We are lucky enough to receive "Weekly Readers" and we received an article highlighting insects just when we were beginning to do our projects! We opened our insect research by examining this fascinating picture of an insect up close. We asked students about what they noticed about the bug (in regards to the coloring, the eye positions, the mouth, the hairs). We then read the accompanying article as a class.
For this lesson, we had our students read a short article about insects and we taught them how to highlight important information. They then were to transfer the information into a graphic organizer before writing a paragraph about insects.
This particular form of research was difficult for our students, and because of this we were very specific with how we partnered them and allowed them to work in pairs. This was very beneficial, because some students really grasped the concept while others seriously struggled with it.
Art Extension
Our little researchers practiced drawing like scientists. We let them choose the insect that they would like to draw scientifically and they needed to include labels, details, and accurate colors. They turned out great, and in the end we will put these on a giant insect cut out and display it in the hall.