Do you have a child who love creepy-crawlies?
Or maybe a child who lives in fear of bugs?
Personally, I used to be bug-neutral. My motto was “Live and let live—but not in my house!” Then I started paying attention and learning about insects, spiders, and other creepy-crawlies.
I even ended up creating a coloring book about bugs!
In the process, I noticed how many bugs lived in my own yard. I learned who they are, how delicate their wings are, and how important they are (even the unpopular ones).
Yes, we need bees to pollinate plants.
We also need butterflies and moths–some of which start out as those annoying caterpillars in our gardens. Slugs, cockroaches and other “nuisance” creatures break down leaf material to make new soil. Ticks and mosquitoes turn into food for birds, bats, and other insectivores.
Of course, as fascinating as bugs are, I do NOT recommend picking them up at random.
Relatively few bugs are dangerous, but even “safe” insects can have a painful pinch or bite. Plus, for bugs, it can be scary to be grabbed by a giant!
With that said, here are some fun, simple bug activities for your kids to try!
1. Look under a stone and see who’s home.
Many bugs hide under stones or logs during the day. If you lift the stone, you’ll find at least a couple bugs scurrying for safety. Just remember that this is their home! Make sure you put the stone back carefully when you’re done looking.
If you have a yard or other outdoor space, you can even leave a board outside for a few days. Check it occasionally to see who is hiding underneath. We did this by accident once. We used it to watch for slugs, worms, spiders, and other tiny creatures whenever we wanted (which was almost daily).
2. Sit and watch a while.
Insects are busy critters! Why not watch them for a while and see what they’re up to?
Can you find a spider working on its web in the evening? Can you follow an ant back to its nest? Or, if you find an ant nest, can you find a trail of ants and follow them to their food?
3. Shake some leaves.
This is an activity I learned at our local nature center. Use a piece of paper or a paper plate as a tray. Gently shake a small handful of leaves over your paper. Then check the paper and see what you’ve found.
After you’ve counted all the obvious bugs, watch for another minute. If any of the tiny specks of dirt start jumping around the plate, it’s probably a bug.
4. Run a bug census.
We don’t have a very large yard. We can still find dozens of different kinds of insects in a few square feet, though. On a warm day, we’ve found large flies, small flies, bees, large beetles, tiny beetles, earwigs, and centipedes. We also find other non-insect critters like slugs, worms, and spiders.
Here’s a handy chart for playing bug bingo you can use for this activity. You can use it to keep track of the more common types of bugs you find.
5. Build a bug house.
You’ve probably seen articles about different threats to honeybees. Did you know that there are hundreds of other species of bees too? Many of these bees lay their eggs in small crevices, rather than large hives.
You can find bee houses at hardware stores or garden supplies. Or, you can build your own by bee house with either a block of wood or hollow tubes.
If you don’t have outdoor space for a bee house, what about setting up a terrarium? Some people keep jumping spiders or tarantulas as pets.
6. Visit a science center or zoo.
Many zoos and some children’s museums have bug displays. This can be a fun way to find more unusual species and learn about different types of bugs.
See how many different kinds of food the zoo has for the bugs. Do they drink nectar from flowers? Nibble on slices of fruit? What other kinds of food can you spot?
7. Turn into a bookworm!
Recently, we’ve spent a lot of time reading about bugs. One of our most recent favorites is The Big Book About Bugs, by Yuval Zommer. Here’s a list with some of our other favorite picture books from the past year.
Bonus activities:
Make a bug calendar. Different insects follow different schedules. In our area, we sometimes find small green inchworms in the spring. In the fall, we find dozens of Woolly Bear caterpillars every time we go outside. Start a nature journal or a calendar recording these discoveries. Next year, you can come back and check whether you find the same bugs earlier or later in the season.
Explore citizen science. Look for local volunteer projects to learn more about bugs. Ask a nature centers or local nature groups about volunteer activities that would help your local insects. This can include planting wildflowers, cleaning up nature preserves, or sharing what you’ve learned about bugs.
Interested in even more? You can find more resources for for learning about spiders here. I also share occasional activity pages and nature facts in my monthly newsletter. Use the form below to sign up for this!
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