Insects/Bugs Unit

 

This unit is ©Copyright 2004 by Cindy Downes. All rights reserved. Permission is given to homeschooling parents to use these units free of charge in their own home school only. These units may not be reprinted in any other form, for any other purpose (commercial or otherwise) without permission from Cindy Downes. Contact her at cindy@oklahomahomeschool.com.

Insects/Bugs Unit Study
Spring is a great time to study insects and bugs. Boys love it, my granddaughter is fascinated with bugs, and it gives everyone a chance to get outside while doing schoolwork. A lot of good reasons for me to write a short unit on bugs! Here are some ideas to get you started. (Grade level next to item is interest level, not reading level.)

Read over General Directions for Cindy's Unit Studies for information on how to teach a multi-level unit.

Textbook Activities:

  • Considering God's Creation Student Workbook, 5th Edition This is an excellent, Christian-based curriculum. You can incorporate this into a unit study by completing the chapters needed for the topic being studied, saving the rest of the book for another time. Chapters 13-14 cover insects and spiders. Grades 1-6. ISBN 1931292124.

  • All About Insects by Evan-Moor. This is a wonderful resource for PreK-2nd grade. 209 pages. Fun!

  • Creepy Crawlies (Internet Quests), Grades 1-6. Learn about insects by visiting web sites and completing reproducible worksheets related to the website information. Includes CD. ISBN 0743934083.

  • The World of Insects and Arachnids , Great Science Adventures. Learn about insects by creating booklets and doing hands-On lab activities. Grades 3-6, ISBN 1929683081.

  • Suggested activities from Insects: Investigating Science by Mailbox. Grades 1-3. Purchase at education stores.
    o Build an insect, pg. 5
    o It Takes All Sorts, pg. 7
    o Insects by the Inch, pg. 8
    o Bug Quest, pg. 9
    o Fluttery Journals, pg. 14
    o Pasta-live changes, pg. 15
    o Sip, Don’t Slurp, pg. 17
    o Ladybug Model Insect, pg. 20
    o Ladybug’s Life Cycle, pg. 21
    o Buzzing Through Life, pg. 27
    o Who “Bee-longs” Here?, pg. 27
    o Do You See What a Bee Sees, pg. 28
    o Well Dressed Bee, pg. 28
    o Getting the Facts, pg. 32
    o Grasshopper’s Life Cycle, pg. 33
    o A Word About Crickets and Grasshoppers, pg. 34
    o Sing a Song of Insects, pg. 34
    o Edible Ants, pg. 39
    o Fly eyes, pg 4
    o Termite Towns, pg. 45
Activities:

  • Collect some insects and spiders in a jar with lid that has air holes.

  • Create a booklet, poster or venn diagram that illustrates the difference between insects, centipedes, and spiders.

  • Create an insect identification book. Either draw or cut out pictures of insects, paste them on a notebook page and label.

  • Make a drawing of the main parts of insects

  • Make a drawing of the main parts of spiders

  • Make a list of insects that are helpful to humans and those that are harmful

  • Research the various methods of insect control.

  • Research how insects fit into the food chain.
Internet Activities:
Lab Kit Activities:

  • Butterfly Garden. Come with easy-to-assemble observation chamber; supplies for feeding the butterflies (you provide only sugar and water); an informative booklet of clear instructions and butterfly facts; and a certificate for three to five free painted lady caterpillars.

  • Ladybug Land. A metamorphosis kit for ladybugs! Watch nature work its magic as you see ladybugs change from cute little larvae into adult beetles in their own Ladybug Land. Certificate for 15-20 ladybug larvae and food. Fun filled fact and instruction guide included.

  • Museum of Natural History: Insects Kit . Kit includes: Insect identification chart, Pre-cut presentation box frame, Specimen jar , Plastic beetle model to construct, Brush and magnifying lens, Insect maze tray, Life-cycle wheel, Insect stickers, Illustrated 64-page book with a comprehensive guide to the ISBN 076241068X.

Field Trip Suggestion:
  • Visit a bee/honey farm
Reading Suggestions:

  • On Beyond Bugs! by Tish Rabe. Cat-In-The-Hat Learning Lib. 48 pgs., color illus. K-3rd+

  • Best Book of Bugs by Clare Llewellyn, Kingfisher, 1998, color, 32 pgs, K-4+

  • Bugs (DK EyeWonder) by Penelope York. 48 pgs, color, 2-6

  • Bugs, Beetles, and Butterflies by Harriet Ziefert. Viking Science Easy to Read, Level 1. K-3+

  • Chirping Crickets by Melvin Berger. Picture. K-6+

  • Creepy, Crawly Caterpillars by Margery Facklam. K-8+, illustrated

  • Do Bugs Have Noses? by Debbie Anderson, Christian. K-6 (available at Christian bookstores)

  • Face to Face with The Ant by Luc Gomel. 2-6+

  • Find the Insect by Cate Foley, insect camouflage, K-3+

  • Fireflies by Sally Walker, color, 48 pgs, Excellent! K-6

  • Honey Makers, The by Gail Gibbons. picture book, K-4+

  • Insects (A True Book) by Melissa Stewart. K-6+

  • Insects (Weird Wildlife) by Anna Claybourne. color, 32 pgs, K-6

  • Magic School Bus: Insect Invaders, K-6

  • Monster Bugs, Step Into Reading, Step 2, K-3+

  • Practical Entomologist by Rick Imes. Intro to insects w/activities. 6-12

  • Spider (Killer Creatures) by David Jefferis. 32 pgs, color, K-6

  • What’s That Bug? (Everyday Insects and Their Really Cool Cousins) by Nan Froman. 4-8+
Videos:

  • City of Bees video, 7-12 Moody Video (Check your library. Also available through Christian bookstores.)

  • Tell Me Why Animals And Arachnids (Check your library.

    • Be sure to enter these topics on your copy of The Checklist.

    Please let me know if any of these links do not work. Email: cindy@oklahomahomeschool.com.

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Copyright © 2004 - by Cindy Downes