Cell Structure

The cell structure game reviews organelle structures and functions. The game is divided into seven options.

Students can identify organelles in a generic plant or animal cell either by name or by function. It's important to note that these are simplified diagrams, so they do not represent the full complexity of a cell, or of organelle functions. As long as students understand the limitations of the review, it is a useful tool.

An entire paper could be written on the functions of any one organelle, so summarizing the function in a few words leaves a lot out. In some cases for the game, the "function" is more of a description. The key consideration in this design was to help students practice identifying organelles by more than just the organelle name. For high school students, the review by function is a particularly useful approach as it requires them to both recognize the structure and function at the same time. Many students are able to match structures or functions with an organelle's name independently, but struggle to combine that information.

In addition to the overall cell structures, a diagram that focuses on identifying the components of a plasma membrane is also available.

Simplified cell models that are aimed at middle school students identify only a few key organelles and require differentiation between plant and animal cells.

The specialized structures section of the game requires students to identify cell structures such as cilia and microvilli, which are not represented on the other models.