Starter quiz
- Insects are invertebrates. What does ‘invertebrate’ mean?
- An animal without a spine (backbone) ✓
- An animal without a digestive system
- An animal without legs
- An animal without a brain
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- Which two of these animals are not insects?
- Ladybird
- Garden spider ✓
- Snail ✓
- Ant
- Which of these is not part of an insect’s segmented body?
- Head
- Torso ✓
- Thorax
- Abdomen
-
- What is the name for this object that has a developing animal inside?
- 'egg' ✓
- Animals can reproduce. What does this mean?
- They have a life cycle
- They hunt for food
- They live together with animals of the same type
- They make more animals of the same type ✓
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- What are insect antennae for?
- Scaring away predators
- Tasting food
- Sensing the world around them ✓
- Extra legs
-
Exit quiz
- Which stage does not appear in the insect life cycle?
- Egg
- Larva
- Larva with hind legs ✓
- Pupa
- Adult
-
- Order the stages in the insect life cycle.
- 1⇔egg
- 2⇔larva
- 3⇔pupa
- 4⇔adult
- Which statement is false?
- Insects are cold-blooded
- Insects are invertebrates
- Insects hatch from eggs
- Most insects go through metamorphosis
- Insects drink milk form their mother when young ✓
-
- When insects are at the ______ stage of their life cycle, they are able to reproduce.
- 'adult' ✓
- Which diagram would be best for communicating the stages an insect goes through as it ages?
- Venn diagram
- Life cycle diagram ✓
- Table
- Food chain
-
- The big change in form that most insects go through inside an inactive pupa is called ______.
- 'metamorphosis' ✓
Worksheet
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Presentation
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Insects are animals, they are living things that grow and reproduce
- The life cycles of different insects can be observed over time and/or researched
- The life cycle of an insect is commonly: egg, larva (young stage), pupa (inactive) and adult stage
- Many insects undergo the greatest changes of all animals, they undergo a complete metamorphosis
- Scientific diagrams are used to show the stages in an insect’s life cycle
Common misconception
Pupils may think that the insect is dead inside the pupa, or that the pupa is not a living thing.
Using the lesson resources to support, explain that the insect is alive and changing inside the pupa, even if the pupa itself doesn't move.
Keywords
Insect - An insect is an invertebrate animal that has antennae, six legs and a body divided into segments.
Life cycle - A life cycle is the way in which a living thing changes as it ages.
Larva - Larva is the life cycle stage that some animals go through before metamorphosis into their next form.
Pupa - Inside a pupa, an insect changes from one form to another.
Metamorphosis - Metamorphosis is a major change from one form to another.
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