Japan's Secret Garden
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Student Handout |
Insects: Villains or Heroes?
Insect control is big business. People across the world pay billions of dollars each year to control insects that invade crops, lawns, and foundations. Insect bites or stings can also transmit disease. At the same time other insects, like ladybugs, eat potentially harmful insects and bees fertilize plants and make honey, which serves as food for other animals. This activity asks you to analyze which characteristics determine whether an insect is categorized as useful or detrimental.
Procedure
Brainstorm with your classmates a list of insects and select one of them to research. Decide the information you will need to collect about your insect. Conduct research on your insect and analyze the
information that you collected. Decide whether your insect serves a useful purpose or whether it is harmful in its encounters with humans. Present the aspects of your insect to other
students in a group and decide whether your insect should be classified as mostly harmful or helpful. Based on your conclusion, design either a Wanted Poster or Certificate of Achievement for your insect. Include a picture and as much of the information you collected as is necessary to explain why you classified the insect as you did. Share your results with other class members.
Questions
Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
Were any of your preconceived notions about insects incorrect? What were they? Were any of the classifications difficult to make, that is, did some of the insects have both helpful as well as harmful aspects? What is the most helpful insect in your area? What is the most harmful? Explain the reasoning for your choice. Predict the effects if either of those insects were eliminated.
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