Songs
1.
Insect Song-Tune "The Wheels on the Bus"
The
firefly at night goes blink blink blink
Blink
blink blink blink blink blink
The
firefly at night goes blink blink blink
All
around the town
The
bees in the flowers go buzz buzz buzz....
The
ants in the grass go march march march...
The
crickets in the leaves go chirp chirp chirp...
The
caterpillar in the field goes creep creep creep....
2.
Insects All Around
Lady
bugs and butterflies,
Buzzing
bees up in the sky.
Teeny,
tiny little ants,
Crawling
up and down the plants
Many
insects can be found
In
the sky and on the ground.
3.
Insect Song
1
little, 2 little, 3 little bumble bees
4
little, 5 little, 6 little Ladybugs
7
little, 8 little, 9 little Fireflies
10
Insects flying through the air.
4.
A-Searching We Will Go
A-searching
we will go, A-searching we will go, We'll catch a butterfly and then we'll let
it go! (let each child have a turn choosing a bug) (spider, caterpillar, ant
and ladybug)
5.
Can you move with me? Tune "Do Your Ears Hang Low"
Can
you wiggle like a worm?
Can
you squiggle? Can you squirm?
Can
you flutter? Can you fly like a gentle butterfly?
Can
you crawl upon the ground
Like
a beetle that is round?
Can
you move with me?
Circle
Activities
1.
I'm a little firefly
I'm
a little firefly
Look
at me!
I'm
as happy as I can be.
See
my light flicker and shine so bright
Now
watch me fly into the night!
ACTIVITY:
Dim the lights. Provide flashlights that are easily turned off and on. Have the
group sing the song above. When they sing "See my light flicker" the
children turn flashlights off and on.
2.
The Bee Hive
Here
is the bee hive where are the bees?
Hidden
away where nobody sees.
Soon
they come creeping out of the hive
One,
two, three, four, five.
BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
3.
We're going on a bug hunt Tune:” We’re going on a bear hunt"
We're
going on a bug hunt!
We're
going to catch some big ones.
What
a sunny day!
Are
you ready? OK!
Oh
my! A bee!
A
black & yellow bee,
Flying
over the flowers.
BUZZ.....
We're
going on a bug hunt!
We're
going to catch some big ones.
What
a sunny day!
Are
you ready? OK!
Oh,
my! An ant!
A
tiny, black ant,
Crawling
through the grass.
Shh...
We're
going on a bug hunt!
We're
going to catch some big ones.
What
a sunny day!
Are
you ready? OK!
Oh,
my! A grasshopper!
A
big, green grasshopper,
Hopping
around the tree.
Boing,
boing...
We're
going on a bug hunt!
We're
going to catch some big ones.
What
a sunny day!
Are
you ready? OK!
Oh,
my! A butterfly!
A
pretty, orange butterfly,
Floating
in the sky.
Whoosh,
whoosh...
We're
going on bug hunt!
We're
going to catch some big ones.
What
a sunny day!
Are
you ready? OK!
Oh
my! A spider!
A
big black spider,
Creeping
on the tree. Creep, creep...
4.
The Hungry Caterpillar Felt Activity
Follows
the progress of a hungry little caterpillar as he eats his way through a varied
and very large quantity of food until, full at last, he forms a cocoon around
himself and goes to sleep. When he comes out he’s beautiful fluttering
butterfly.
5.
Name That Insect
Show
different pictures of insects and either you name or have the children name the
insects.
6.
Insect Homes
Introduce
the children to different insects and their homes.
Bee-beehive
Ant-Anthill Caterpillar- Cocoon Spider-Web Grasshopper, Crickets- Grass
Walking
Stick-Tree
7.
Roly-Poly Caterpillar
Roly-poly
caterpillar (wiggle right pointer finger)
Into
a corner crept, (place right pointer finger in left cupped hand)
Spun
around himself a blanket (spin around)
Then
for a long time slept. (place head on folded hands)
Roly-poly
caterpillar (wiggle right pointer finger)
Wakening
by and by, ("stretch" right pointer finger)
Found
himself with beautiful wings
Changed
to a butterfly. (flutter arms like wings)
8.
Count the Spots felt activity Tune: “Mary had a little lamb”
Count
the spots on the ladybug, ladybug, ladybug
Count
the spots on the ladybug
How
many do you see?
(count
the spots)
Ladybug
has __ black spots, __ black spots, __black spots,
Ladybug
has __spots
This
is what I see.
Make
ladybugs and have spots on each ladybug numbered from 1-5. Help the children
count the spots.
9.
The Itsy Bitsy Spider
The
itsy bitsy spider
Went
up the water spout
Down
came the rain and
Washed
the spider out
Out
came the sun and
Dried
up all the rain and
The
itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again
Also
try doing the great big spider in a deep voice.
10.
Ladybug Game
Cut
out a set of four paper construction paper leaves (red, yellow, green and blue)
for each child. As you recite the poem, have the children perform the actions
and then land on the correct color leaf.
Ladybug,
ladybug, fly around,
Ladybug,
ladybug, touch the ground
Ladybug,
ladybug, scratch your head
Ladybug,
ladybug, land on RED.
Ladybug,
ladybug, fly around,
Ladybug,
ladybug, touch the ground
Ladybug,
ladybug, shine your arms (rub arms)
Ladybug,
ladybug, land on GREEN.
Ladybug,
ladybug, fly around,
Ladybug,
ladybug, touch the ground
Ladybug,
ladybug, wiggle like Jello
Ladybug,
ladybug, land on YELLOW.
Ladybug,
ladybug, fly around,
Ladybug,
ladybug, touch the ground
Ladybug,
ladybug, tie your show
Ladybug,
ladybug, land on BLUE.
Crafts
1.
Butterfly Life Cycle Mobile
Draw
a spiral on a paper plate. Cut along the line. Decorate the paper plate using
markers, crayons, or paint. Using green construction paper, draw a leaf and cut
it out. Either draw tiny butterfly eggs on it or glue on tiny paper circles
(either cut them out or use a hole punch to make some). A cluster of butterfly
eggs are usually laid on the underside of a leaf; the eggs are white or yellow
or greenish, and are circular to oval. Draw and cut out a caterpillar (the egg
hatches into a caterpillar, which spends its entire time eating leaves).
Decorate it. Draw and cut out a cocoon (the stage during which the caterpillar
makes a protective case around itself and turns into a butterfly). Decorate it.
To make butterfly wings, fold a small piece of paper in half, and draw half a
butterfly along the fold line. Using dark paper, make a body for your butterfly
(it's basically a long oval with a circular head).
Glue
the body to the wings and decorate your butterfly. Staple or tape the stages
in the butterfly's life cycle to string and then to the paper plate. Attach
another short length of string to the plate; it will be used to hang the mobile
up.
You
now have a great butterfly life cycle mobile.
2.
Egg Carton Caterpillar
Separate
4, 5, or 6 cups from an egg carton. Using the point of a scissors, an adult
should make 2 small holes at one end for the antennae. Insert pipe cleaners
for the antennae. Add eyes, a mouth, and decorate.
3.
Make a Ladybug
Costume
Cut
a large paper grocery bag open along the seam (this will be the back of the
costume). Then cut a neck hole in what was the bottom of the bag. Cut an arm
hole on each side of the bag Paint a large red circle (using red tempera paint)
on the front on the bag. Let the paint dry. Draw or paint a black line down the
center of the circle and draw black spots on both sides. You now have an
adorable ladybug costume.
4.
Footprint Bumblebee
Trace
your child’s foot on yellow construction paper. This will be the body of your
bee. Cut out a yellow circle and glue it onto the body. This will be the
head. Add six legs out of black construction paper and strips using black
construction paper. Using wax paper, trace your child’s foot again. These will
be the wings. Attach them to the body. Add eyes, mouth and antennas.
5.
Dragonfly Stick Puppet
You
will need two oval foam pieces, one large and one smaller and two small
circles.
You
will need a Popsicle stick for the body. For the wings use clear contact paper.
Stick two pieces together and cut out 4 wings. Two long ones and two a little
shorter. Attach the wings to the Popsicle stick, longer ones on top. Put large
Oval foam piece on top of wings. Use smaller oval and glue underneath at the
top of the large oval. Add the two small foam circles on each side of the
small oval for eyes. You know have a dragon fly stick puppet. 6.
7.
Mosquito Craft
You
will need: Black paper, white paper, pipe cleaner, paper clasps, hole punch
What
to do: Print out the free pattern. Cut out the body and head on to black
paper. Glue the head onto the body. Cut the wings out and punch a hole where
indicated. Punch holes in the body where the x’s are.
Feed
one pipe cleaner through the top left hole from front to back and then into the
top right hole from the back to front. Pull the pipe cleaner half way through
so that the legs are even. Fold the legs as shown in the picture. Do the same
thing with the next to set of holes .Cut out the wings on to white paper.
Attach the wings where indicted with two paper clasps so that the wings will
move. Add eyes. Fold half a pipe cleaner in half to form the antennae and use
a hole punch to make two holes at the top of head. Feed pipe cleaners through.
Punch a hole for the proboscis and feed a pipe cleaner through the hole wind it
around itself and cut it to the length you would like.
8.
Paper Chain
Butterfly Craft
Print
out the free butterfly (pattern) and use tracing paper to copy it to the folded
paper. (The pattern should fit on 3 times). Cut out the butterflies
remembering to leave the tip of the wings attached. Tape the 3 chains together
to make one long chain.
Paint
the paper with finger paints by putting dabs of color on the paper and folding
over the paper to make a pretty pattern. Let the paper dry.
9.
Spider and Web
Using
hole punch, punch holes all around a paper plate. Thread white string through
to form a web. Have the children make a spider by using black construction
paper. Cut out a big circle for the body and then a smaller one for the head.
Glue the head onto the body. Attach eight strips of paper, four on each side
for the legs. Add eyes. Attach spider to web using a string.
10.
Bug Feelers and Bug Eyes Head Band
Cut
a piece of construction paper to make a long band. Fit the bands to each
child’s head and staple them. Cover the staple with tape so that the staple
doesn’t scratch the child’s head. Show the child how to wind a pipe cleaner
around a pencil to make it into a spring shape. Let the children pick out two
pompom balls. Place a small amount of glue at the end of the pipe cleaner and
push it through the pompoms. Staple the feelers inside the band. Glue BIG eyes
to the band.
Stories
1.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Follows
the progress of a hungry little caterpillar as he eats his way through a varied
and very large quantity of food until, full at last, he forms a cocoon around
himself and goes to sleep.
2.
The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
A
grouchy ladybug, looking for a fight, challenges everyone she meets regardless
of their size or strength.
3.
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
The
farm animals try to divert a busy little spider from spinning her web, but she
persists and produces a thing of both beauty and usefulness. The pictures may
be felt as well as seen.
4.
The Very Clumsy Click Beetle by Eric Carle
A
clumsy young click beetle learns to land on its feet with encouragement from
various animals and a wise old beetle. An electronic chip with a built-in
battery creates clicking sounds to accompany the story
5.
The Very Lonely Firefly by Eric Carle
A
lonely firefly goes out into the night searching for other fireflies. A battery
inserted in back cover provides the fireflies' light.
6.
The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle
A
very quiet cricket who wants to rub his wings together and make a sound as do
so many other animals finally achieves his wish. The cricket's sound is
reproduced at the end of the book.
7.
The Honeybee and the Robber by Eric Carle
A
lone honeybee saves the day when a bear attacks the hive. A moving/picture
book.
8.
The Eensy Weensy Spider adapted by Mary Ann Hoberman
An
expanded version of the familiar children's finger-play rhyme describing what
the little spider does after being washed out of the water-spout.
9.
Ask Kermit All about Bugs by D.K Sullivan
With
Kermit the Frog as their guide, children will enjoy finding out the answers to
questions about many familiar bugs. In his friendly and entertaining way
Kermit tells readers what makes fireflies glow, how spiders spins webs, what
the inside of ant hill looks like and more.
10.
Busy Bugs Lazy bugs by David A. Carter
Bugs
express their emotions. Some are sad, mad, happy and silly.
General
Activities
1.
Branches
Hang
branches from the ceiling and hang insect crafts the children make from it.
2.
Dressing Up
In
the dramatic area have ladybug vests, antennas, butterfly wings, insect visors
and magnifine glasses.
3.
Bug Keepers
Catch
insects in bug keepers. Investigate them and then let them go.
4.
Ant farm
Buy
an ant farm and then take the children out to collect ants.
5.
Caterpillar to Butterfly
Sequencing
pattern of a caterpillar into a butterfly activity.
6.
Insects
Provide
plastic insects for the children to look at. Hide them in the sand for them to
find.
