During our Eco-Friends class time over the past few weeks,
students were posed with the question, “What makes an insect and
insect?” Our students combined their prior knowledge with their
immediate observations of similarities and differences to
discover the unique characteristics of insects. Our students
were introduced to an insect’s three main body parts through a
rendition of the song “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes”
entitled, “Head, Thorax, Abdomen.” After observing toy insects,
student participated in sorting a variety of different “bugs”
using a Venn diagram on the SmartBoard. Students were asked to
label the bugs by moving them on the screen into a circles
labeled “Insect” or “Not an Insect.” After sifting through
scorpions, spiders and worms, students became comfortable with
identifying insects through these characteristics: 1) Three Body
Parts (head, thorax, abdomen), 2) Eyes, Mouth and Antennae, 3)
An Exoskeleton. While observing and describing pictures,
drawings and toy insects helped us learn wh