Bugscope Across the Curriculum

By Gemma FitzPatrick

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Initial Drawing

Digital Pictures

HoneybeesBees have three body parts: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen. The bee’s

six legs are attached to the thorax. Bees also have a pair of antennae, compound eyes, jointed legs and a hard exoskeleton. Bees feed off of only two

food sources: flower nectar and pollen. Honeybees are very social creatures and they live in hives. Within the hive

community there are three types of honeybees. First, there is the queen bee who lays the eggs. Second, there are workers. Workers are female bees who gather food, make honey, build the honeycomb, look after the eggs and protect

the hive. Lastly, there are drone bees that mate with the queen. The bee hives central feature is honeycomb, which is made of flat

vertical panels of six-sided cells and is made of beeswax. This beeswax is produced by the worker bees’ glands on her abdomen. The cells within the

honeycomb are used to raise the young honeybees and to store honey. The area in which the young bees and eggs are found in the honeycomb is called the

brood comb.

The accuracy and detail of this picture is significantly different from my initial drawing. As a result of my online research and looking at the digital pictures, my bee now has three body segments. Also, the six legs are attached to the thorax and contain more joints.

Wasp pulvillus

National Science Education Standards

• “Make the available science tools, materials, media, and technological resources accessible to students: It is also important for students to learn how to access scientific information from books, periodicals, videos, databases, electronic communication, and people with expert knowledge.“

• This NSES applies to the bugscope project because it introduces students to a useful scientific tool and electronic communication. Students are able to use this website to ask questions and communicate with an expert on insects.

• Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope’s give very detailed and intricate images of what the insects look like. This project allows students to manipulate the appearance of the insects by zooming in and out. The quality and amount of information students can gain from looking at the images on bugscope is very valuable.

In the Classroom• Literature sources:

– Bugs, bugs, bugs! By Jennifer A. Dussling. A level 2 nonfiction book about bugs.– On Beyond Bugs by Dr. Seuss. A fiction book that will help students learn how

bugs see, smell, pollinate and communicate with one another. – Bugs are Insects by Anne F. Rockwell. Students will learn how to determine if

something is classified as a insect.

Connection to other curricular areas:

Reading/Writing: After reading On Beyond Bugs, have students choose an insect and write a short, but accurate, story about what it would be like to be that bug for one day.

Computers: How can students know if a website is a valuable resource? How can students find out if the information is correct? Lead a discussion about the importance of comparing information from different resources.