Explain the structure of a ladybug's body to the students, including the parts all insects have -- head, thorax, abdomen, six legs and antennae -- plus two hard wing coverings, called elytra, protecting the delicate wings underneath. Sing a familiar song with new words called “Head, Thorax, Abdomen” by Cedric Wesley, Toni Casarez and Wendy Garrett of Texas A & M University's Insect Lesson Plans. Have the students create ladybugs using modeling dough and pipe cleaners.
Students in first grade usually understand that caterpillars grow into butterflies, but are unsure of how other insects grow. Read the book “Are You a Ladybug?” by Judy Allen and Tudor Humphries to the students. Discuss the similarities between butterfly growth and ladybug growth; both have four stages -- egg, larva, pupa and adult. Create metamorphosis mobiles with coat hangers, string and pictures of each stage of the ladybug life cycle.
Ladybugs are welcome in gardens for natural pest control; they eat aphids and other insects known to destroy plants. Explain this role to students and then play a game of “Ladybug Lunch” in the gym or outside; the rules are similar to Red Rover, but with ladybugs catching aphids. Read “The Grouchy Ladybug” by Eric Carle to the class to remind students of a ladybug’s main food source. Live ladybugs are available in many states from garden centers and horticultural suppliers; release ladybugs into the schoolyard garden or local park to help fight destructive insects.
Explain to the class that ladybugs live near their food, then collect and record ideas from the students about the best place to find ladybugs. Use this information to look for ladybugs on a walk through the schoolyard or neighborhood; make note of any ladybugs found and their location and back in the classroom, create a chart of the bug locations. Create ladybug habitats with jars, plant material and a moisture source. Add ladybugs to the habitats for observation over several days. After observing the ladybugs, read the nursery rhyme “Ladybug Ladybug Fly Away Home” to the class and release the insects outdoors.