To see plants or animals made up of
only one cell, you need to use a
microscope.
The Microscope
(p.84) The microscope
makes the invisible,
visible!
Typical magnification
values are 4x, 5x, 10x,
20x, 40x, 50x and
100x.
The plants and animals that we see
are all made up of millions and
millions of cells!
This is why we call cells “the tiny
building blocks of life.”
Guess what? Your own body is made
of more than a trillion cells! (That’s a
million millions!)
Cells have organelles!
An organelle is one of several tiny structures within a cell.
They are like the “organs.”
They all have specific functions to complete inside the cell so the cell can survive.
Let’s look at the organelles in an animal cell…
Why are cells nicknamed
“The Tiny Building Blocks of
Life?”
The job of the nucleus
is to be the “command
center” of the cell.
It is like the brain.
It houses the DNA—
the personal
code/genes of an
organism that is unlike
any other.
It is a “flexible structure that protects and controls what goes in and out of the cell.”
The cell membrane is like the “skin” of a cell.
It keeps all the organelles inside the cell and protects them.
The cytoplasm is “jelly-like substance found inside the cell that contains organelles.”
It is held in place by the cell membrane.
It would be similar to “glue” or “jello.”
It holds all the other organelles in place inside the cell.
Just like in animal
cells, the nucleus in a
plant cell works as
the brain.
It controls the work
of all the other cell
organelles.
It also houses the
DNA.
Just like in an animal
cell, the cytoplasm in
a plant cell is the
jelly-like fluid that
contains all the other
organelles.
The cell wall is “the
rigid outer layer that
protects and
supports plant cells.”
It is also gives
structure to the cell.
Chloroplasts are like the “solar panels” of plant cells.
The chloroplasts are the green organelles floating in the cytoplasm.
These are what makes plants look green.
The green chloroplasts trap sunlight and make food for the cell called chlorophyll!
Compare and Contrast
Why are cells nicknamed
“The Tiny Building Blocks of
Life?”
Single-celled organisms (Unicellular)
Bacteria
Fungi
Protozoans and Algae
Multi-celled organisms (Multicellular)
Plants
Animals
People (You and me!)
Unicellular organisms are organisms
made up of only one cell!
Most are too small to be seen by the
naked eye (able to be seen without
any help from an eye instrument).
To see these organisms, you have to
use a microscope.
Bacteria can grow in any
environment: underwater, in soil, in
nuclear waste, deep in the Earth’s
crust, ON plants and animals, and IN
plants and animals.
There could be different types of
bacteria in your own body:
Harmless
Beneficial
Harmful
Protozoans are apart of the Protista
group of unicellular organisms that
don’t fit into any other category.
Examples of them include:
An Amoeba
A Paramecium
Amoebas have no exact shape, they can
change their shape at will.
Amoebas are small, one-celled
microscopic creatures.
They are hard to find because they
are transparent and look like
decaying organisms.
They move by using
what scientists call
“false feet”. See?
To eat, amoebas will surround their
prey (another small organism) with
their false feet and then engulf it.
1 2
A multi-celled organism is an
organism that consists of more than
one cell.
Most living things that you can see
with your naked eye are multi-celled
organisms.
…Like you, and me, and your dog,
and the tree outside!!
Your own body is made of many
different cells that all do many
different jobs.
Let’s see how cells really do become
“the building blocks of life” for you!
•Cells form tissues (like muscle tissue).
Tissues form organs (like
the heart and stomach).
•Organs form systems.
•For example: the
digestive system is
formed from the
tongue, stomach, and
intestines working
together.
Organ systems form organisms.
All your organ systems working
together make you work! (You have
eleven working together in all.)
Cells
Tissues
Organs
Organ Systems
Organisms
If God created cells—the tiniest living things—to serve a bigger purpose, then for what bigger purpose could He have created me—such a small person in such a vast world?
1 Timothy 4:12 ~“Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” Can someone as “small” or as young as you,
really make a difference in our world? How?
http://www.cellsalive.com/cells/cell_
model.htm
http://classroom.jc-schools.net/sci-
units/cells.htm#5