Insect Theme

We will be studying insects for the month of May. Here are the concepts and vocabulary I hope your children learn while exploring this unit:.

An insect is a very small animal with particular characteristics:

• Insects are invertebrates. They have no backbones.
• Most insects walk, but some can fly and jump.
• Insects need water, air, and food to live.
• A four step life cycle is known as a complete metamorphosis.
• The Life Cycle of an insect has four stages:
•  egg
•  larva 
• pupa 
• adult. 
• Most insects have five basic physical characteristics:
  1. Insects have what we call an exoskeleton or a hard, shell-like covering on the outside of its body.
  2. Insects have three main body parts: head, thorax, and abdomen.
  3. Insects have a pair of antennae on top of their heads.
  4. Insects have 6 legs (three pairs). They use the legs for walking, but sometimes an insect may have a pair of legs that are specially designed for jumping.
  5. Insects have two pairs of wings.
• Some insects are helpful to people.
• Some insects are harmful to people.