Sterilize the wire loop.
Cool the loop by touching it on the edge of the sterile agar plate.
Dip the loop into the broth culture containing the mixture of bacteria.
Lift the lid of the plate just enough to insert the loop. Drag the loop over the surface of the top one-third of the plate back and forth in a "zig-zag" formation.
The loop has picked up thousands of bacteria which are spread out over the surface of the agar.
Sterilize the loop in the flame.
Turn the plate 90 degrees and drag the loop through the area you have just streaked two to three times and continue to drag the loop in a "zig-zag" formation in the remaining half of the plate without touching that area again.
Sterilize the loop in the flame.
Turn the plate 90 degrees. Repeat the procedure. Drag the loop two to three times through the area you just streaked, and fill in the remaining area of the plate (zig-zag formation), being very careful not to touch any of the areas you previously streaked.
Incubate the plate for 24 hours. If you streaked correctly, you will see isolated colonies in the third sector. The heaviest growth will be in the first sector. There will be less growth and some isolated colonies in the second sector. The third area should have the least growth with isolated colonies.