Ladybugs
Step into the fascinating world of a
charming little insect—the ladybug!
for
cBackground
the Teacher
• Ladybugs are also known as ladybirds,
ladybird beetles, ladyflies, and ladycows.
• Like other insects, ladybugs have six
legs, two antennae, and three body
parts—head, thorax, and abdomen.
• Ladybugs have two pairs of wings attached to the middle section, or thorax,
of their bodies. The inner pair of wings is
used for flying. The outer pair of wings,
named the elytra, is hard like a shell and
is used to protect the ladybug.
• Ladybugs can be red, orange, yellow,
or black.
• Some ladybugs excrete a foul-smelling
liquid from their legs.
• Experiments have shown that ladybugs
probably don’t taste good to predators.
• Ladybugs like to eat aphids—small insects that suck the juice out of plants.
One ladybug can eat as many as 100
aphids in one day.
• Many ladybugs hibernate during
the winter.
d
Ladybug
Literature
Ladybug at Orchard Avenue (Smithsonian’s
Backyard) by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
(Soundprints Corp. Audio, 1996)
Ladybugology (Backyard Buddies) by
Michael Elsohn Ross (Carolrhoda
Books, 1998)
What About Ladybugs? by Celia Godkin
(Little, Brown and Company; 1998)
20
A Model Insect
(Insect Anatomy, Art)
Making a ladybug model is an excellent way to acquaint youngsters with a ladybug’s unusual wings. Begin the lesson by explaining
to your students that ladybugs belong to a group of animals called
coleoptera, which means “sheath wing.” Further explain that a ladybug has two sets of wings: an outer set, which gives the ladybug a
hard covering that protects its body; and an inner set, which the ladybug uses to fly. Give your students a hands-on understanding of this
dainty insect’s wings by having each student create the following
model. In advance, make an enlarged copy of page 23. Then make a
class supply of the enlarged copy. Give each student the materials
below and guide the student through the directions to create his
model.
Materials needed for each child:
1 enlarged copy of page 23
1 sheet of red construction paper
1 sheet of white tissue paper
1 white crayon
scissors
glue
Directions:
1. Cut out the ladybug patterns
on page 23.
2. Trace the two inner wings onto
the tissue paper. Cut out the
tissue paper wings and gently
wrinkle them.
3. Glue the pointed end of each
tissue paper wing to the white
dot on the black body pattern
as shown.
4. Trace the two outer wings onto
a sheet of red paper; then cut
them out.
5. On the back of each red wing,
place a thin line of glue along
the straight edge. Then flip
them over and attach each
outer wing to the ladybug’s
body, above the inner wings
as shown.
6. Cut out the four black spots
and glue two spots onto each
outer wing. Use a white crayon
to add details to the ladybug’s
head.
step 3
step 5
step 6
Copyright© 2000 The Education Center, Inc. All rights reserved
except as noted herein.
Permission is granted to reproduce this worksheet for individual
classroom use only and not for resale or distribution. Reproduction
for an entire school system is prohibited. No part of this worksheet
may be retransmitted by any means, electronic or mechanical,
without permission from The Education Center.
For Ordering Information:
The Education Center, Inc.
3515 West Market Street
Greensboro, NC 27403
336-854-0309
800-714-7991
Fax 336-547-1591