Missouri creepy crawlies

With fall weather comes changes in temperatures. We sometimes see creepy crawly things that come inside to get away from cooler nights. It is not uncommon to find spiders, bugs and other critters in the corners of our homes and classrooms. Why not make this a learning experience? I have a true story to tell you about someone who did just that. This was an e-mail that I received from someone who is not a teacher but is a parent.

We had a big ugly something crawl out from behind the couch yesterday—once I captured it in a jar and went to check its pedigree online, the first Google hit from my search, “Missouri roaches,” was the eThemes resource list on Missouri Cockroaches. Turns out, thanks to the excellent images on the first and second links, my daughter and I were able to determine that we had an adult male wood cockroach, harmless and actually probably plentiful in the woods out back (don’t live indoors because of their humidity requirements)—likely hitched in on our dog, Daisy. So, thanks to eThemes, we can rest easy that we are not under attack by a legion of creepy crawlies!

eThemes Resources provide a list of Web sites around specific themes and correlated to the Missouri standards. These eThemes topics offer combinations of several different Web sites that provide teachers with background information, lesson plans, graphics, media, activities, quizzes, etc. Since there are more than 1,000 eThemes topics in our database (and growing!), you can search several topics that will fit your own teaching and students’ learning. Below are links to eThemes Resources that can help teachers put together units with several learning activities and information specifically related to insects and animals.

Roaches
www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00001409.shtml

These sites are about the life cycle, anatomy and habitats of the roach or cockroach, the most ancient insect. Learn here how many species of roaches are in the world and what kind of pets they can be. Includes photographs and in-class activities.

Praying Mantis
www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00001413.shtml

Learn about the praying mantis, how long it lives and its habitat. Learn about the different species of this insect, its diet, care and hatching process. The site includes a care sheet, photographs, puzzles, printable worksheets and a lesson plan.

Ladybugs
www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00000829.shtml

These sites are about the life cycle, anatomy and habitat of ladybugs, also called ladybird beetles. There are several activity ideas, handouts, photographs and interactive games.

Animal Life Cycles
www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00000167.shtml

These sites focus on the stages animals go through as they mature. Learn how insects, fish, amphibians, birds, mammals and humans develop. See videos of animals when they are developing embryos. Watch a chicken hatch from its egg. There are many diagrams that visually represent the life cycle.

Are you looking for new ideas for your classroom? Just go to Newest eThemes (www.emints.org/ethemes/newthemes.shtml) to see what has been added each week. You’ll find an eThemes calendar (www.emints.org/ethemes/calendar.shtml) that provides student-centered activities at the click of a mouse. If you scroll down the page, there are previous calendars listed with more activities. If you prefer to browse or search the eThemes database, click on the Resource Index link to browse eThemes alphabetically or by grade level. Or try a Resource Search to find all available resources matching specific search criteria (grade level and/or key words) entered by the user.

Any educator can access eThemes resources at www.emints.org/ethemes. Official eMINTS teachers (www.emints.org/about/policies/teacher.shtml), and library media specialists in their schools, may request new eThemes topics using a convenient online form. Next, eThemes Resource scouts, who are University of Missouri-Columbia graduate students trained in navigating the Internet, search for child-safe, age-appropriate Web sites about new topics. Scouts write short descriptions about sites matching the requested criteria. The eThemes coordinator double checks the sites and assigns related educational standards to the new resources. The new eThemes resource are then entered into the online database for all users to access. Currently, there are more than 1,000 eThemes on topics ranging from Africa to Yellowstone National Park. The links within eThemes Resources have been checked for their grade and age appropriateness. Because links on the Web change frequently, teachers are advised to review all links before introducing them to students.

by Laura Diggs, Ph.D.
University of Missouri-Columbia College of Education