Unit plan name: Minibeasts

Level: Foundation Level

Learning intentions as per the Victorian Curriculum:
English- Construct sentences that express their ideas and feelings. Show understanding of
informative and imaginative texts and how to construct a short text that is either informative
or imaginative. Show understanding of the contribution of text-image relationship.
Mathematics- Explore situations were they need to collect data and then present the data as a
visual or written display. Develop links between their environment, everyday language and
mathematical activity.
The arts (visual art)- Create visual artwork through their exploration of their ideas,
experiences, observations and imagination. Experiment with different materials to create
visual artworks.
Science- Observe and explore patterns of growth and change in the world around them.
Organise observations and data collected into tables and diagrams.
Personal and Social capability- Practice skills that encourage positive and effective
collaboration with peers.
Guiding questions for the unit:
1. What is an Insect/Minibeast?
2. How do Insects survive in their environment?
3. Why are Insects important?
Activity One: Bug hunt
Lesson aims:
1. To identify and observe the features of insects.
2. Answer yes/no questions to collect information (VCMSP083).
3. Organise answers to yes/no questions into simple data displays using objects and
drawings (VCMSP084).
Teaching/learning strategies:
-

Discuss with students about where they live and what sort of things do humans do.

Discuss about how there are small and big things in the world.
Show the students on the smart board pictures of small creatures such as insects they
might find outside. Ask the students for the names of the insects and some of the

characteristics they might have.

Put the students into pairs or groups of threes depending on class numbers.
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Handout the Bug hunt sheet and a pencil to the students; explain to the students that
they are going to look for these bugs on the sheet outside and the sheet will help them

keep track of how many they find.

Explain that they have to tick yes if they saw the bug and no if they didnt.
For the students who finish early they can then count how many different bugs they

saw and fill it in on the sheet.

Emphasise to not touch the insects and their habitats.
Take photos of the bugs the students find and of the students (with parental

permission) exploring outside and looking for bugs.

After the students have finished their bug hunt, they will go back to the classroom for

a class discussion. Ask the students what they experienced outside.

Explain to the students that we are then going to use their bug hunt data to create a

graph.
Have four chosen bugs (most commonly found outside) such as beetles, worms, bees

and butterflies as the bugs to tally up for the graph.

Ask the students to give the amounts of how many beetles, worms, bees and

butterflies they saw outside using their bug hunt table sheet.
Draw the graph up together as a class.

Resources:
-

PowerPoint of different bugs that you can find outside

Bug hunt sheet
Pencils
A camera to take photos of the bug hunt
Smart board for power point and drawing up the graph

Assessment:
-

Observation of the students exploring outside and working together in groups and

pairs.
The bug hunt sheet can show whether the students understood how to identify

different insects and count how many they saw.

The class discussion can help demonstrate if the students understand how to collect
data, share their thoughts about their findings and then display their data as a graph.

Activity Two: Write up of the bug hunt

Lesson aims:
1. Recognise that sentences are key units for expressing ideas (VCELA143).
2. Create short texts to explore, record and report ideas and events using familiar words
and beginning writing knowledge (VCELY160).

3. Understand that language can be used to explore ways of expressing needs, likes and
dislikes (VCELA166).
Teaching/learning strategies:
-

Discuss with the students about their bug hunt. Display photos of bug hunt on the
smart board to refresh the students memories. What did they enjoy most about the
bug hunt? What didnt they like about the hunt? What types of things did they find
outside on their bug hunt? Where were the common places that they found insects?
Did the weather and time of year change the amount of bugs they found or would
find? Why do the bugs live in certain places? What sort of features did these bugs

have that they found?

Explain to the students that they are going to then write about their bug hunt in their

books.
Ask the students to give an example of what they might write about. Give them a few
examples of a sentence as well; demonstrating key words and certain details of the
experience in the sentence, such as the colours and features of the insects, where they

were found, how many there were and what they enjoyed most about the experience.
Leave the students with sentence starters up on the board to help the students who are

struggling to start writing and to help them express their thoughts.

Give the students time to write 2-6 sentences of their bug hunt experience. Roam
around and help the students who are struggling, talk to the students about what they

are writing.
Then gather the students for a class discussion on what they have written. Students
can then share with their peer their feelings towards the bug hunt activity and what
they found and learnt.

Resources:
-

Photos from the bug hunt activity

Smart board
Bug hunt sentence starter table
Childrens writing book

Assessment:
-

Observation during the class discussion.

Collect books after the activity and record whether students were able to construct
sentences about their feelings of the activity and their findings and ideas.

Activity Three: Label me sheet

Lesson aims:

1. Understand that texts can take many forms, and that imaginative and informative texts
have different purposes (VCELA141).
2. Explore the different contribution of words and images to meaning in stories and
informative texts (VCELA145).
3. Name and practice basic skills required to work collaboratively with peers
(VCPSCSO006).
Teaching/learning strategies:
-

Brainstorm with students on what is an insect?.

Show the students the Label me diagram, explain how the labels help us understand

the diagram.
Provide the students with factsheets on insects and get them to use the factsheets to
help them label the insect. Students will work in partners to determine characteristics

that different insects share using the factsheets.

Once the students have completed the label me sheet, they will come back to the floor
and discuss what they found and explain how they labelled their bug and why.

Resources:
-

Label me bug sheet (can create other ones for different types of insects)
Factsheets: use an encyclopaedia of insects for factual information on insects. You
could provide higher level students with non-fiction books on insects instead of the

factsheets depending on the books level of difficulty.

Smart board

Assessment:
-

Class participation in the discussion.

Collect the Label me sheets and see if the students were able to work together and
complete it correctly.

Activity Four: Life cycle of a butterfly

Lesson aim:
1. To understand that living things grow, change and have offspring similar to
themselves (VCSSU043).
Teaching/learning strategies:
-

Discuss with the students that insects like people and all other creatures, grow and

change, but with a very different sort of life cycle to people.

Read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle: point out how the caterpillar

changes over time and transforms into something different.

Using the smart board go to http://www.ngkids.com.au/science-and-nature/butterflylife-cycle. Read out the life cycle of a butterfly and show an example of how to draw
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the diagram of the life cycle.

Have the students demonstrate what they have learned by drawing their own diagram
of the life cycle of the butterfly. The students will need to draw their own pictures in

the correct order. Have the teachers example up on the board to assist students.
Remind the students of the work they have done in previous lessons on sequencing.
Bring the students back to the floor to then discuss and investigate the life cycle of
another insect and compare it to the life cycle of the butterfly. How are these life
cycles the same? And how are they different?

Resources:
-

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

http://www.ngkids.com.au/science-and-nature/butterfly-life-cycle
https://museumvictoria.com.au/bugs/life/cycles.aspx: more information and resources
on insects and life cycles

Assessment:
-

Class participation in the discussions.

Collect the life cycle diagrams to see if the students have a clear understanding of
what was taught and explained.

Activity Five: Create your own bug

Lesson aims:
1. Explore ideas, experiences, observations and imagination to create visual artworks
(VCAVAE017).
2. Experiment with different materials and techniques to make artworks
(VCAVAV018).
Teaching/learning strategies:
-

Recap on some of the observations made about the minibeasts in the previous lessons.
Using a texta, pencil or paint and some recycled materials to create my own bug with

the class.
Ask the students to suggest ideas of how I can create certain body parts of different

bugs.
Explain to the students that they need to use their imagination and can combine the

features of several minibeasts to make their own bug.

Students go back to their tables and create their own bug using recycled materials and

textas, pencils and paint.

When the students have finished, have them bring their work to the floor and sit in a
circle and discuss everyones artwork. Ask the students to either discuss their own
artwork or pick an artwork they like and explain what they like about that artwork.

Resources:
-

Textas, pencils and paint.

Recycled materials.

Assessment:
-

Class participation in the discussions.

Observation of the students experimenting.

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