Whether it is through the lens of metamorphosis, biodiversity, or pollination, insects are a fun and common elementary school classroom topic. In this post, discover insect activity ideas to try out in your classroom – complete with links to relevant worksheets and printable materials.
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If you’re an educator planning to teach insects, great learning resources are key to deepening understanding! I think you and your students will love my complete Insects Unit (plus you’ll support my blog with your purchase! ❤️)
1.) Study Insect Traits & Anatomy
A great way to start any insect unit is by learning what makes an insect an insect. There are many fun ways to teach students about insects’ 6 legs and 3 body segments.
Read a blog post
These posts from my blog teach the basics of insect traits and anatomy.
Color your own insect anatomy diagram (FREE resource)
You can find the insect anatomy coloring worksheet on my free resources page. You can access this free resource and all the other free resources when you join my email newsletter.
Build insect anatomy models (paid resource)
Use this set of printable materials to construct your own bee and butterfly models from paper!
2.) Review head, thorax, and abdomen with these fun activities
Head, thorax, and abdomen are the three main body segments of an insect. Review these segments with fun games and activities!
Play Insect Mashups (FREE resource)
This is a hilarious and collaborative game where students take turns drawing the head, thorax, and abdomen of an insect – but no peeking at what the other students have drawn until you’re done!
Head, Thorax, and Abdomen Coloring (paid resource)
Heads, thoraxes, and abdomens come in many shapes and sizes – but insects always have all three! Can your students identify the heads, thoraxes, and abdomens on these different insects?
3.) Study the life cycle of insects
Insects hatch from eggs. Many insects change between distinct stages during their life cycle – a process called metamorphosis. There are many fun ways to teach metamorphosis and insect life cycles in your classroom.
Read about insect life cycles and metamorphosis
Visit these blog posts to learn about insect life cycles and metamorphosis.
Color your own monarch life cycle diagram (FREE resource)
You can find the monarch life cycle coloring worksheet on my free resources page. You can access this free resource and all the other free resources when you join my email newsletter.
Ladybug and Monarch Life Cycle Diagram Printables (Paid resources)
These sets include a printable diagram featuring my watercolor artwork and a practice activity in which students put the life cycle steps in the correct order.
The Monarch Story Booklet (Paid resource)
Put together (and color) your own mini booklet that tells the story of the monarch life cycle!
4.) Learn the difference between “insects” and “bugs”
Insects provide a great opportunity to teach your students about biological classification and taxonomy.
Learn from a blog post
Do you know what makes a “bug” different from other insects? What about what makes insects different from other arthropods? Find the answers in this fun and informative blog post:
Taxonomy Mini Study: with “insect” vs “bug” sorting activity, worksheets, & handouts (paid resource)
Introduce your students to biological classification and taxonomy with this fun activity that highlights the difference between “insects” and “bugs”.
5.) Learn about insect pollinators and pollination
Many insects, like bees and butterflies, play a very important role in their habitats. They are pollinators – animals that help move pollen between flower parts so that fruits can develop. Teaching kids about pollination is a great way to show them the importance of tiny animals like insects in ecosystems.
Read a blog post
Learn about pollination by reading one of these blog posts.
Play the unusual pollinators game (FREE resource)
Discover the diversity of pollinators with this game. Print pictures of a variety of pollinators and tape them to students’ backs. Tell students that all the animals and insects on their backs can pollinate plants. Then, instruct the students to ask each other yes/no questions about their pollinator until they correctly guess its identity.
Freebie: I’ve put together 18 printable pollinator cards, plus directions. You can find the monarch life cycle coloring worksheet on my free resources page. You can access this free resource and all the other free resources when you join my email newsletter.
Try my complete pollination unit (paid resource)
If you’re ready to really dive into all things pollination and pollinators, look no further than my complete Pollination Unit. It is full of hands-on activities, handouts, worksheets, and everything you need to teach pollination in your classroom!
6.) Dive into the unique world of aquatic insects!
These cool insects – like mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies – live in aquatic environments like lakes and rivers. They are sensitive biological indicators that teach us about water quality and ecosystem health. Studying aquatic insects is a fun and unique take on classic insect studies – and a great way to get outside poking around for insects in ponds and shallow creeks!
Read about aquatic insects in the blog:
Aquatic insects are a type of aquatic macroinvertebrate. Read these posts to learn more:
Try my aquatic insects study and macroinvertebrates lessons! (paid resources)
I created a complete aquatic macroinvertebrates unit. It is packed with all the worksheets, handouts, and hands-on activities you’ll need to teach this exciting environmental topic. You can also download just the aquatic insect diagrams “a la carte” in my aquatic insects mini-study.
Study Insects with Wild Earth Lab!
There’s no need to scramble to put together the perfect insects unit from scratch – I’ve already created it for you! This set includes all the printable materials you need for studying insects.
Explore more lessons from Wild Earth Lab:
If you enjoyed this post, I know you will love trying my other printable science and nature units in your classroom too!
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