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Teaching Objectives:
Materials Needed: Access to computers and computer software applicaion program including database, word processing, and spreadsheet applications; paint/draw programs; story-creation or publishing software packages
Procedure:
Use whatever software applications you have available
for use in your classroom and allow students to create projects
about insects. Let the students develop their own projects if
possible. Allow them to work alone or in groups.
Some suggested projects are:
Use a paint/draw program to draw a butterfly or other
insect or to paint an insect's habitat. Have the student label
the picture. Students may also use the copy and paste capabilities
of software and use clipart to create the stages of metamorphosis.
Use a paint/draw program to portray the stages of
metamorphosis of a particular insect.
Have each student use a paint/draw program to draw
an insect. Label each insect and write a paragraph containing
information on that insect. Combine the class's pages into an
insect book.
Have each student cut and paste information about
an insect from a CD encyclopedia. Combine the information in
a book. The information copied from the encyclopedia should include
the citation about the source of the information. If this is
not done automatically by the program used, emphasize to the students
why this is necessary. Ask the students to include the information
as part of their text. This would be an appropriate time to explain
the copyright laws and to discuss plagiarism. Explain that this
project emphasizes computer skills; they would be required to
do original work for a research paper.
Set up a database using basic insect facts. For
example, set up fields for species, common name, number of wings,
number of legs, color, stages of metamorphosis, size, location,
and any other facts the students consider necessary to include
in the database. Enter the information for insects the students
have studied. Have the students manipulate the information in
a variety of ways to demonstrate the ease in which database information
can be sorted, organized, and arranged.
Have the students use a spreadsheet to record the
observations they make of such things as the butterflies that
visit their insect gardens or the insects in the classroom insect
collection. Or, use the spreadsheet to record weighing and measuring
activities. See the Butterfly Watch Form for a suggested
format. Have the students decide what information they want to
record in their spreadsheet.
Have the students use a word processor or program
such as
HyperStudio to create an insect
book. Have them experiment with type fonts and point sizes to
vary the format of the book. Illustrations can be brought in
from software programs or done as original artwork by the students.
Have the students use a word processor to type a
summary of what they have learned about insects.
Have the students use a software program such as
Amazing Writing Machine by Broderbund to create
original stories about insects.
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