Understanding Insects As Friends Or Foes
Understanding Insectsas Friends or FoesGrade Level: 2Approximate Length of Activity: One class periodObjectiveTeacher1.Discuss “good” and “bad” insects.2.Share with the students the methods that farmers use to control insects.3.Discuss insect life cyclesStudents1.Will learn about “good” and “bad” insects and the role that insects play in agriculture.2.Discuss insect life cycles and methods for controlling them.Michigan Content Standards: (Science) S.IA.02.12, L.OL.02.14IntroductionToday we are going to talk about crops and orchards and insects. Insects can be found nearlyeverywhere. Some insects are helpful to man. Other insects are harmful and cause damage to trees andcrops. Farmers and growers need to know which insects are friends and which are not. Today you willlearn about “good” and “bad” insects. Insect pictures (included)Citronella candlesAccess to a board to write on3 Scents (vinegar, vanilla, potpourri)3 jars for scentsStickersCopies of “Insect Trap” for each student“Find and Seek” worksheetsInsect KeyOne good apple, one bad appleExample of a growers trap with record sheet on backEnvelopes labeled containing 20 of each of the insects included in this lessonOne copy of “Plant Life Cycle” diagramOne copy of “Insect Life Cycle” diagram39ScienceMaterials Needed
Activity Outline1.Divide students into groups.2.Introduce insects.3.Discuss insect control.4.Discover scouting.5.Discuss life-cycles.6.Pass out “Find and Seek” worksheets.7.Trap retrieval.8.Review.1. Divide students into groupsExplain: As we look at pictures, put your thumbs up if it’s good and down if it’s bad for each of thefollowing insects. Use accompanying pictures of insects.Ladybug-Ladybugs are good, they eat aphids, mealy bugs and scale mites. They can eat up to 24 insectsevery day.Praying Mantis-Praying Mantises are good; they eat cut worms, beetles, flies, aphids, and insect eggs.They eat much more than they weigh.Honey Bees- They’re also a thumbs up. They help pollinate crops and produce honey.Grasshopper-A grasshopper is a thumbs down. That’s because grasshoppers eat crops and can do a lotof damage.Tomato Horn Worm- Tomato Horn Worm is thumbs down. You may see him on a tomato plant.Gypsy Moth-This is a gypsy moth, it can be very dangerous to trees and other crops.Show a good and bad apple.Ask: Which apple would you like to eat? (Good apples are best)Discuss why are we concerned about insects in our food?Answer: Insects carry diseases; damage crops, make fruits and vegetables look bad and limit availablefood.2. Introduce insectsAsk: What are some of the bugs you deal with?(Some responses might be: black flies, houseflies, spiders, mosquitoes, wasps, bees, aphids, yellowjackets, hornets, fleas, lice and ants, or little brother/sister.)3. Discuss insect controlAsk: How do you control or get rid of these bugs?Science(Some responses might be: swat or hit, stomp, fly strips, traps, natural predators, net, molasses, rubbingposts, flea collar, candles, ear tags and sprays.)40Where do you use sprays?Do you use something to control mosquitoes?
What else can you use instead of sprays?Show example of Citronella candles.In addition to spays, citronella candles, like this one can be used. Also a bug zapper, fly swatter, fly paperstrips, fly or ant traps can all be used.What do you think farmers/growers use to control insects?Write these words on the board: Crop Spray or PowderCrop RotationGood InsectsSometimes farmers use sprays and powder on their crops for each specific bug. The farmers use as littleas needed to protect the environment.Do farmers grow the same crop every year? No, and it’s called crop rotation. Certain bugs like certaincrops. By growing different crops year after year, bugs will leave to find crops they like.Farmers also use “good” or beneficial insects to protect their crops and get rid of harmful insects. Whocan tell the class the “good” bugs?(Answers: Ladybugs, Praying Mantis, Honey Bee)Some insects are “harmful” and can do a lot of damage to crops and orchards.Do you remember what insects these are?(Answers: Grasshoppers, Tomato Horn Worms and Gypsy Moths)4. Discover Scouting and Make TrapsExplain: Farmers and growers must watch their fields or orchards closely. Farmers look on the leaves ofthe trees or plants for insects. This is called scouting. To help find the insects, farmers use traps. Whenpests are found that could damage the crop the farmer/grower must choose the best way to rid of thepest.You are going to make your own traps a little later. Traps are hung in fruit trees, in greenhouses and onposts in fields for other crops. Contact a MSU Extension Educator for information on locating a trap toshow your class.This is a scent (show scent), called a pheromone inside the trap; this attracts the bugs to the trap. Thetrap is sticky inside, so when the bugs fly into the trap to smell the pheromone they get stuck.Now the entire class will make their own trap. See included instructions and pass out trap page. Afterassembled, place traps in a location to fill with bugs.5. Discuss Life-CyclesAsk: Does anyone remember life cycles?Back in first grade you might have studied the life cycle of a butterfly. Today we’re going to learn aboutthe life cycle of insects and plants. Insects and plants have different life cycles or stages. Insects start asan egg, develop into a larvae, and then a pupa and adult.41ScienceHold up illustrations of insect life stages.
Hold up illustrations of plant life stages.Plants start with a seed. The seed is planted and it germinates. It then grows into a seedling, a matureplant and finally produces a flower or fruit. A fruit can be a flower, apple, tomato, or as in field crops, cornor soybeans.Put life cycles on board or bulletin board.6. Pass out Scent Test worksheetShow the scents.These are going to be our pheromones today, remember they attract certain insects. Scientists havefigured out what smells insects like the best and growers use those scents to attract the insects into thetrap.Now have students choose which pheromone they like best. Display scents with a piece of paper.Smell each of the three different smells. Put your sticker on the paper you like the best and return to yourseats.Have the students report to the class which scent they like the best and record it on the board.(Scent #1 – vanilla; Scent #2 – vinegar; Scent #3- potpourri)Instruct: Now have students complete the bar graph worksheet using a crayon or marker to color thegraph completely up through the number of scents 1,2 and 3.7. Trap RetrievalBefore trap retrieval place the included insect pictures in the traps.Dismiss the class to retrieve their traps, waiting until everyone is seated before they look inside.Does everyone know what kind of insects you found in your trap?Sometimes farmers need help identifying the insects they find. They use a key, or guide like this one. Akey uses color, the number of legs or other things to determine what bug they have found.Choose two insects from your trap, one that looks like an adult and one that looks like a worm. To use thekey, follow the arrows and answer the questions. Pass out “Key”.Farmers check their traps at least one or two times a week or more if necessary. They use a key to identifyinsects.Record the insects you found in your traps as a group on the lab sheet. Farmers record on the trap. Referback to the trap each student has. The record is printed on the reverse side of the trap.If you were a farmer and had more good insects, that’s good!If you were a farmer and had more bad insects you would need to use crop rotation, sprays or good bugsto help your crops.Science8. ReviewUsing traps, scouting, identifying insects and controlling insects are all important for farmers tounderstand. American farmers are the most productive farmers in the world. They produce safe andabundant food.42
Discussion Questions1.What are some examples of “good” insects?2.What are some examples of “bad” insects?3.Why are insects considered friends? Why are they considered foes?4.How do farmers get rid of the “bad” insects?Related Activities1.Contact your local Michigan State University Extension specialist to visit the classroom andtalk more about insects.2.Schedule a field trip to an orchard or have a farmer visit the classroom and talk about howthey use good insects and how they control insects.Resources1.“Bugs, Bugs, Bugs! “ by Mary Reid2.“Bees “ by Ann Heinrichs3.“Nature’s Friends, Ladybugs” by Anne Heinrichs4.“Praying Mantises” (A True Book) by Larry Dane43ScienceAcknowledgement: This lesson was provided by the Michigan Farm Bureau Promotion & Education Department.
To be used with: Understanding Insects as Friends or FoesName:ScienceInstructions on How to Make a Trap441.Pass out “Trap Page” to students.2.Have students write their name on the back of the trap.3.Have students put their trap on their desk name-side down.4.Fold on the dotted lines 1 and 2, then unfold them and carefully cut on the solid “cut” lines,just to the dotted lines, not past the dotted lines.5.Now fold lines 3, 4 and 5 and hold your trap at the top “X” and tape it.6.Have students hang their trap on the wall. See if you catch anything.
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5. Discuss Life-Cycles Ask: Does anyone remember life cycles? Hold up illustrations of insect life stages. Back in first grade you might have studied the life cycle of a butterfly. Today we’re going to learn about the life cycle of insects and plants. Insects and plants have different life cycles or
b. Insects play an important part in the food chain by providing food for other animals. c. Some insects destroy other insects that are considered harmful. d. Insects pollinate crops. e. Insects damage or destroy crops, food and fiber products, and wood. f. Insects provide food (honey from the h
3/30/2015 2 Pollinators Bees Wasps Flies Others Decomposers Break down dead animals and plants Recycle nutrients Natural Enemies Beneficial insects or other organisms that destroy harmful insects Predators eat other insects Parasitoids develop in other insects Pathogens cause diseases in insects P
and other insects, as well as other related animals (known as arthropods), such as spiders and scorpions. Why Study Insects? Insects are all around us. There are more species of insects than of any other group of animals, and many have not even been discovered yet. Insects affect man
To be called aquatic insects, insects must spend part of their lives in water. They may live beneath the water surface or skim along the top. Some examples of aquatic insects are mosquitoes, dragonflies and caddisflies. Aquatic insects come in many shapes and sizes, and they all have some interesting ways of dealing with living in and on water.
To be called aquatic insects, insects must spend part of their lives in water. They may live beneath the water surface or skim along the top. Some examples of aquatic insects are mosquitoes, dragonflies and caddisflies. Aquatic insects come in many shapes and sizes, and they all have some interesting ways of dealing with living in and on water.
FAO FORESTRY PAPER FAO FORESTRY PAPER 171 171 FAO Edible insects: future prospects for food and feed security 171 Edible insects Future prospects for food and feed security Edible insects Future prospects for food and feed security I3253E/1/04.13 ISBN 978-92-5-107595-1 ISSN 0258-6150 9 789251 075951
or more grasshopper species may be found. Insects are the largest group of grassland plant eaters in numbers and likely mass. Prairie insects are also important because they play an enormous role in the prairie food chain. Insects are meals for other small and medium-sized meat eaters like
beneficial insects that can help keep pest insects under control if they are given a chance. Sadly, however, these insects are often misidentified and in some cases are mistaken for pests, leading to unnecessary and counter-productive insecticide applications. This publication, funded by the Western IPM Center, is intended to prevent such
