Entomology is the study of insects. Every time we study a subject, we tell the children the name of the type of scientist that would study that group. So this week, some of them are going to want to grow up to be Entomologists! Entomologists are important because they help us with growing crops and teaching us which are the "good insects" like ladybugs that eat the eggs of plant-eating pests (aphids and weevils) in our crops.
Our entomologists learned this week how to basically identify the insect. Insects have six legs. Insects have three body segments - Head, thorax and abdomen. Many have antennae, and some have wings. Insects have an exoskeleton (hard shell) instead of bones. We learned the life cycle of an insect and how it molts to grow bigger. We discussed the benefits of ladybugs in the garden to eat eggs of other pest insects. Crickets are used in apple orchards to eat the maggot worms of fruit flies that burrow into the apples.
We chose to have crickets this week as the "take home" insect. The Chinese thought the cricket was a lucky pet and kept them in golden cages. The song of a cricket is made by the male rubbing its wings back and forth against each other. It was discovered by a scientist in 1897, that the snowy tree crickets sang faster on warmer nights. They chirp and if you count the number of chirps in 15 seconds then add 40, that tells you the temperature. Amazing! You can keep your cricket as a pet for a while by putting an inch of soil in the bottom of a plastic jar, put a rock or wood for it to burrow under, put lettuce and or some cat/dog food in there, and punch holes in top of jar. Observe for a while, but then let the cricket go in your yard.
Fun and Art time - we painted beautiful dragonflies while observing the body parts. The dragonfly is our hero because it eats mosquitoes. Hurray for the dragonfly! Oh, and if your child tells you we ate bugs for snack, don't worry - they were tasty.
Next week: Pond Life
Our entomologists learned this week how to basically identify the insect. Insects have six legs. Insects have three body segments - Head, thorax and abdomen. Many have antennae, and some have wings. Insects have an exoskeleton (hard shell) instead of bones. We learned the life cycle of an insect and how it molts to grow bigger. We discussed the benefits of ladybugs in the garden to eat eggs of other pest insects. Crickets are used in apple orchards to eat the maggot worms of fruit flies that burrow into the apples.
We chose to have crickets this week as the "take home" insect. The Chinese thought the cricket was a lucky pet and kept them in golden cages. The song of a cricket is made by the male rubbing its wings back and forth against each other. It was discovered by a scientist in 1897, that the snowy tree crickets sang faster on warmer nights. They chirp and if you count the number of chirps in 15 seconds then add 40, that tells you the temperature. Amazing! You can keep your cricket as a pet for a while by putting an inch of soil in the bottom of a plastic jar, put a rock or wood for it to burrow under, put lettuce and or some cat/dog food in there, and punch holes in top of jar. Observe for a while, but then let the cricket go in your yard.
Fun and Art time - we painted beautiful dragonflies while observing the body parts. The dragonfly is our hero because it eats mosquitoes. Hurray for the dragonfly! Oh, and if your child tells you we ate bugs for snack, don't worry - they were tasty.
Next week: Pond Life
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