If you want to grow live butterflies, ladybugs in your classroom plus there are many more creepy crawly items you can buy. You can order on-line or call 1-800-Live-Bugs
Lots of lesson plans, facts, to help you teach about bugs
* If you have a bug site or know of a bug site that is really good, please e-mail me so that I may add your site to my list of links! ` thank you.
ANT ACTIVITIES
Live Ants - About 6 weeks prior to beginning the ant unit order from Insect Lore or Uncle Miltons. If you do not have an ant form they can be purchased from either one of these places or you can get them at Toys R Us. With the purchase of an ant farm you will get a certificate for live ants so add a few weeks to the six for the turn around time.
100 Hungry Ants - Read 100 Hungry Ants by Elinor Pinczes. Using plastic ants (I purchased these from Oriental Trading Co.) or unifix cubes, have students divide their 100 ants into groups.
A Remainder of One - Read A Remaninder of One by Elinor Pinczes. Materials neded: ant hill cards, number cards, and ants. Using 2 anthill game cards dtudents user their ants to divide numbers up, odd numbers, with a remainder of one. Throw in a couple of even numbers to have children see that they have no remainder.
Estimation - Estimate how many plastic ants are in the jar.
Dramatization - Have the children act out "Ants Go Marching" song. They can do this as a class or with manipulatives.
Journal Writing - Have the children record the ants in their journals from the day they arrive with no ant tunnels in the farm to weeks later when there are many.
Chart ANTonyms - Make a class chart of ANTonyms (opposites).
Crazy Ants - Materials needed: magazines, glue scissors, paper plates, construction paper ants, 3 paper fasteners each, a magnet,. Discuss what ants eat with the children. Have them look through magazines to find these sweet foods. Attach the cut out of the foods to paper plate. Copy the ant pattern on black construction paper and have the children cut them out. Using 3 paper fasteners each have the chilren attach these to ther ants and topen them to make legs for their ant. Using a magnet on the bottom of the plate have the children made their ants "walk" all over their food.
Two Bad Ants - Read Two Bad Ants by Chris VanAllsburg. Have the children create an ant march. Measure how long your ant march is using manipulutatives.
I Can't Said the Ant - Read I can't Said the Ant by Polly Cameron. Materials needed: 3 stryrofoam balls, 2 toothpicks, 8 pipecleaners, paint, glue, and 2 googly eyes. Connect the stryofoam balls with toothpicks. Insert 6 of the pipe cleaners into the styrofoam as legs and bend them so they look like the ant is walking. Paint it red, black or brown. When it has dried glue on the googly eyes and add the other 2 pipe cleaners as antennea.
See My Example as a Photo Below
Ants on a Log - Materials needed: celegry sticks, peanut butter, and raisins. Fill the celery sticks with peanut butter and add raisins as the ants.
Follow My Trail - When an ant finds food he communicates that with the other ants by leaving a trail smell, the more ants that find it the stronger the trail is. Play an ant trail game to help your students understand the amazing way ants communicate in order to share food. To play take your class to an open area like a gym or playground. Gather the students at one end of the area; then designate that area as the "nest". Spread a picnic cloth at the other end and designate it as the "food". Give each student 3 perfume spritzed cotton balls to use when they are the ants. Select one child to leave the nest and walk to the food. Instruct him/her to return to the nest stopping three times to leave a cotton ball trail behind him/her. Upon returning to the nest have him/her pick a partner. Instruct both ants to go back to the food. This time, the second ant returns to the next, leaving a trail, and picks a partner. Continue in this manner until all of the ants are at the food. At this point, announce "Nest!" All ants should scurry back to the nest, picking up three cotton balls as they go.
Bee Activities
* There are three kinds of bees, the queen, drones, and workers. The buzzing sound is actually the vibration of the wings. 1000 bees must work their entire life to make up one pound of honey.
Invite a beekeeper to come into your classroom. Visit an apple orchard and have them tell you how important bee's are to their orchard.
Honeycombs - Use 12 x 18 white construction paper, crayons ormarkers and the hexagon pattern block shape. Trace around the hexagon shape and make a honeycomb pattern. (I did this after showing them a real honeycomb and a picture of one, so they could see that there are no spaces between them. Have the children color in some of the "cells". Encourage the children to count and record how many cells they drew and identify the type of cell.
Balloon Bee - Blow up a yellow balloon for each child. Let the children use their balloons to make bees by drawing stripes around and eyes and a mouth with a black felt tip marker. When children have finished, have them tap their bees around the room "The Flight of the Bumblebee" by Rimsky-Korsakov (tape or CD).
Class books - (This activity is describe in Lasting Lessons book - "Bunches of Bugs".) Write and illustrate a book about Bertha and Bubba Bees adventure. I had the children describe where each bee was going and what they found when they got there. They illustrated the page that they helped to contribute.
Thumb Print Bees - Materials needed: Yellow ink pads, black fine tip markers, and white paper. Children press their thumbs onto the inkpads and press them on a piece of white paper to form the bee's body. Have children use the fine tip markers to add eyes, wings, and legs to their bees. Encourage children tocomplete their pictures with flowers, grass, a sky, etc. Have them write a title to their picture.
Baby Bumblebee Song/Book - We not only sang this song, but typed the words on paper and illustrated it as a book.
Delicious Bee Hives - 1/2 cup honey, 1 1/2 c. Powdered milk, 1 tsp. vanilla, 1 cut of peanut butter, 1 1/2 cup of rice cereal or corn flakes.
Roll cereal between two sheets of waxed paper until crushed. Thoroughly mix peanut butter, honey, vanill and powered milk in a mixing bowl. Drop mixture by spoonfuls onto crushed cereal and roll lightly to cover. Press into egg cartons to give a bee hive shape. Chill and eat. Makes about 2 dozen.
Honeycomb Cereal Math - Materials: bee notepad sheet for each child (math Mats) and honeycomb cereal. Do story problems with the cereal. Ex: show me one more than six; Two bees flew into the hive and two more followed how many are there altogether; etc.
Art Project Bees - See the photo below of this project - Color the bee pattern black and yellow. Glue on accordian legs of black sonstruction paper strips. Glue on wings made & cut from wax paper. Glue on accordian antannae. For a 3-D look take the end of the pencil eraser and twist 1 x 1 pieces of yellow and black tissue paper and dip into glue. Tissue paper will be put on the yellow and black body of the bee.
Caterpillars/Butterfly Activities
Purchase Caterpillars from Insect Lore - See my link above for Insect Lore. Six caterpillars will arrive in a couple of weeks as long as the weather isn't too hot to ship through the mail. They will stay inside the food filled cup until they spin their chrysalis.
Students observe and record daily growth and changes of their caterpillar/butterly in a Journal.
Nylon Caterpillar - Materials needed: one leg of tan color nylons, newspaper, tissue paper, two googly eyes and a pipe cleaner. Students will take newspaper and roll it into a ball with a diameter of approximately 3". Students need to make 4 of these newspaper balls. Next, cover the bals with different colors of tissue paper. Stuff all four balls into the nylons. It it off at the end. The seam on the toe is considered the mouth so add the googly eyes and the pipe cleaner as the antennae there. Put the nylon caterpillares into a small brown paper lunch bag. These are the cocoons/chrysalis' .
Next, Make a tree out of bulletin board paper - Tape or hot glue the cocoons/chrysalis' that the children just made onto the tree for 14 days. Before the children arrive to school on the 14th day make a hole in the brown paper sack & hide their caterpillars and tape on butterflies to their bag. The butterfly activity is listed below. I have the butterly life cycle poem also glued to the side of the tree for students to sing.SEE PHOTO OF THIS ACTIVITY BELOW
Butterfly Countdown Chains - Materials needed: 14 construction paper strips to make a chain for each child, paint brush, glue, butterfly pattern, 1 x 1" squares of tissue paper. stapler. Because it takes approximately 14 days for a caterpillar to change into a butterfly, the students need to pattern a paper chain 14 links long. Have them make a butterly by gluing the tissue squares to both sides of the butterfly pattern and then staple it to the top of the chain. These look great hanging in the room for a couple of weeks. Each day the children tear off one chain as a count down to the big day. After school on the 14th day when no links are left take that butterfly and tape it onto the bag.. When the children come in the next day, their "real" butterflies that they have been writing about in their journals should be hatching from their cocoons, their homemade ones will be "hatched", too! You can imagine their excitement!!
Butterfly Birth Certificates - Make up a birth certificate for your butterflies when they emerge from their chrysalis. Brainstorm names for your butterflies. The children will take home their birth announcements.
Butterfly Home - A few days before the butterflies are to be born I take a copy machine box and cut out a big hole in the top of the lid. I use laminating film right off the laminator & tape this over the hole. This makes it easier for the students to view them when they are born & it gives the butterflies a bigger space to fly around in. They will die if you leave them in the cup that they came in for too long. Discuss with te children what the butterflies will need to survive. Fill a small jar lid with sugar water and a couple of drops of red food coloring. Be careful not to put too much water in it or they will drown. This will act as their flower nectar. Put a few sticks and flowers for them to sit on. Keep the butterflies for a few days and then release them.
Here is a picture of us releasing
our butterflies.
Butterfly symmetry - Discuss symmetry. Draw a large butterfly on the chalkboard and have the students draw exactly what you drew. Give them a sheet with half a butterfly and have them draw the symmetrical other side. (there is also a lesson & pattern with this in the Everyday Kindergarten Math Book Series.
Butterfly Feet Art - Warning: this can be a messy project. Have a student sit in a chair. Make sure you have a tub of water & a towel near it. Paint the bottom of students feet. Have them criss-cross their feet & press their print onto a piece of construction paper. When it is dry add a body in the middle & add antenae & eyes & mouth. These are really Cute!
Butterfly Metamorphosis - Materials needed: paper platees, marker, construction paper leaves, rice, pompoms, rigatoni pasta, butterfly pasta. Divide the paper plate into four sections with a marker. In section 1 cut out a leaf and glue a piece of rice down for the egg. In section 2 glue down three pompoms for a caterpillar. In section 3 glue a piece of rigatoni pasta for a chrysalis. In section 4 glue down the butterfly pasta as the butterfly.
Caterpillar Necklaces - Make caterpillar neccklaces by patterning construction paper circles and rigatoni or mostaccioli noodles. Have the children decorate on of the circles as the face of the caterpillar. May glue on 2 legs at each circle, too.
Math Center - Pattern block butterflies & Insect Probability. See photo.
Science Center - "Hairy Caterpillars" - Students will make this chia-pet caterpillar by taking one leg of panty hose and filling it with a potting soil and grass seed mixture. Fill all the way to the top and tie off. Add rubber bands to make segments just like in a real caterpillar. Glue on googly eyes. May add pipe cleaner for antennae. Water your caterpillar thoroughly and set in sun. It will start growing "hair" (grass) in just a few days. After two or three weeks you might want to give it a hair cut. Some parents have told me that they kept it out all winter and it didn't die, however, we had a mild winter. These are cute!
Writing Center - Give students a sheet of paper. I have the sentence "I see a butterfly" on a sentence strip. Students copy my example and color their butterfly. Stress coloring it symmetrical.
Reading/Listening Center - Have them listen to "The Very Lazy Ladybug and Leo Cockgroach- Toy Tester.
Computer Center - Have students draw and design their own caterpillar or butterfly using the program "Kid Pix". If they can, add a sentence to it.
Ladybug Activities
Grouchy Ladybug Clocks - Materials needed: one red and one white paper plate, 2 braids, 12 black dots, 6 construction paper strips for legs, two for arms of clock, and one circle for head, and 2 red dots for eyes. Students attach the 12 dots to the white paper plate and write the number 1 - 12 next to them like a clock. Cut the red paper plate in half and attach it to the white one at the top (next to the number 12) with a braid. Attch the arms to the clock in the center with a braid. Glue the head to the bottom of the white plate so it resembles a head and attach the red eyes to the head. Students can make antennae using scraps of black construction paper.
Chart the Grouchy Ladybug - Make a chart of the places that the "grouchy ladybug" visits.
Class Grouchy Book - Have the children answer the following statement, draw a picture below it and add it to a class book. When I'm having a grouch day, I .
Ladybug Art with Poem - Materials needed: two equal size circles of read and black construction paper, 1/2 circle black construction paper for a head braid, 8 small strips of black construction paper, a copy of the poem and chalk. Cut the two circles out and cut the red one in half. Attach the red halves to the black one with a braid. Have the student's colo black dots on the ladybug. Glue on a black construction paper head, the six strips for the legs, the two for the antennae, and the poem to the "belly" of the body. Use chalk to add eyes and a mouth.
"Ladybug"
Ladybug, ladybug,
Land on my arm.
Speckled wing beauty,
You'll come to no harm.
Ladybug, ladybug
Land on my nose,
Tickle me gently
With ladybug toes.
Ladybug, ladybug,
Land on my hand,
I'll wave you back
Safely to ladybug land.
Math Ladybug Class Book - My ladybug has spots. Students fill in the blank with a number and illustrate.
Ladybug equations - Take a ladybug and add spots on both sides of the wings. Ex: 3 + 4 = 7. This could be a math mat, too.
Ladybug Recipe - Red apples cut in half with the seeds removed, pretzel sticks, peanut butter, raisins, or chocolate chips, mini oreo cookies. Add black spots (raisins or chocolate chips) to the red apple with peanut butter. Add the ladybug head (oreo cookie) to one end. Set the ladybug body onto pretzel legs. You might be able to stick them in the apples but be careful not to break the pretzels. Yummy!
Live Ladybugs - Ladybugs are fascinating for the children to observe in captivity. They can be ordered as well as the ladybug "house" from Insect Lore.
Bulletin Board Idea - "A Bunch Of Grouchy Ladybugs". Take a picture with a digital camera of the children's faces. The children should be making a grouchy face. Have them make a ladybug out of red & black construction paper and attach their face to it. These are so cute & eyecatching as you walk down the hall.
Ladybug Dots - Read the story 'Ten Black Dots'. Use red & black construction paper. Use a hole punch to make ladybug dots. Count the dots. Then write a number story about your ladybug.
Miscellaneous Insect Activities
KWL Chart - Write what you know about insects, what you would like to know, and what you have learned.
Individual Class Rebus Books - This is very good tool for students to really learn about insects. Do this as a whole class activity doing one page together at a time. It is a good listening activity as well. Provide each student with 5 pages of an insect with three body parts. This is how it will go. Page 1: An insect has 3 body parts (have students number each body part-1, 2, 3. Page 2: An insect has 3 body parts. An insect has 6 legs. (Students number the body parts again and draw the 6 legs). Page 3: An insect has 3 body parts. An insect has 6 legs. An insect has 2 antennae. (Students number the body parts; draw the 6 legs; draw 2 antennae). Page 4: An insect has 3 body parts. An insect has 6 legs. An insect has 2 antennae. Some insects have wings. (Students once again number the 3 body parts; draw 6 legs; draw 2 antennae; draw wings). Page 5: An insect has 3 body parts. An insect has 6 legs. An insect has 2 antennae. Some Insects have wing. This is an insect. (Students lastly number the 3 body parts; draw 2 antennae; draw 6 legs; draw the wings; color it and add a face). Students then read the book when they are done. They can actually read this because of the repetition and they can repeat those insect facts for weeks after the activity is over with.
Bug Catcher - Materials needed: 2 tuna or cat food cans, plaster of paris, and a stick. Mix the plaster of paris in the bottom of the can and put a stick and screen it it. Let it dry and add the other can as the top lid.
Bug Hotel - Materials needed: Oatmeal container or pringles can, poster paint, craft knife (to be used by an adult) and fiberglass screen. Paint the outside of the can and let dry. Have an adult cut out a big "window" in the can. Cut screen and slide down into the can. Put the lid back on and you have a nice bug hotel for students to keep their insects in.
Song/Book "We Like Bugs" - This was purchased from Learning Workshop. It included the big book activities and a tape. Brainstorm on a chart things that eat bugs. Ex: Lizards like bugs. Frogs like bugs. etc. The tape is really cute. The tune is a Jamacan catchy tune that the kids want to hear over and over again.
Class Graph - Make up a charts that says "How Do You Feel About Bugs?" At the bottom have the following columns: Scared, happy, so-so, ugh. You can do this as a whole group and fill it in. Another idea is to make up the graph on a piece of paper and have the children go to their classmates and ask them How they feel about bugs and have the children fill in each child's responses.
How Many Bugs In a Box Class Book - Read the Story "How Many Bugs In a Box" by David Carter. After reading have children use purchased bug stamps or insect clip art to make a counting book similar to the story. Other variations include making a class pop-up book and having children draw bugs and then create a lift up 'box' shape to cover them.
Build An Insect Game - Do you remember the game 'Cootie' that you played as a kid? Well this is the same concept. Materials Needed: Dice, piece of paper with the thorax already drawn on it and a pencil. If you roll a 1- you draw a head; If you roll a 2-you draw the abdomen; If you roll a 3-you add eyes; If you roll a 4-you draw antennae; If you roll a 5 - you draw wings; If you roll a 6 - you draw the 6 legs. Put students in pairs. The first one to "build" their insect first wins.
Class Book - Have the students answer the question "If I were an insect, I'd like to be a . Students then draw a picture of their insect. Put these together to make a class book.
Bug Eyes - Materials needed: scissors, 2 egg carton cups, pencil, 2 pipe cleaners, and markers. Cut the ends out of the eggcups to make eye holes. Attach the pipe cleaners to the sides of the cup and curve them to fit around the ears. Decorate your bug eyes with markers. Aluminum foil can also be used to cover them.
Charting Bugs - Chart different bugs, how they move, where it lives, what it eats.
Go On a Bug Hunt - We used our bug catchers and bug hotels and went on a bug hunt. (We only catch nice bugs). We brought it in and examined their 3 body parts, 2 antennae, 6 legs & wings (if they had them) using magnifying glasses. The kids LOVED this!
Bug Measurement - I had a variety of different size bug clip art on a page. Students used different non-standard manipulatives such as unifix cubes and learning links to measure their bugs.
Edible Caterpillars - Made out out Rice Krispy Treats. A parent sent this in for snack & thought it was so cute I just had to take a picture of it.
Nylon Caterpillars. The brown lunch bag is the cocoon. The caterpillars go inside & are hot glued to the tree.
Butterfly Metamorphosis Activity.
The bags have caterpillars on the inside. See The poem above for the words. After we have torn off our 14 links in our countdown chain then I cut the bags open (after school when the kids aren't there) & staple on their butterflies onto the paper bags. I hide the caterpillars for a couple of days & sneak them into their mailboxes. See our panty hose caterpillar up close below, too.
Here is our bug graph that I always put up on the first day when we do our KWL Chart. I have the students put their pictures up on their responses. Some of them end of changing their mind when the unit is over.
These are our bug hotels. Take a pringles can and cut out a window with an exacto knife and insert screen-viola! We usually paint our cans. We keep our bugs in here after we have caught them for children to view.
Picture Left: Tissue Paper butterfly up close that are put on the cocoons (Paper bags). Picture Right: Materials for the butterfly: Clear contact paper, 1 x 1" tissue paper, butterfly with center cut out. This completes all you need for the "Metamorphasis tree"
Coffee Filter Butterflies - Take two coffee filter & use markers to color it. Dip it in water & let dry. Stuff the coffee filter inside the clothespin. Add eyes & add pipe cleaner antennae.
