All About Ants!

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

• Did you know there were so many kinds of ants?

Scientists think there are over 12,000 species of ants. Wow!

While you have not seen them all, you probably have seen some stealing food from picnic tables or crawling around in your home!

• When was the last time you saw an ant?

Ants are insects (bugs). They have bodies that are divided into three parts.

1. The first part is the head. Point to the head of the ant below.

2. The next part of the ant's body is called the thorax. This is the middle part of the ant's body, where all six legs are attached. Point to the thorax on the ant below.

3. The last part of the ant's body is called the abdomen. Point to the abdomen in the ant below.

Ants are social bugs. This means they work well as a team.

• Can you think of an example of a team?

A great example of a team is a soccer or athletic team. The whole team has to work together to score goals and keep the opponent from scoring goals. Ants work just like a team.

The queen ant is in charge of all the other ants. She is the team leader. The queen ant lays eggs with baby ants inside.

The other ants are in charge of getting the food, protecting the nest, taking care of the baby ants, and digging the tunnels for their home.

• Do you recognize the pictures below?

They show anthills. An ant's interesting home starts here. The anthill is designed to keep water out of the ant's nest.

If you dig deeper into an ant's nest, you will see many tunnels. Some tunnels have rooms attached to them. If you have ever owned an ant farm, you know ants are excellent at digging tunnels!

Watch the ants create tunnels in the ant farm video below. (There is no sound.)

• Do you remember the three parts of an ant's body?

Say them out loud before moving to the Got It? section to learn more about different types of ants.