Biology, Module 2, Kingdom Monera

Videos, etc. for M 2
Quizlet Vocabulary Game, M2 
Good and Bad Bacteria - a good review  

What is "Monera"??? 
That was one of my questions back when I first looked through this biology textbook.  (And there were many questions!)
The answer to this one is bacteria!
Kingdom Monera is the first kingdom we have studied.  We should start with something small, yeah?
Since kingdom Animalia is last, I do believe they're going from smallest to largest.  =D
We do not have a microscope, so we looked at the posts over at Mindful Ramblings and at Applie's Place.  I'm glad they're ahead of us!  (In more ways than one.  These ladies went to college!)
More specific links are posted at Homeschooler's Resources.
I have no photos since we did not meet for experiments.  Still, we did learn a lot.  At least I did!

Learning about the makeup of bacteria is amazing.  Even though bacteria are so tiny that they are only visible by a microscope, it is still complex.  I mean, a tiny dot that you can't even see has all this in it:

This did NOT just happen by accident.  And then happen over and over, millions of times.
No, there was a Designer.  And He knows what He's doing.  =D

Bacteria are prokaryotic.  Prokaryotic cells are single-celled organisms.  The organelles in a prokaryotic cell are not "membrane-bound."  The DNA strand, which is a single circular strand, is not "membrane-bound" inside a nucleus -- it is simply suspended in the cytoplasm.  They also only have one type of organelle - ribosomes.

Bacteria come in three basic shapes:

The shape of the bacterium is in its name.  For instance, Staphylococcus pharyngitis is the name for strep throat, and from the name, I know that the bacteria are spherical (cocci).
They are sometimes in colonies, not just a single bacterium by itself.

We learned that bacteria can be aerobic or anaerobic.  They may or may not need oxygen.
Heterotrophic bacteria get their food from other sources.  If they are decomposers, they are saprophytic; they feed on non-living things.
If heterotrophic bacteria are parasitic, they feed on a living host.  (ugh!)
Autotrophic bacteria make their own food either by photosynthesis (uses energy from sunlight) or by chemosynthesis (promotes chemical reactions which release energy).

Friendly Bacteria

Most people think of bacteria as harmful, and they can be.  But there are also friendly bacteria!  These are found in milk and yogurt, as the process of making yogurt involves culturing milk with live and active bacterial cultures. There are also friendly bacteria in your own body.  Friendly bacteria are responsible for the digestion of your food.  The truth is, you need bacteria!  Click to read more.

There is so much more to bacteria!  Too much to rewrite about it all.  To see what I posted for the kids' benefit, go to Homeschooler's Resources.

►Here are some pictures of bacteria.  See if you can find any names you recognize.  There are two bacteria for Salmonella, but only one causes food poisoning.  There are others you may recognize.
►At Julie's blog, see whether bacteria can be friend or foe.