How to Make an Animal Cell Model for a 6th Grader

You can construct a three-dimensional model of an animal cell with a Styrofoam ball.

A popular sixth-grade science assignment is to build a three-dimensional animal cell model. During the assignment, students learn about specialized cell organelles (structures) such as the ribosomes and smooth endoplasmic reticulum.

Things You'll Need

• Styrofoam ball 10 inches in diameter
• Sharp knife
• Play dough in various colors: light blue, dark blue, yellow, dark yellow, orange, red, and light purple
• Plastic knife

Instructions

1. Slice halfway through the Styrofoam ball at a 90-degree angle from top to center.

2. Holding the knife parallel and at a 90-degree angle to the first cut, slice into the side of the Styrofoam ball again, meeting the first cut at the center. One-quarter of the ball should be removed using these two cuts.

3. Turn the wedge opening of the ball toward you. This is the area where the organelles will be placed. Roll light-blue play dough into a four-inch diameter ball, and squeeze it into the center of the Styrofoam ball. This is the nucleus. Using a plastic knife, cut half the nucleus off. Add a small, round piece of dark-blue play dough to the inside of the light-blue ball. This is the nucleolus.

4. Roll yellow play dough into five three-inch-long strings. Push together the five strings and place them next to the nucleus on the Styrofoam ball. These string-like organelles are the centrosome.

5. Flatten dark-yellow play dough into one lasagna-like sheet two inches wide and six inches long. Roll tiny balls of orange play dough and sprinkle them across the dark-yellow sheet of play dough. Fold the sheet together accordion style so that it is one inch wide. This is the rough endoplasmic reticulum. Place it on the other side of the nucleus, across from the centrosome.

6. Flatten more dark-yellow play dough into one lasagna-like sheet two inches wide and four inches long. Fold the sheet together accordion style so that it is one inch wide. Place it on the Styrofoam ball near the rough endoplasmic reticulum. This organelle is the smooth endoplasmic reticulum.

7. Roll red play dough into four one-inch diameter balls. These will be the lysosomes. Place them near the centrosome.

8. Roll yellow play dough into three straight, macaroni-shaped tubes, about two inches long. These are the microtubules. Place them near the centrosome.

9. Shape red play dough into a spherical oval. Smooth dark-yellow play dough around the oval, like a shell. Using your plastic knife, cut the oval and its shell in half lengthwise. Place one half with its flat side facing out in an empty area of the Styrofoam ball. This is a mitochondrion.

10. Roll light-purple play dough into three balls about two inches wide and with an irregular shape. These will be the vacuoles. Place them in an empty area of the cell model.

Tips & Warnings

• You may cut numbers out of paper and glue them to each organelle in your cell model. On another piece of paper, write the name of each organelle as it corresponds to its number on the model.

• Adult supervision is recommended when cutting the Styrofoam ball.

References

• Florida State University: Anatomy of the Animal Cell

Resources

• University of Utah: Inside a Cell