We love books!!
Zoology! I was never a very good science student – I had trouble with memorizing facts and thinking analytically; but I LOVE zoology. My grades did not reflect my interest. I particularly like the study of insects – entomology. Great word isn’t it!
The Traveling Closet was all about entomology for kids this week – we learned about lady bugs. My goodness did you know there are over 5000 kinds of lady bugs!!
What I could share with Jack, Maggie and Mary was very simple but I have to say that I ate up the books from the library. Lady bugs are fascinating. They do not always look the same. The children were very interested in the fact that baby lady bugs are really ugly!!!
If you wan to learn about them for yourself then just take a look at this page. WOW, you can see pictures of so many lady bugs and find out about Ladybug Taxonomy; great word to add to a vocabulary list.
How to make a ladybug crown!
We began our day by making some lady bug crowns. This was a fun and easy project to do. With a stapler and some tape it was quite painless. Jack, being the free thinker that he is, did not want a crown! He was empathetic about it. He wanted a lady bug caterpillar. It didn’t matter a whit that lady bugs do not look like caterpillars, he really wanted one.
Jack's ladybug caterpillar
Then we read a funny book about a lazy lady bug. Latter we read about a grouchy lady bug. The book “Are You a Ladybug” was hilarious to Maggie who is beginning to develop a keen sense of humor.
We painted some rocks to look just like lady bugs and we put them into the garden.
How to make ladybug rocks for a garden
Here is a tip that really works well when reading books to children. As we read the books if I come upon a word that we have already talked about I pause and don’t say the word. If I get a quizzical look then I know they haven’t really gotten the information and I say the word. I use a soft voice or a silly voice or a loud voice. They like that. If they know the word they yell it out. It is a fun way to read a book. Jack really enjoyed learning that lady bugs eat aphids. He got that word right away and enjoyed yelling it out every time it was in a sentence.
We read a fun story about a girl who kept a pet lady bug. I wish we had been able to find one. When we talk about lady bugs again I am going to make sure it is in the spring when we can buy some at the garden store and then let them go in our garden.
Ladybugs on a stick
We ended the day with a book that has nothing to do with ladybugs, well except for the fact that a ladybug is the narrator. It was called Can You Make a Scary Face?. We loved acting out this book. Check it out because it is silly and fun. (See below)
Here is something that I really wanted to do but we did not have time to gather the materials. It is a snack called Ladybugs on a stick and it is darling.
There are tons of ladybug coloring pages available from very realistic to silly. Just google ‘lady bug coloring pages’ and click the image tab.
I found some great finger plays all about lady bugs and you can see them below. For one I made a small plain red lady bug and then as we said the poem we added the spots. I had to do it a few times because the children liked it so much.
Giving our Ladybug spots for her suit
Ever wonder where the ‘Ladybug, Ladybug fly away home’ rhyme came from. Check it out and share it with your older children.
You can also find a great craft for older kids on how to make a Ladybug pencil topper.
Introducing Zoology to children can lead to great fun and some very interesting conversations.
Finger plays and Rhymes about ladybugs:
1. Ladybug! Ladybug! Fly away home.
Ladybug! Ladybug! Fly away home.
Your house is on fire.
And your children all gone.
All except one,
And that’s little Ann,
For she crept under
The frying pan.
2. Ladybug by Maria Fleming
Ladybugs all dressed in red
Strolling through the flowerbed.
If I were tiny just like you
I’d creep among the flowers too!
3. Five Little Ladybugs
Five little ladybugs, climbing on some plants,
Eating the aphids, but not the ants!
The first one said: “Save some aphids for me!”
The second one said: “These are tasty as can be!”
The third one said: “Oh, they’re almost gone!”
The fourth one said: “Then it’s time to move on!
The fifth one said: “Come on, let’s fly!”
So they opened their wings and flew through the sky.
4. Little Red Bug by Susan M. Paprocki
Little red bug, oh so cute,
Here’s a black spot for your suit.
Now you go and have some fun
With your spot, your very first one.
Little red bug, oh so cute,
Here’s a black spot for your suit.
It’s so nice to own a few,
So enjoy these lovely two.
Little red bug, oh so cute,
Here’s a black spot for your suit.
We are very pleased to see
How nice you look with all three.
Little red bug, oh so cute,
Here’s a black spot for your suit.
You might feel that you need more,
So we proudly give you four.
Little red bug, oh so cute,
Here’s a black spot for your suit.
Heaven, heaven, sakes alive,
Look at you, you’re wearing five!
Books about Ladybugs for Children:
Can You Make A Scary Face? By Jan Thomas
Are You a Ladybug by Judy Allen
The Very Lazy Ladybug by Isobel Finn
Bridget Fidget and the Most Perfect Pet by Joe Berger
Face to Face With the Ladybug by Valerie Tracqui
Ladybugs Red, Firey, and Bright by Mia Posada
The Ladybug and Other Insects by A First Discovery Book from Scholastic
What About Ladybugs by by Celia Godwin
Ladybug, Ladybug by Ruth Brown
Eye Spy a Ladtbug by Melinda Lilly
The Ladybug by Sabrina Crewe
Ladybug by Charles Fuge
Pet Bugs by Sally Kneidel
The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
I saved the Grouchy Ladybug for last because there is a very nice website that has many activities that all relate to this one book.
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