When cells have gone through interphase, the first stage of their life cycle, they transistion into mitosis, the most common eukaryotic cell reproduction process. There are four phases of mitosis: prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase. During prophase, the nuclear membrane dissolves, and all of the DNA that was duplicated at the very end of interphase, each pair of duplicates is made up of two chromatids, condenses. In metaphase, the chromatids align across the equator of th cell. During anaphase, spindle fibers become visible and pull the paired chromatids in half. Each half goes to a separate end of the cell. Then, during telophase, a nuclear membrane begins to reform around each cluster of DNA. Mitosis is over. 

While plant and animal cells don't look the same, they are in the possession of many similar organelles, such as mitochondria, nuclei, endoplasmic reticulums, ribosomes, etc. After that, some differences start to occur. For example, while plant and animals both have cells with vacuoles, plant cells only have one huge one, that also carries out the duties of a lysosome, and animal cells have multiple smaller ones, that do naught but store things. Speaking of lysosomes, only animal cells have them, and they use them to break down waste and damaged or useless cell parts. Plants also use a process called "photosythesis" to make food, and have an organelle, called a chloroplast, specified for that job. While both types of cells have a cell membrane, only plant and bacteria cells have a cell wall.

Bacteria are very different from the other types of cells, and have no organelles that are bound by membranes. Instead of lying inside the nucleus, like it does in plant and animal cells, DNA is found floating around in the cytoplasm. The reason for that is that all known bacteria cells have no nucleus. Bacteria are generally prokaryotic, which differs them from the eukaryotic plant and animal cells. Prokaryotic cells have a cell wall, and no nucleus or membrane-bound organelles.

The edible cell project is a fun one, and I think students enjoy it every year. The edible cell did help me remember the names and purposes of most of the cell parts, but I think Quizlet helped too. While the edible cell project is a good way for students to learn and reveiw the names of cell parts and organelles, I think that it would be easy for students to forget that the project has an educational purpose, becuase of its creative and food-oriented theme. I think that if the edible cell project is kept through the years, it should be repeated to students that they will need to remember names and functions or suffer grade-wise. 

I think that the cell project should be kept, despite its disadvantages, but think that the educational purpose of this project should be repeated to the students so they are not caught up in the inherent "fun" aspect. If that is done, the cell project will provide a creative and inventive way for students to learn names and definitions.