learning about minibeasts at home or at school

Learning about minibeasts at home or at school – #readilearn

21 Replies

Whether learning at home or at school, there is a world of minibeasts for children to explore, inside and outdoors. Regardless of our feelings towards certain species, all are important to our environment and contribute to our lives in different and often unseen ways including pollinating our plants, decomposing waste and providing food for other species. It is fair to say that we need minibeasts more than they need us.

Learning about living things is an important part of the science curriculum for children in their first few years of school. They learn about the features of living things, their needs and their life stages. Studying minibeasts allows for learning in all these areas in a small space over a short amount of time.

At readilearn, we support your teaching and children’s learning about minibeasts with a constantly growing collection of resources. In fact, three new resources were uploaded this week.

Observe and record

An interesting project is to use a magnifying glass to discover the different species of minibeasts that live in and around our classrooms and homes. Much can be learned through observing their behaviour.

The Code for caring explains how to observe while maintaining safety for self as well as the minibeasts.

My Minibeast Diary provides a format and suggestions for recording children’s observations.

Continue reading: Learning about minibeasts at home or at school – readilearn

21 thoughts on “Learning about minibeasts at home or at school – #readilearn”

  2. Jennie

    Minibeast is a perfect word. Nature and discovery is so important for children. This year at school, we have created play packs for each child which include binoculars and magnifying glasses. Due to Covid -19 we’re spending as much time outside as possible. I’m so glad!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓
    1. Norah Post author

      The word ‘bugs’ is commonly and acceptably used that way but it does refer to a specific type of insect that has a mouth like a straw. The minibeast is a non-scientific term that refers to all small invertebrates including insects, arachnids, snails and molluscs (to name just a few), not just what you might refer to as ‘bugs’.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply ↓

Leave a reply to Norah Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.