A paper-doll chain can be used to illustrate the concept of polymerization 71. A piece of waxed paper can represent the cuticle of a leaf. Drops of water bead up on it as they do on the leaf cuticle 74. Drinking straws or coffee stirrers can be used to show the structure of skeletal and cardiac muscle. For cardiac muscle, interweave the straws and tape them together.
Students can see that the interwoven structure is stronger than the parallel structure.