National Park Service
The Secret of Life
Dead trees provide nutrients for the soil, food for animals, protection and a home for organisms, a seed-bed for new trees, and a place for nitrogen-fixing bacteria to live. In the activity, pupils collect decaying logs, expose them to a...
Cornell University
Metamorphosis
Looking for an insect unit that addresses multiple skill strategies? Young entomologists explore multiple life cycles of insects that go through metamorphosis. The brainteasers and mobile activity spark learner interest before guiding...
Curated OER
Classifying Plants and Insects
Art and science come together in a lesson based on Flower Still Life by Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder. Learners classify plants and insects in the painting by color, leaf shape, size, reproduction, and season of bloom.
Curated OER
Cycles of Life
Students explore the metamorphosis of an insect as it changes from an egg to pupa to an adult. the process of change is observed, recorded, and transformed into a life cycle picture.
Curated OER
Get to Know- Insects, Spiders and Others
Students investigate live insects. In this insects and spiders lesson, students work in groups to explore the outdoors and capture insects. Students observe, discuss and record information about the insects they discover. Students...
Curated OER
Salmon Life Cycles
Students list salmon life cycle stages in order, list three threats that salmon face throughout their lives, and examine important role native fish play in aquatic food chains throughout their life cycles.
Curated OER
Butterfly Life Cycle
Second graders explore biology. In this life cycle lesson, 2nd graders act out the stages a caterpillar goes through to become a butterfly. They spend days prior to this lesson observing caterpillars they have collected and developing...
Curated OER
Urban Life: What Lives in Our Schoolyard?
Students research living organisms by exploring their school grounds. In this microscopic observation lesson, students gather materials, insects, and objects from their playground and schoolyard and bring them into class. Students...
Curated OER
Insect Conservation
Young scholars make a diorama. In this insect lesson, students review what they know and what they need to know about insects. Young scholars define conservation, discuss why it is important to conserve insects, and make an insect diorama.
Curated OER
A Bug's Life: Diary of an Insect's Metamorphosis
Fifth graders examine the stages of insect's to understand heredity. In this inherited traits instructional activity, 5th graders explore the life of the honeybee for its inherited traits. Students recognize the difference between...
Curated OER
Invertebrate Vocabulary-- Marine Invertebrate Match
In this science worksheet, students study 12 vocabulary words which pertain to marine invertebrates. Students read the definitions which include pronunciation, part of speech and meaning of the name. Students then look at 16 organisms...
Curated OER
Life in a Log
Students identify insects living in rotting logs. For this decomposition lesson, students observe pieces of a rotting log, they look at the insects that have inhabited the log and create a chart that shows their findings.
Curated OER
Are You One Of Us?
Students discover how to classify things based on their similarities and differences. Students give the characteristics of insects and create a classification list. Given examples of various types of insects, students classify them...
Curated OER
Crickets Guided Discovery
Sixth graders investigate insect anatomy by analyzing a live cricket. For this insect science lesson, 6th graders discuss their knowledge of insects and describe their characteristics from memory. Students observe live crickets in...
Rainforest Alliance
Colombia Biodiversity
How diverse is the rainforest? How much more diverse is a rain forest than a temperate forest? Explore these focus questions in a lesson that explores the plants, animals, and insects in forests. After listening to a reading about...
Curated OER
Insect Anatomy
Students explore the anatomy of an insect. In this activity the characteristics of insects, students explore parts of an insect. Students gain knowledge through pictures and charts showing insects and their body parts. Students will...
Curated OER
Aquatic Life
Students explore aquatic life. In this science lesson, students visit an aquatic ecosystem and collect animals found there. Students create a food chain for the aquatic ecosystem.
Curated OER
Going Buggy: Lesson 3: Bees
Students review the characteristics of insects they have already been introduced to. As a class, they are introduced to the characteristics of bees and what it can do instead of sting. To end the lesson plan, they discuss how plants and...
Curated OER
Goldilocks and the Real Bears
Students participate in a comparison instructional activity where they compare fictional bears to real life bears. In this science/language arts instructional activity, students read Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Students...
Curated OER
Larva and Adult Antlion Body Parts
Students identify the major body segments of antlions. Through the use of diagram worksheets, students label the various body parts of the antlion. They review the life cycle of antlions from the larva stage to adult. Several activities...
Curated OER
Biodiversity
Students investigate the diversity of temperate forests and tropical rainforests. They catch and observe local insects, sort leaves and insects on a chart, listen to the book "A Walk in the Rainforest," and create a class bar graph that...
Curated OER
Clearly Classified
Young scholars review the classification system for living organisms and apply it the classification of insects and flowers in the still life by Ambrosius Bosschaert. They create a chart classifying the animals and plants in the painting...
Curated OER
Bugsicles (A Frozen Insect Larva You can Find!)
Students explore how animals survive in the winder. After attending a gall-collecting field trip, students place them in a freezer. Once frozen, the students open the gall flay larva and observe it as the larva revives. Students...
SeaWorld
Animal Migrations
Here is a fabulous set of activities for your young scientists. Each lesson contains map, hands-on, and game activities that will help the class understand why and how animals migrate from one place to another. First they'll examine the...