Beneficial Insects Curriculum Request Form

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Students explore the different roles insects play in ecosystems by examining whether insects are beneficial, harmful, or simply misunderstood. Through discussion and hands-on activities, they learn how insects can serve as pollinators, predators, decomposers, and sources of food while considering how their roles affect people and the environment.
Students learn how bees and other pollinators help plants produce fruits and seeds through an interactive pollination activity and game. Working as “bees,” students collect and transfer pollen while experiencing how predators, disease, pesticides, temperature, and habitat can affect bee health and their ability to pollinate plants.
Students investigate the diversity of insects and spiders by collecting and comparing specimens from different habitats, such as gardens, trees, grass, and fields. They sort and identify what they find, compare the number and types of organisms in each habitat, and explore the roles insects play as pollinators, predators, parasites, and prey.
Students act as crop scouts to investigate problems affecting simulated corn fields, identifying pests, diseases, and other signs of plant damage. They use their observations to determine how farmers can make informed pest management decisions while learning about integrated pest management and the importance of monitoring crops before taking action.
Students learn about wild bees, including the different ways solitary bees nest and the importance of providing suitable habitat for pollinators. They use basic tools and materials to construct and decorate a nest for cavity-nesting bees while exploring ways they can support wild bee populations at home.