Powers of 10 Class Activity
I learned a lot creating Tick Bait’s Universe. I had to research topics to identify what
content would be appropriate to put at each magnification level. This involved
researching very small and very large scientific concepts. I had to measure the
items on each page to make sure they were the right scale. This involved a lot basic
math. I had to constantly convert between feet, millimeters, angstroms, and light
years back to meters. It was a very educational experience for me.
Why not replicate this learning experience for the kids in your class? Have the
whole class create a Power of 10 project. From this exercise kids will:
 Research some really big or very small scientific concepts
 Define the scale of those objects
 Deal with math concepts such as scientific notation and conversion
Also, this will make a cool illustrative display in any classroom.
Steps
Before You Begin
1. Decide whether this is an individual project or a group project.
2. Decide the range you want to cover. Do you want to:
a. Just zoom up to study the atmosphere and astronomy
(For example page 100 to 1020)
b. Just zoom down to study the microscopic world
(For example page 100 to 10-20)
c. Or a little bit of up and down
(For example page 10-10 to 1010)
The size of your range will be dependent on how many kids or teams you
have doing the project.
Kick off the Activity in Class
3. Start by presenting Tick Bait’s Universe to your class. This will provide a
model for your students of what to create. Also, Tick Bait’s Universe makes
for an educational presentation.
Please see Tick Bait’s Presentation tips in my website [Link].
4. From the range you selected, assign one power of 10 magnification level
(such as 10-4, 106, 1017, etc.…) to each student, or team.
Note – I would not assign page 100. I would do this as a class. See step 6
below.
5. Tell each student or team of students to:
a. Research what is small or large enough to see in each of their
magnification levels. For example, if they were assigned 102 they
need to identify something that fits in a square whose sides are 100
meters long.
b. Create a “to scale” illustration of the topic they chose to cover in their
magnification level. Students could do the pictures by hand with
crayons, markers, etc., but it might also be a good activity for the kids
to do in PowerPoint.
Here is a Power of 10 PowerPoint template to use in your class.
c. Create a “fact sheet” for any interesting information about what is
being illustrated.
6. As a class, select the starting point of your “Power of 10” activity. That is,
select what object you want on your page 100. I started from a dirty dog in a
backyard. Where does your class want to start?
I recommend starting from 1) something that fits in a 1 meter square and 2)
something that is living, because this provides smaller living things to zoom
down on.
Ask for a volunteer to create page 100 (for extra credit??)
7. Have the kids start their research.
Present and Display the “Power of 10” Illustrations
8. When all students are finished with their illustration and fact sheet have a
class presentation where each child presents their work to the rest of the
class.
Have the presentations go in order starting from page 100.
9. Make sure each kid or team also presents their fact sheet to explain what is in
their picture, its scale and how it fits into the universe.
10. Optional – Present Tick Bait’s Universe again – Kid will have new insights
into these concepts after doing it themselves. This will lead to some very rich
discussion.
11. Display the children’s work linearly on the classroom wall. That would make
a cool and illustrative classroom decoration.
12. Please send me, Marc Gamble, any work your kids have done to
marcgamble@youuapps.com,
because as Tick Bait’s Dad, I would love to see it.