Unique Insect Stages
TEKS Objective
The student is expected to investigate and record some of the unique stages that insects undergo during their life cycle.
Essential Understanding
The student knows that organisms resemble their parents and have structures and processes that help them survive within their environments.
Science Background
Insect Metamorphosis: Utah Education Network (website) - Helpful definitions of complete and incomplete metamorphosis, with links to information about the life stages of numerous insects, including such as crickets, fleas and wasps.
Insect Metamorphosis
Utah Education Network, www.uen.org
A Field Guide to Common Texas Insects: Texas A&M System, AgriLIFE Extension (website) - Extensive list of common and scientific names for insects found frequently in Texas, with links to information about life cycles, habitats and food sources.
Insect Fact Sheets: Clemson University (website) - Useful information about common insect pests, insects of medical and veterinary importance and beneficial insects, such as butterflies.
Signature Lesson
From Caterpillars to Butterflies, Life Cycles: Utah Education Network (website) – Students investigate, observe and record the stages of a butterfly’s life cycle, and compare it to the life cycle of a different insect.
From Caterpillars to Butterflies, Life Cycles
Utah Education Network, www.uen.org
- Supporting Lessons
- Extensions
- Assessment Ideas
- Literature Connections
- Related
TEKS - Additional Resources
Supporting Lessons
Life Cycles of Mealworms, Waxworms, Silkworms and Painted Lady Butterflies (Insects Module): FOSSWEB (website) - Investigate and record the unique stages of various insects. Use No. 31–48 reproducible sheet.
The Life Cycle of a Butterfly: The Children’s Butterfly Site (website) – Students hear a reading of the book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and use their bodies to demonstrate and represent the stages of a butterfly’s metamorphosis.
The Life Cycle of a Butterfly
The Children’s Butterfly Site, www.kidsbutterfly.org
Elaboration Lessons and Extensions
Flour Beetles: University of Kentucky Department of Entomology (website) - Observe the behavior and life stages of flour beetles, design and implement an investigation into flour beetle food preferences, and record and graph investigation data over a period of several months.
Flour Beetles
University of Kentucky Department of Entomology, www.uky.edu
Butterflies in Space: BioEd Online (website) - Create classroom habitats for painted lady butterflies and observe their life cycle. Do real science in your classroom by asking questions about butterfly behavior and comparing the behaviors of your ground-based butterflies to those of the “butterflynauts” that flew on the International Space Station.
Butterflies in Space
BioEd Online, www.bioedonline.org
Monarch Butterflies: PBS Teachers (website) - Students raise Monarch butterflies, tag individual butterflies and learn about the Monarch butterflies’ yearly migration.
Monarch Butterflies
PBS Teachers, www.pbs.org/teachers
Ladybug Learning: Lost Ladybug Project (website) - Download the “Lost Ladybug Toolkit for Grades K-2.” Unit One covers the ladybug beetle life cycle. Other units cover insect biology, how to collect ladybugs, and a project to document the locations of different ladybug species.
Assessment Ideas
Life Cycle of Butterflies and Moths: The Children’s Butterfly Site (website) - The butterfly life cycle has four separate stages that look completely different and serve different purposes. To assess your students’ understanding of these unique stages, print out the stages of an insect’s life cycle and have students put the stages in order and explain each one.
Life Cycle of Butterflies and Moths
The Children’s Butterfly Site, www.kidsbutterfly.org
Ladybug Life Cycle: Earth’s Birthday (PDF) - Use this worksheet to assess your students’ understanding of the life cycle of a ladybug.
Literature Connections
The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Carle, Eric (ISBN-13: 978-0399226236)
A Ladybug’s Life. Himmelman, John (ISBN-13: 978-0516263533)
Monarch Butterfly. Gibbons, Gail (ISBN-13: 978-1430109433)
Mealworms. Schaffer, Donna (ISBN-13: 978-0736832960)
Crickets. Hall, Margaret (ISBN-13: 978-0736850957)
Ladybugs. Ashley, Susan (ISBN-13: 978-0836840629)
Additional Resources
Hatch Your Own Praying Mantises: Education.com (website) - Create a habitat and hatch praying mantises. Care for the insects, and observe the unique stages of the praying mantis life cycle.
Hatch Your Own Praying Mantises
By Peggy Ashbrook, Education.com
TEKS Navigation
Grade 2
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