Use the aquarium net (or strainer) to catch organisms in the water column. One technique is to 'sweep the water' back and forth. You can dump what you catch all in the pan for a while and then come back and sort out the critters into individual plastic cups (each cup with a different species). The spoon (or forceps) is helpful with this. A few of the species can bite (or pierce) so it is best to handle them with a net, or spoon. Once they are in the plastic cups they are easy to view up close (especially if you have a hand lens or some kind of magnifier). The air bubble at the tip of the abdomen of the predaceous diving beetle and the silvery air envelope under the wings of the backswimmers are easy to see without a magnifier.