Insect Concepts:
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Nearly all insects pass through changes in their body form and structure as they grow.
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The process of developing in stages is called metmorphosis.
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There are two types of metamorphosis – complete and incomplete
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Complete metamorphosis has four stages of development: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.
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Complete metamorphosis always begins with an egg.
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The larva that hatches from the egg looks different from the adult that laid the egg.
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The larval stage is an active period when the young consume great quantities of food.
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After a period of time, the larva enters an inactive period called the pupal stage.
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During the pupal stage, the larva develops into the adult form.
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An adult insect, or imago, emerges from the pupa.
Vocabulary:
metamorphosis (met ah MORE fuh sis) egg
larva pupa adult
*imago (i MAY go) *pupate
Read:
Lots
of Science Library Book #10.
(Adobe
Acrobat Reader Required - Click here to download)
| Complete Metamorphosis – Graphic Organizer – Option 1 is a 3D Activity |
Focus Skill:
communicating information
Paper Handouts: 4 sheets of 8.5” x 11” paper a
copy of Graphics 10A–D index cards
(Adobe
Acrobat Reader Required)
Graphic
Organizer: Make four Pyramid Projects. Cut out Graphics 10A–D and
color. Glue each Graphic onto each Pyramid.
Write
one name on each of four index cards: egg, larva, pupa, adult.
Match the card with the correct Pyramid Project.
Complete
.. Choose one insect that goes through complete metamorphosis and describe
each stage on a separate index card.
Complete
... Research insects and include the names of insects that undergo complete
metamorphosis. Choose one insect and narrate its life in the first person.
Glue the Pyramid
Projects together to make a Diorama. Review the four stages of
complete metamorphosis.
| Complete
Metamorphosis – Graphic Organizer Option 2 is a Lay–Flat Activity |
Paper
Handouts: 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper a
copy of Graphics 10A–D
(Adobe
Acrobat Reader Required)
Graphic Organizer: Make a 4 Door Book. Cut out, color, and glue
Graphics 10A–D on each tab of the 4 Door Book. Trim the graphic as needed.
Refold it into a Hamburger. Write/copy Complete Metamorphosis
on the cover. Open the tabs.
Write
the name of each stage accordingly: egg, larva, pupa, adult.
Complete
. Choose one insect
that goes through complete metamorphosis and describe
each stage.
Complete
.
Research insects and include the names of insects that undergo complete
metamorphosis. Choose one insect and narrate its life in the first person.
| Butterfly in Waiting |
Activity Materials:
cardboard box plastic wrap tape
jar knife
Activity: Find a chrysalis, a pupa case of a butterfly. Cut off
a piece of the stem to which the chrysalis is attached. Cut off the
lid of a cardboard box. Place the box on its side. Cut a hinged door
on the top of the box. Make breathing holes or slits on the sides of
the box. Tape plastic wrap over the front opening of the box. Open the
hinged top and place the stem and chrysalis inside. Close the hinged
top and watch the chrysalis. When the butterfly emerges from the chrysalis,
wait until its wings are fully unfurled and dried (about 1–5 hours).
Then release the butterfly in the location you found the chrysalis.
| Raise Mealworms |
Activity Materials:
2 dozen mealworms flat, plastic container
with lid diced apple
piece of burlap or gauze window screening
rolled oats tape
Note: Mealworms are not worms, but the larvae of beetles.
Activity: Put a layer of oats in the bottom of the container. Place
the apples on top of the oats. Place half of the mealworms on the apples.
Cover this with the burlap. Repeat with layers of oats, apples, mealworms,
and burlap. Cut a few holes in the container lid. Place the window screen
over the holes and tape it securely in place. Place the lid on the container,
place it where it will not be disturbed. Check it after a few days and
periodically for the next few weeks.
Note: The larvae will pupate in a few days and become adult beetles
in a few weeks in a few weeks. The beetles will then lay eggs, and larvae
will appear.
| Butterfly and Chrysalis |
Paper
Handouts: a
copy of Graphic 10E
(Adobe
Acrobat Reader Required)
Activity Materials: empty toilet paper tube black
pipe cleaner popsicle stick
black paint
or crayon
Activity: Cut out the butterfly or draw your own butterfly. Make
a small hole on the top of the butterfly’s head. Insert the pipe cleaner
and make a V. Twist it to look like antennae. Glue the popsicle stick
on the underside of the butterfly, and let dry. Color the toilet paper
tube black to represent the chrysalis. Curl the wings slightly, and
insert the butterfly into the chrysalis. Pull out the butterfly with
the popsicle stick. Metamorphosis is now complete.
Experiences,
Investigations, and Research
Select one or more of the following activities for individual or group
enrichment projects. Allow your students to determine the format in
which they would like to report, share, or graphically present what
they have discovered. This should be a creative investigation that utilizes
your students’ strengths.
 |
1. | Compare and contrast the “direct development” of animals that are similar to their parents in form and structure at birth, to animals that develop through metamorphosis. Example: Compare and contrast the development of a cow and calf to a butterfly and caterpillar. |
 |
2. | Using Graphics 10A–D, make stick puppets. Write a simple play about the metamorphosis of a butterfly and act it out with the puppets. |
|
|
3. | Research the use of maggots during World War II and in modern–day medicine. |
|
4. |
Who, What, When, Where: Jan Swammerdam studied insects and defined the different types of metamorphosis. |
|
|
5. | Research the molting process of an insect. |
 |
6. | http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/~pest/vector/chapter_01.htm
(University of Florida and the American Mosquito Control Association – Public Health Pest Control) |
|
|
7. | http://www.discovery.com/area/science/micro/butterfly.html |
View the Table of Contents of this book for other lesson topics.