Ant City

Introduction: The American Nature Tours Society would like to invite you to become a stop on our popular Insect Tours. Many people, including children are fascinated by creepy crawly things. Currently, we offer tours to CricketLand, Roach Resort, Butterfly World and Spider Central. We are looking for a group that is interested in putting together Ant City. We envision that this popular tourist site would include many fun-filled activities for the visitors.

Task: Develop an ant colony that adults and children could visit. Set up different areas including places where tourists might view live ants, play ant games, find out facts about ants, and see ant art. You will serve as guides for the tourist groups.

Process:

1. Read letter from the American Nature Tours Society.
2. Read books on ants.
3. Watch Bug City-Ants (Schlessinger Media) and Magic Schoolbus Ants in Your Pants
4. In the computer lab create ants in their tunnels, label ant body parts, complete ant addition and ant counting hill activity. Create ant memory game cards, and visit ant websites.
5. Create an edible ant on a log (celery stick, can cheese, raisins) ant pupa's in an ant hill (in a cup, place mini marshmallows in chocolate pudding with crushed chocolate graham crackers)
6. Hands on life cycle activity (egg-black-eyed pea, larva-pipe cleaner, pupa-cotton balls rolled into oblong shape, adult-mini pompoms all placed on a paper plate with leaves)
7. In art, create paper mache ants and looped paper ants.
8. Take ant action cards (ie. obstruct the ant's path, follow an ant trail to locate their home) on a nature hike (card 1 & 2, 3 & 4, 5 & 6)
9. Set up and observe real ant farms.
10. Add observations to your ant journal
11. Create ant rubbings with Ellison press ant.
12. Teacher-made dot to dot (KidPix) for counting.
13. In art class weave picnic placemats (put picture of food on the placemat and use as math workmats)
14. Learn some songs in music class.
15. Read Big Bad Ant by____________or the Ant Bully by John Nickle and write a story "if I were an ant"
16. Read The Beginning Knowledge Book of Ants by Anne Orth Epple and write about what kind of ant you would like to be.
17. After discussing ant jobs, Compare yourself to a worker ant ("worker ants look for food all day.....I go to school all day...") Create an Venn diagram comparing ants and people. Create a class book about ant jobs vs. people jobs.
18. Create ant tunnels made rolled up brown paper. See picture.
19. Create an "ant vitation" for guests.

Ant City Grand Opening

Set up your classroom with different stations that guests can visit.

Invite an insect expert, such as Dr. B. Hive, to your grand opening to cut the ribbon and make a speech. Assign students to each center so that someone is in the center to guide the guests.

Opportunity to Share:

1.  Students had a chance to share their classbooks with other students and guests of Ant City.
2. They had a chance to present their understanding of ant anatomy, jobs and homes through discussion and assignments during the unit and culminating event.

Assessment:Students were assessed using astudent survey, anecdotal notes and work samples to record their progress in several areas: Writing, Computer Skills, Math, Social Studies, Listening and Interpersonal Skills. Specific skills can be located in the Fairfax County ECAP folder and in the Virginia SOL's.

For pictures and examples of the work, click on the ant.

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This unit was created by Susan Goodin and Barbara Johnston
with assistance from Brooks Widmaier, School-Based Technology Specialists and many other specialists at Kings Park School
May 11, 2002