Bug Unit #2 - Spiderslife magazine photographs

Bug Unit #2 - Spiders

For our Bug Unit we used Janice Van Cleave’s Play and Find Out about Bugs. It has fun, creative, interesting, and educational ideas for kids 3-7 years old to explore BUGS. It was the perfect way to have some Science fun with all three of my kiddos Tinker Bell (2), Minnie (4), and Goofy (7). Of course I added some crafts, good books, and snacks, and other learning activities to create a full theme! (Click for all Bug Unit posts)

I decided to create some excitement from the moment they woke up! As soon as they walked down the stairs they ran into a HUGE (Mommy made) spider web! There was even a giant spider in the web – eek! The kids LOVED going through the web obstacle course trying not to get stuck. Tinker Bell liked to climb into the middle & just sit – it was too cute! (I used black painters tape which looked great, was sticky to resemble a web, but came off the walls EASILY!)

SPIDER MATH! For Minnie (4) I write a number and Minnie had to put the correct number of spiders on the web. For Goofy (1st Grade) he rolled a dice and put that many spiders on the first web. Then he rolled the dice again and put that many spiders on the second web. Than he completed the addition problem to find out how many spiders there were altogether. It was simple, effective, and FUN! Click here to download the Preschool & Addition Spider Math Sheets.

We made some spider art! Tinker Bell (2) made spider hand art. I painted her palm & 4 fingers black. Then we pressed it onto the paper. We did the same with the other hand but so that her palm overlapped with the palm already on the paper. We added some googly eyes and done – cute right! Minnie made thumbprint spiders. She also added 8 legs (4 on each side), spider silk from which they dangle, and google eyes. I don’t know which project I like better – they both turned out so cute!

We read the classic book Charlotte’s Web by E. R. White that every child should read at least once. Both Minnie (4) and Goofy (7) enjoyed it thoroughly. Goofy cracked me up during the part where Wilbur finds out pigs get slaughtered Goofy said Oh, NO! But…. pigs are so delicious! That’s my meat-loving boy =-) We also watched the movie for family movie night. I really enjoyed this movie and it was very true to the book – beautifully done!

We learned that spiders are NOT insects as they only have 2 body parts (insects have 3: head, abdomen, thorax) and 8 legs (insects only have 6). We also learned about a Spider’s life cycle (using the great lifecycle free printable from 2 Teaching Mommies – see link below). Finally we learned about spider webs and their uses.

We observed spider webs in our backyard – in their natural habitat. The kids loved running around with their magnifying glass on a spider hunt!

These were our favorite spider books & resources we used:

Finally we made a glowing spider web to hang in the kids rooms! This was by far our favorite bug project!! Click here to find out how we made this.

Looking for {free} spider/ bug printable resources? Our unit was focused on Science, but you could easily do a whole week theme using one of these great Tot/Preschool Packs here.