Creepy Crawly Critters in Your Backyard: Environmental Interpretation Program
Last Revised: November 13, 2006
Program Architects: William Gosnell ([email protected]) Lincoln Larson ([email protected]) Alina Ruiz ([email protected])
Program Overview: This program is designed to provide a framework that will help children observe, explore, and understand wildlife and ecosystems in their neighborhood. The program consists of three separate 90 minute lessons, each emphasizing the unique biology and ecological importance of underappreciated animal taxa (invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles) through live animal encounters and other educational activities.
Purpose: Students will learn to appreciate invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles, and be able to identify how these animals interact with humans in local and global ecosystems.
Implementation: We designed this program for 3rd – 6th grade students, but the activities serve as guidelines that can be adapted for younger or older audiences. While each individual day can function as an independent lesson, we recommend that the program is implemented over the course of three weeks. This repetition will allow ample time for reflection and reinforce important take-home messages regarding conservation and the environment. The program was designed for a group of approximately 20 students and 4 staff, but these numbers may vary. Due to the nature of the activities and live animal interpretations, however, we recommend that the student:staff ratio not exceed 10:1. Please contact the Program Architects or the State Botanical Garden (contact below) for more information.
The program was originally created for use in the State Botanical Garden’s after-school enrichment program at Oasis Catolico Santa Rafaela (North Athens, GA), but can be implemented anywhere. Program materials (listed in the outlines) will be stored at the State Botanical Garden under the direction of Anne Shenk:
Anne Shenk, Director of Education State Botanical Garden of Georgia [email protected] 706-542-6158
For additional information regarding outreach opportunities at local schools, contact: Scott Connelly, Eco-Reach Coordinator, UGA Institute of Ecology [email protected] 706-255-5155 Important contact information for live animal providers appears below and in the individual lesson outlines:
-Invertebrates: University of Georgia Entomology Club: Aubree Roche, Insect Curator ([email protected]) Nathan Lord, 2006 President ([email protected]) Marianne Robinette, Outreach Coordinator ([email protected])
-Amphibians/Reptiles: University of Georgia Herpetological Society (UGHS) Dr. John Maerz, Herpetology Professor ([email protected]) Andrew Durso, 2006 President of UGHS ([email protected]) Scott Connelly, Eco-Reach Coordinator ([email protected])
Content Standards: The “Creepy Crawly Critters in Your Backyard” program content supports the following curricula modules for the State Botanical Garden’s Garden Earth Naturalists Program: 1. Food Production 2. Pest & Disease Control 3. Pollination 4. Soil & Recycling 5. Warehouse (Biodiversity) 6. Water Purification
And meets the following Georgia Performance Standards for Science: 3rd Grade Concepts: -habitats -soils -pollution/conservation -Georgia wildlife 4th Grade Concepts: -ecosystems -food web -adaptation/survival 5th Grade Concepts: -classification 6th Grade Concepts: -interactions: human impacts on Earth
Acknowledgements: The Program Architects would like to thank the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, the Oasis Catolico Santa Rafaela, the UGA Entomology Club, and the UGHS for their cooperation with this project.
Creepy Crawly Critters in Your Backyard
Day 1 – Invertebrates (90 minute program)
Materials: Posters: Insects have... poster and words, Invertebrate ID poster and animal pictures, Inside an Earthworm poster, Watch Out! Poster Handouts: Common Invertebrate Field Guide Props: leaf litter and rock for soil mixture, multiple insect products (see list below), bug boxes and magnifying glasses (available at State Botanical Garden). Animals: all animals provided by the University of Georgia Entomology Club, contact: -Aubrey Roche, Insect Curator ([email protected]) -Nathan Lord ([email protected]) -Marianne Robinette ([email protected])
Hook (5 minutes): Show kids a tarantula. Ask them what they notice about the spider. How does it make them feel? Are there spiders like that in our neighborhood? How is the spider different from us? Spiders, like many creepy crawly critters we see every day, are invertebrates.
Intro (5 minutes): What is an invertebrate? Break down the word (in = not, vertebrae/vertebrate = relating to backbone). An invertebrate is animal that does not have backbone, or skeleton inside their bodies. Are we invertebrates? No, feel your spine. Is a dog an invertebrate? A horse? A fish? etc. (Show example skeletons if they’re available). Today, we’re going to meet some different types of invertebrates and learn: 1. how to recognize insects in your neighborhood 2. how insects and other invertebrates help us To do this, we’re going to split into two teams of scientists.
Team 1 – Invertebrate Investigation (25 minutes): Materials: insect specimen boxes and live invertebrates, Insects have... poster and words, Invertebrate ID poster/animal pictures/answer key
Purpose: Learn to observe, identify, and appreciate cool features of invertebrates.
Intro: Have you seen any invertebrates in your neighborhood? There are millions of invertebrate species on earth. Because the group is so large and diverse (use insect specimens boxes to illustrate this if they’re available), scientists break up the invertebrates into smaller groups, or classes. In order to understand these animals, you have to be able to observe (define if necessary). Scientists make observations every day. In this station, you’ll become entomologists (insect scientists) that observe and identify cool invertebrates. Can you name some types of invertebrates? Here’s a detailed list of possible answers: -insects -echinoderms (starfish, sea urchins) -mollusks (snail, clam, octopus) -have a soft body (often a shell), muscular foot and/or tentacles -annelids (earthworm) -have a long segmented body with tiny leg-like appendages on every segment -arachnids (spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites) -have eight legs and 2 body parts (cephalothorax, abdomen), no antennae, simple eyes, biting/piercing jaws -myriopods (millipeds, centipedes) -more than 18 legs -crustaceans (crayfish, crabs, shrimp, pillbugs) -segmented body with hardened shell, 7+ legs/appendages, 2 pairs of antennae, breathe through gills (mostly found in water) Are all invertebrates insects? No, but insects are the largest group of invertebrates (over 1 million species and more are discovered every day). Did you know that social insects represent 20% of the entire animal biomass on Earth? If you had a giant scale and weighed all the humans on earth and all the ants, the ants would be much heavier! Insects can be found everywhere, including Antarctica! Let’s think about the features that make an insect an insect.
Activity 1: Review characteristics common to all insects using Insects have... diagram. Insects have: -6 jointed legs -exoskeleton -3 body parts (head, thorax, abdomen) -a pair of antennae on head -compound eyes
Split kids into mini-groups and give each group a set (3-5) of invert pictures. Tell them that, in order to qualify as true entomologists and touch live invertebrates, they have to people to tell an insect apart from other invertebrates. Have them decide if their animals are insects or not, then work together as a class to determine which inverts belong in which category on the Invertebrate ID board. If time allows, you can review all major the invertebrate classes. Once the challenge is complete, move on...
Activity 2: Meet some invertebrates. Work together and decide if each animal is an insect or not. Discuss cool facts (refer to insect providers) and answer any questions. Specific inverts available may vary, but might include: -bess beetles -scorpion -vinegaroon -hissing cockroaches -praying mantis (with feeder crickets – great way to illustrate food chain) -Chilean rose-haired tarantula
Take home message: Carefully observing animals helps us learn more about them. Insects are cool, not scary!
Team 2 – Benefits of Insects (25 minutes): Materials: worms, millipedes, leaf litter and rock for soil mixture, multiple insect products (see list below), Inside an Earthworm poster, Watch Out! poster
Purpose: Kids recognize the importance of insects in our everyday lives.
Intro: Invertebrates may be small, but they help us in many ways. Can you think of any? -pollination -pest control -food chain -decomposition In this station, we’ll discover many ways insects are important to humans.
Activity 1: Insect Product Relay: Split into two teams, and arrange about 10 items on a table. One at a time kids run over, pick out an item they think comes from insects and return to their group. (Run carefully, one dropped item = forfeit). Make the kids justify their choices and establish connections to the insect world, then reveal the true answers. Be careful, some are very tricky. Insect product options include: -strawberry preserves (bees and other insect pollination) -honey (bees) -jello (red dye additive carminic acid (ice cream, candy, yogurt, etc.) comes from crushed scale insects that live in Central/South America -silk tie (silk from silkworm cocoons) -leather belt (tannic acid from insect galls used to make leather) -orange (bees and other insect help with citris fruit cross-pollination) -cotton T-shirt (though cotton usually self-pollinates, some degree of insect cross- pollination is important)
Congratulate winners. Reiterate insect importance. Review pollination, probably the most important insect benefit, if time allows.
Activity 2: Soil and Decomposers Some invertebrates have another very important job related to this stuff… bring around soil for all kids to see and touch. What do I have in my hand? Why is it important (nutrients for plants, home for animals, solid ground, drainage, carbon sink, etc.)? Based on your observations, what did you notice about the soil? What was in it?
So if I put all the basic soil ingredients into a bowl, it will turn into soil that looks just like this? Add leaf litter, rock, air and water to bowl. Dramatically wait for something to happen. Why isn’t it working? Something has to break down the leaf litter. Who does that? That’s the job of many kinds of invertebrates known as decomposers! Let’s work together to discover how invertebrates make soil and find out who fills that role in your backyard.
Ask kids what type of invertebrates they’ve seen in soil. Bring out the worm box! You may ask each kid to smell the inside of the box (that might help them grasp the actual mechanism of decomposition). Each kid gets a worm to touch while we discuss general worm biology and digestion using the Inside an Earthworm diagram. Make sure kids can distinguish anterior (head) from posterior (tail) portions. During an informal question and answer session, cover some of these interesting points:
Worm physiology: -brain, heart (5 hearts and primitive circulatory system) and breathing organs in first few segments; if a worm is cut and half the front portion near the head can still survive -require moist conditions for respiration through permeable skin; that’s why worms are so slimy; if it’s too dry, worms dehydrate and suffocate (think fried worm on summer sidewalk); if it’s too wet, soil is saturated and there’s not enough oxygen underground for the worms (think mass worm exodus to surface during rainstorm) -setae (bristles on outside of body) used for movement; made of keratin (like human fingernails); stick into earth and provide anchor as worm pulls other segment forward or backward -hermaphroditic; worms possess both mail and female sex organs but they must exchange sperm with another worm in order to fertilize their eggs (mature audiences only)
Worm function: -aerate soil; with tunnels (sometimes over 1 million worms per acre) -enrich soil with waste, or castings (digestive tract extends for most of body) -food chain (animals and humans) -used in fishing
How can we help worms? Maintain healthy soil with leaf litter, do not use chemicals, or save a stranded worm to prevent suffocation.
Activity 3: Meet the Millipede Worms are clearly important decomposers in our area, but are they the only ones around? Nope. Let’s meet another. Review decomposition and reveal cool millipede facts (refer to insect provider).
Activity 4: Dangerous Invertebrates Use Watch Out! poster to talk about the few invertebrates in our area that can potentially hurt humans (refer to back of poster for more information):
1. black widow spider 2. brown recluse spider 3. yellow jackets 4. saddleback caterpillars 5. ticks (rocky mountain spotted fever, lyme disease, ehrlichiosis)
Be sure to mention that, contrary to popular belief, very few of these bites are lethal. Remind kids that, on the whole, insects are very good.
Take home message: Insects help us in many ways.
Bug Hunt (25 minutes): Materials: Common Invertebrate Field Guide, bug boxes, magnifying glasses
Activity: Now we know a lot about invertebrates, so we can use our new knowledge to go find insects in our neighborhood. Remind kids to watch out for invertebrates that are potentially dangerous. Use this to emphasize the need to stick together and cooperate, but remind students that as long as we’re careful and we don’t bother these animals, they won’t bother us. Recall the number of beneficial invertebrates to keep things in perspective. Use the Common Invertebrate Field Guide and collection tools to identify as many local invertebrate species as possible. Look in bushes, grass, on trees, under logs and rocks, wherever you can to find invertebrates. Be sure to implement a no-touch policy without educator authorization. Groups will reconvene and share their results. Release all captive bugs after hunt concludes.
Conclusion (5 minutes): What was your favorite animal we saw today? Are invertebrates really as gross and scary as people make them out to be? I think they’re pretty cool, and very important! How do they help us? How can you help them?
Creepy Crawly Critters in Your Backyard
Day 2- Amphibians (90 minute program)
Materials: Posters: Frogs of Georgia, Salamanders of Georgia, Neotropical Frogs (if you have live poison dart frogs available), Gosner stage chart, Amphibian eggs Props: 2 copies of the Amphibians of Athens Key, Frog call CD with CD player, cones (or other boundary markers for game), plastic container with Jello and birdseed (preferably black millet), plastic egg with toy froglet or toy salamander, bright green paper for origami activity Live animals: all animals provided by the University of Georgia Herpetological Society (UGHS), contact: - Dr. John Maerz ([email protected]) Herpetology professor at UGA - Andrew Durso ([email protected]) 2006 President of UGHS - Scott Connelly ([email protected]) Eco-Reach Coordinator (provided non-native dart frogs from Ecology)
Hook (5 minutes): Bring out Tiger salamander, or other large salamander. Is this a lizard? Why not? Examine poison dart frogs. How are they similar to the salamander? Are they from around here? How do humans use these animals (extracted chemicals from frogs applied them to arrow tips, producing poison to paralyze prey)? Amphibians have been an important part of our world for a long time, but today we’ll learn how humans are affecting amphibian populations closer to home.
Intro (5 minutes): Amphibians are a very special group of animals. What makes amphibians so unique? Permeable skin. Discuss more differences between reptiles and amphibians: Amphibians Reptiles Skin Moist, Smooth, Permeable Scales Feet/Toes Sticky, Rounded Claws Eggs Mainly Aquatic, Jelly-like Amniotic Shells
Information in Introduction found at: http://allaboutfrogs.org/weird/weird.html http://sleep1937.tripod.com/id1.html
Amphibians have no scales or claws, they have permeable skin through which they can breathe and absorb nutrients, and eggs are mostly laid in water surrounded by a jelly-like material. Discuss defense mechanisms: toxins, tail regeneration, inflating body with air, parotid glands. Discuss importance in food chain. Today we are going to meet some different types of amphibians and learn: 1. How to identify amphibians using a key 2. Learn about metamorphosis and amphibian growth and development 3. Recognize factors that affect amphibian survival To do this, we will split into two teams of scientists.
Team 1- Meet the Amphibians Game (30 minutes)
Materials: 2 copies of the Amphibians of Athens Key, live animals
Purpose: Learn to observe, identify, and appreciate local amphibian species
Intro: “We’ve talked about the variety of amphibians found around the world; now let’s meet some that can be found in your backyard! Using your identification key, you will work in teams to identify the animals that are shown to you. Narrow down the animal to genus and species for correct identification. The first team to say the Latin name and state their unique identifiable feature (without looking at their key) gets one point.” Continue until all animals have been identified. Before starting the game, draw three pictures on the board:
1. A salamander with nasolabial grooves
2. A toad with parotid glands
3. Toe discs of a treefrog
As you introduce each animal, indicate whether or not it has nasolabial grooves, if it is a salamander. If it is a frog, indicate whether or not it has parotid glands or toe discs. This will direct the kids in their search for the correct Latin names.
As each animal is identified, ask them to describe its features. Based on their features, what does that tell you about their habitat? How do they use their features to protect themselves? After all the animals have been identified, ask kids to group closely related animals together. Allow kids to touch amphibians one at a time, using one finger only.
Potential animals (based on availability of animals from UGHS) More information about individual species can be found at: http://www.herpsofnc.org/herpcons.html
Family Plethodontidae: nasolabial grooves present
Blackbelly salamander- brook salamander that uses strongly keeled tail for swimming Slimy salamander- polka dots act as a camouflage; skin secretes slimy-sticky substance Red salamander- brightly colored stream salamander; skin contains a toxin, called pseudotritotoxin that helps deter predators from attacking.
Family Hylidae: no parotid glands, toe discs present
Green treefrog- Uses toe discs to climb trees; inflates with air as defense mechanism Color blends in well with surrounding vegetation
Family Ambystomatidae: nasolabial grooves not present, chunky body shape
Spotted salamander- prominent costal grooves with two rows of yellow spots along back; very common salamander in the Piedmont Tiger salamander (south GA) - prominent costal grooves; largest terrestrial salamander in the southeast and may approach 8 inches in total length. Mole salamander- prominent costal grooves, very common salamander in the Piedmont Marbled salamander- common salamander; marbled black and white pattern
Family Salamandridae: no costal grooves
Red-spotted Newt (red eft stage)- Has three distinct life cycle phases: aquatic larvae, terrestrial (juvenile) eft, and aquatic adult; highly toxic.
Family Ranidae: no parotid glands, no toe discs
Southern leopard frog- terrestrial frog; strong jumper. Similar to pickerel frog
Take home message: Carefully observing these secretive animals helps us to learn more about them. Not all salamanders and frogs look the same. Who knew there was so much diversity in your backyard!
Team 2 - Amphibian Life Cycle and Conservation (30 minutes)
Materials: Jello with birdseed, Amphibian eggs poster, live tadpoles, Gosner stage chart, frog call CD and CD player, cones (or other boundary markers for game)
Purpose: Learn about metamorphosis and amphibian growth and development and recognize factors that affect amphibian survival.
Intro: What does the word “amphibian” mean (comes from Greek for “two lives”). How does this apply to amphibians? They live in both water and on land in different stages of their life. What does metamorphosis mean? Define metamorphosis (changes in body shape and function during development). In this station, we’ll take a closer look at the three main stages of amphibian metamorphosis: eggs, tadpoles, and adults. Then, we’ll apply our knowledge of amphibian life cycles to see what effects humans can have on our slimy little friends.
Activity 1: Eggs How do mammals like us reproduce? Live birth. How do amphibians reproduce? Eggs. Show a picture of a typical amphibian egg mass (Leopard Frog – up to 4,000 eggs). What do you notice about these eggs? Using the jello and bird seed, each group will have 30 seconds to create an “amphibian egg mass.” Compare results. Show pictures of alternative egg structures in amphibians. Discuss external fertilization if time allows. Discuss how habitat influences egg location and production. Amphibian species that could be discussed:
1. Leopard Frog – mass of up to 4,000 eggs found in shallow pond water; hatch in 10-20 days (jello ball stuffed with seeds) 2. American Toad – spiral tubes up to 10 meters long filled with two rows of 4,000 – 8,000 eggs; hatch in 3-12 days, metamorphosis at 40-70 days (skinny jello strands lined with seeds) 3. Green Treefrog – smaller egg clusters (up to 400) usually found on of leaves/sticks of floating or overhanging vegetation; metamorphosis about 55 days after hatching (small jello blob with a few seeds attached to leaf) 4. Slimy Salamander – terrestrial egg deposition and direct development with no tadpole stage; lays 4-12 eggs in moist places, guarded by female: under rocks, caves, under bark; hatch after 3 months (plastic eggs hidden underneath rocks) 5. Greenhouse Frog – eggs under damp vegetation; about 20 eggs attended by female, hatch in 13 days; tadpole develops in eggs and froglet hatches, demonstrating direct development (plastic eggs under leaf litter)
Activity 2: Tadpoles Examine tadpoles and describe how Gosner staging is used to age tadpoles. Talk about different adaptations for survival on land in the water (swimming tail and gills vs. legs and lungs). Mention effects of water quality on rates of tadpole deformities.
Activity 3: Adults For life cycles to start again, what do adults need to do? Reproduce. (Break this to the kids in subtle manner, if possible!). One very important adaptation in frog mating is calling – what many people call croaking. Many frogs call to advertise their presence, define their territories, and to attract mates. Every species has a distinct call. Let’s listen to some we may have heard before. Play calls of common frog species. Make kids identify at least 3 before moving on.
Activity 4: Amphibian Conservation Game
Main idea to consider = role of amphibians as bio-indicators. -permeable skin makes amphibians more susceptible to water pollution -chytrid fungus affects sensitive amphibian skin in species around the world, and may be tied to global warming (leads to lethargy, may be incorporated into game with advanced students)
Students line up on one side of a long narrow field (the habitat in which their amphibian life cycle will occur).
1. They start off in a bunched up “egg” position. When the facilitator says “hatch”, the students have X amount of time to complete a tadpole “swim” to the other side of the habitat. Hopefully, everyone will make it.
2. Line up again and this time, when the educator says “metamorph”, the students will change into frogs and hop back across the habitat in X amount of time. Again, without other variables, this is an easy task and everyone should make it. Is an amphibian’s life really that easy? Nope. Usually they’ll run into some problems along the way.
3. This time, we’re building a shopping center near our aquatic tadpole habitat and it has been polluted. That means, all of you tadpoles will have a deformity – you’re all missing a leg. When I say “hatch” you’ll have to hop across the habitat in the same amount of time. Good luck! One or two might not make it this time. Use these “casualties” again in step five.
4. So you survived the polluted water and became a frog! Congratulations. Life only gets harder. Local fisherman decided to introduce an invasive fish species (go over invasive species if this is a new term), and it just so happens they love to eat frogs. Educator becomes invasive fish and tries to tag frogs as they hop back across the habitat. If frog is tagged, they freeze and wait for the round to end. Only hopping is allowed. Running = automatic disqualification. At the end of this round, hopefully our invasive fish will have captured more frogs.
5. Things only get worse for the survivors. This time developers decided to reduce their habitat even more by building two big roads on either side of the forest. Frog and tadpole casualties can now be used to form these two movement barriers, creating a narrow funnel that will force remaining frogs right into the path of our invasive predator. In this last round, remaining frogs try to hop through to the other side while evading invasive predator. Good luck.
Assessment: How did humans make it hard for amphibians to survive in this habitat (water quality, invasive species, habitat loss)? All of these obstacles are important issues in amphibian conservation.
Take-home message: Amphibians have very complicated life cycles that include multiple habitats. As a result, humans affect amphibians in many ways.
Team 3- Origami frogs (15 minutes)
Materials: Green printer paper, instructions from website
Activity: Kids will build their own frog! The instructions for the origami frog can be found at http://www.froggyville.com/origami.htm. After construction, you can have frog jumping contests using frog calls, similar to musical chairs. The frogs can only jump while the frog is calling!
Conclusion (5 minutes): What was your favorite amphibian? Why? Why are amphibians slimy? How do they help us? How can you help them?
Creepy Crawly Critters in Your Backyard
Day 3 – Reptiles (90 minute program)
Materials: Posters: Venomous snakes of Georgia, Family Feud Board- poster and attachable words Props: Aquarium/Terrarium, feeding material-lettuce/worms, snake skins Animals: all animals provided by the University of Georgia Herpetological Society (UGHS), contact: -Dr. John Maerz ([email protected]) Herpetology professor at UGA -Andrew Durso ([email protected]) 2006 President of UGHS
Hook (5 minutes): Bring the largest snake into the room. The idea is to surprise the audience, eliciting a typical human reaction toward a snake. Ask them why they responded the way they did. Have any of them ever seen a snake? What did it look like? What did they do? Many people are afraid of reptiles like snakes, but few people know the truth about reptiles.
Intro (5 minutes): Today, we are going to split into two groups and uncover the truth. We’ll learn: 1. How to recognize some common reptiles. 2. How reptiles use their unique adaptations. 3. How reptiles help us.
Team 1- Meet the Reptiles (25 minutes): Materials: live reptiles
Purpose: Learn to observe, identify, and appreciate cool unique features of reptiles
Intro: Review reptile-amphibians differences: scales/rough skin, claws, eggs have amniotic shells.
Amphibians Reptiles Skin Moist, Smooth, Permeable Scales Feet/Toes Sticky, Rounded Claws Eggs Mainly Aquatic, Jelly-like Amniotic Shells
Have you seen any reptiles recently? In this station we are going to meet some of the reptiles you might find near your neighborhood. As we look at each animal, we will talk about what features (adaptations) the reptile has to move, eat, and protect itself.
Activity 1: Meet the Reptiles. Discuss as a group the various adaptations of each individual, comparing and contrasting species. See if students can figure out adaptations for defense, food collection, etc. based on their observations, and emphasize importance to humans. Additional information on the animals can be obtained by consulting the providers or at: http://www.uga.edu/srel/animalfactsheets.htm http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/ughs/
Specific reptiles may vary based on availability of animals from UGHS, but might include:
Snakes: Rough Green Snake: arboreal green snake found in riparian habitats Black Rat Snake: common snake found close to urban areas, control rodent populations Ring-neck Snake: small snake found in bottomland hardwood habitats, eats mostly small salamanders
Turtles: Eastern Box Turtle: terrestrial turtle with a dome-shaped carapace Musk Turtle: common aquatic turtle with a small plastron Softshell Turtle: aquatic turtle with a flattened body and a snorkel-shaped face
Lizards: Green Anole: common lizard found close to urban areas
Adaptations to consider: Defense mechanisms: Snakes: venom, speed, camouflage, Lizards: tail regeneration, camouflage, spines Turtles: Shell, Diving Crocs: Teeth, armor-like scales, diving
Take home message: Carefully observing reptiles can help us develop a better understanding of these animals and how they are beneficial to us.
Team 2 – Snake Myths and Conservation (25 minutes): Materials: Venomous snakes of Georgia poster, Family Feud poster and attachable words
Purpose: Kids will consider common snake myths and then learn real facts about snakes by playing a “Family Feud” style game. The game continues to a second round, where students have an opportunity to demonstrate what they’ve learned throughout the program by answering this question: Why are creepy crawly critters important to us?
Activity 1: Snake Myths Family Feud If kids aren’t familiar with the show, briefly explain the rules. All the students represent one team (family, taxa, etc.). Ask the question, and give the team about 1 minute to discuss possible answers among themselves. Then, going around the table, ask each person to give a possible answer. If the answer is correct, post it on the Velcro board. If it’s incorrect, the entire team gets and X. Three Xs before all the answers are revealed means the game is over.
Question: We asked 100 Americans why they are afraid of snakes and the five most popular answers appear on the board: 1. All snakes are venomous. 2. Snakes are evil. 3. All snakes are fast and aggressive. 4. All snakes have slimy skin. 5. Snakes’ tongues are weapons.
Once teams have attempted to reveal all of the common myths concerning snakes, reveal the truth. People who experience these misconceptions suffer from ophidiophobia, or fear of snakes. 1. Only about 10% of snake species are venomous. 2. Hollywood exaggerates predatory nature of snakes for entertainment purposes (Anaconda, Snakes on a Plane). Snake also play an evil role in the Bible (story of Adam and Eve). 3. Snakes would rather escape than chase humans, and most can only move about 6 mph. If you see a snake, just remain quiet and still. 4. Snake skin is actually dry and scaly. 5. Snakes actually use their tongues to smell, moving chemical particles in the air to the Jacobson’s Organ on the roof of their mouth.
When discussing snake realities, be sure to mention the five types of venomous snakes that can be found in Georgia: Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake Canebrake Rattlesnake (Timber Rattlesnake) Pygmy Rattlesnake Copperhead Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin) Coral Snake
Activity 2: How do they help us? Family Feud This time, split the group in half. Give each team the question, and allow 5 minutes for idea brainstorming. Have each group work together in the same format to get all the correct answers.
Question: We asked 100 Americans how do invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles help humans, and nobody knew the answer. So, we turned to you. In the last month, you guys have learned a lot about these creepy crawly critters. How do they help us? 1. Pollination – insect pollination accounts for 8 out of every 10 things we eat 2. Food chain – members of each group represent important predators and prey 3. Decomposition – many inverts (e.g. worms) break down organic matter 4. Pest Control – predators can control unwanted animal populations 5. Chemicals – many insects/amphibians contain chemical compounds used in medicines, food, etc.
Congratulations, not many people could get all of these! You guys are certifiable experts. Make sure you spread the word to your family and friends: inverts, amphibians, and snakes are cool! Pass out prize (plastic snakes).
Extra-time Activity: Town meeting Scenario: The educator is a developer who wants to come in and bulldoze the stream corridor in your community, creating a concrete drainage that provides little animal habitat. Wildlife issues have been mentioned, but the developer says he hasn’t seen any deer, foxes or anything else around – proving that wildlife doesn’t use the area. A town meeting has been called to address the issue, and the class will represent the town citizens faced with a difficult task: Convince the developer that the “creepy, crawly critters” using the stream are a very important part of our lives.
Students will have 3-5 minutes to discuss their arguments as a group before the meeting convenes. Each student will have one stick. After he/she makes a point, they can drop their stick in the middle of the table. A student cannot make an additional point until every stick has been dropped. If the developer is convinced that his project is a bad idea and that insects, amphibians, and reptiles are important, each town citizen receives a small prize (plastic reptiles) that will encourage them to spread the word!
Take home message: Even though some animals may seem scary, they’re actually not that bad. Plus, they benefit humans in many ways.
Food Chain Game (25 minutes): Materials: None
Purpose: Learn about the food chain through an entertaining form of exercise
Intro: In the past few weeks, we have learned about a lot of different animals. These animals are related to each other in many different ways. Can you think of one? Food chain/food web.
Activity: In this game, we will become part of a local food chain involving snakes, frogs, and ants. How would these animals fit into a food chain? Frogs can eat beetles and other insects, and snakes eat frogs. As decomposers, ants may eventually feed on the decaying bodies of snakes. The game is very similar to rock, paper, scissors, but on a much larger scale. Using the relationships we just discussed, we can see that frogs beat ants, snakes beat frogs, and ants beat snakes. There will also be a movement associated with each animal (you can have the kids decide). Divide the group in half. Each side retreats 20-30 yards to their end-line and decides which animal they will be in round one. When a consensus is reached, move back to midfield, lineup side by side, and face your opponents. On the count of three, perform the motion that corresponds with your animal. If you win, try to tag members of the other team before they run back to their safe zone. (Example: if one team is frogs and the other snakes, the snake team members will chase the frogs). Once an opponent is tagged, they become part of your team. Play as long as time allows or until one team is completely gone. This game is fun, exciting, and instructive, illustrating population fluctuations based on tropic relationships.
Take home message: Every animal plays an important role in the food chain.
Conclusion (5 minutes): What was your favorite animal you saw today? Do snakes still scare you? What should you do if you see a snake? Why should invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles matter to us? How can we, as humans, help save creepy crawly critters?