Bug Hunting
Ages 3 and up (one 45-60 minute session)
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Objectives:
- To familiarize children with various bugs or insects.
- To become confident handling insects.
- To learn the concept of good bugs and bad bugs.
(This lesson can be integrated with” William the Worm”, Sec 7)
Materials:
- Insect or butterfly nets
- Plastic jars with lids
- Books about insects
Set up:
Allow children to look and read books about insects. Talk about insect parts and diets. Using the books, show them which insects bite or sting, harm plants, or are good for the garden. Talk about insect mouthparts and talk about how those mouth parts might damage their garden plants. Talk about what is meant by the words “good and bad”. Punch holes in the jar lids so the insects can get air after they’re caught.
Part One:
Take small groups of children out to a field or garden (in our case the alfalfa plot and the pumpkin patch worked well). Ask the children what kind of bugs they would like to catch. Show them how to use the net, and then let them go running after butterflies, grasshoppers, and dragonflies. Help them put the insects they catch into the jars so that they can be examined closely for some time before they are released again. If using William the Worm, pick up each insect picture one at a time and talk with each child about weather it is harmful or beneficial. Have a child attach it to the good or bad side of William. Set William up in the garden in an accessible place in the garden to use as a reference by the children during the growing season.
Helpful Hints:
Many children are afraid of bugs, but are willing to go bug hunting. The point is to have them become aware that not all the bugs will bite or sting them. And that some stinging insects are beneficial for plants, e.g. bumble bees and honeybees pollinate many plants; wasps eat other insects in the garden. Some children will catch the bugs and want to let them go before taking a closer look. Encourage a closer examination so that they can tell stinging insects apart from harmless ones, and see different insect’s shapes. If you’re lucky, you might catch look a likes in the garden like Lady Bugs and Mexican Bean Beetles. Although these two insects are in the same family, one is beneficial, and the other is a pest!
Finding the right type of books on insects makes the hunting part very easy. In books children can see the vast scope of insects in the world, not just the ones found in the backyard. Try Pests & Diseases the Complete Guide to Preventing, Identifying and Treating Plant Problems, by Pippa Greenwood, Andrew Halstead, A.R. Chase, and Daniel Gilrein. Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc. Put out by the American Horticultural Society, it has excellent pictures, diagrams and information.
Note: If your hunting expedition is in a grassy field, make sure to check children well for ticks.
