#  >> K-12 >> K-12 Basics

How to Make a 3D Shoe Box Plant Cell Model

There are a few differences between plant cells and animal cells, though the two biggest differences are the existence of a cell wall and chloroplast in the plant cell. A plant's green color comes from chlorophyll, which is produced by the chloroplast. The firm cell wall helps the plant stem to remain upright. Use a shoe box, green plastic food wrap, basic food items and some fishing line to make your own 3D model of a plant cell.

Things You'll Need

  • Shoe box
  • Green plastic food wrap
  • 1 large radish
  • Permanent marker
  • 2 sour straws
  • Needle
  • Fishing line
  • Thimble
  • Tape
  • Large round sprinkles
  • Cheese curls
  • Green beans
  • 1 carrot, sliced diagonally
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Place the shoe box on its side so that the open part is facing you. The edges of the box represent the cell wall.

    • 2

      Line the box with green plastic food wrap to represent the cell membrane.

    • 3

      Cut the radish in half so that the rings are showing. This will represent the nucleus. Draw in a nucleolus with the permanent marker. Thread some fishing line through the needle and push it through the radish, using the thimble for support. Push the needle through the top of the box and suspend the radish at the desired height, then tie a knot to secure it.

    • 4

      Wash the sugar off of one half of each of the sour straws. Attach the smooth end of each sour straw to either side of the radish with the needle and fishing line. Fold the sour straws like an accordion and secure with fishing line to keep the accordion shape. Secure the unattached end of each sour straw to fishing line and suspend from the top of the box. The smooth end of the sour straw is the smooth endoplasmic reticulum and the sugared side is the rough endoplasmic reticulum.

    • 5

      Suspend cheese curls to act as the Golgi apparatus. Tear off a few pieces of tape and sprinkle some large sprinkles onto each one. Suspend with fishing line next to the cheese curls to form the Golgi vesticles, completing the Golgi apparatus.

    • 6

      Suspend green beans from the top of the box to act as the chloroplast.

    • 7

      Suspend carrot slices from the top of the box to represent the mitochondria.

    • 8

      Cover the front of the box with green plastic food wrap to represent the cytoplasm.

    • 9

      Make a key of the food items used and the parts of the cell they represent and affix it to the top of the box, hiding all the fishing line knots.

Learnify Hub © www.0685.com All Rights Reserved