It’s a new month and that means it’s time for a new Playdatebox. This month we are learning all about creepy, crawly, crazy bugs!
What’s in the Box?
- Read-Aloud Book, Not So Scary Bugs: Bugs I Can Discover and Touch, a Playdatebox.com original
- Insect Observation Tools: A mini bug net and bug tongs
- Firefly Craft Kit: Make a firefly jar that is perfect for catching bugs during the daytime. At night, turn it into a cool firefly nightlight
- Bug Cookies: Design your own bug cookies with supplies we’ve included
- Bug Finger Puppets: Create your own bug opera or stage play with 6 lifelike finger puppets
Click Here to Purchase the Bug Playdatebox, or read on to create your own!
Now that spring weather is ahead, it will feel especially good this year to get outside and turn over a few rocks to see what is living underneath. Let’s go for a bug hunt!
Playdate 1: Read Not So Scary Bugs together
Introduce your child to a world of bugs that are safe to touch.
Click Here to Download Your Copy of Not So Scary Bugs
As you read this book, your child will have an opportunity to come face-to-face with some bugs that are likely to live in your neighborhood. Many preschool-aged children have a natural fear of bugs. For others, they provide endless fascination. Part of taking the fear out of living with bugs involves helping children feel that they can be safe and know the difference between bugs that are harmless, and those that can bite or sting. And you may even get over some of your own aversion to insects if you’ll keep your curious mind and an open heart.
We can’t always tell when bugs (or people) are safe just by looking at them. But the more we learn and study and understand, the less afraid we can feel. That’s a message worth sharing, especially if the kids in your home are feeling like the world is a little extra scary right now during the first Pandemic most of us have experienced.
It’s reassuring to a child to be able to express their fears to an adult and have those fears validated. Be quick to say things like:
- It’s true that some bugs look scary, slimy, or dangerous. Let’s look at the bugs in this book and decide together if they look scary or friendly.
- I used to feel afraid to touch bugs, so it’s OK if you don’t want to touch them. I’ll hold one for you and let you look at it.
- Some bugs can hurt us, like bumblebees. But bees do important work to help people and it’s important that we learn how to keep bees and people from hurting each other by understanding how bees live and what makes them want to sting.
The Katydid page from your book includes a QR code to let you hear what katydids sound like at night.
Note: Not So Scary Bugs includes a page about Katydids with a QR code. If you’ve never scanned a QR code before, simply point your smartphone camera at the code, or download a free QR code app. Your phone will open the link to a video of katydids singing at night, recorded by #MyBackyardBirding. Or, you can show this video instead. Katydids are amazing creatures!
Playdate 2: Make a Firefly (Lightning Bug) Observation Jar Night Light
Here’s a rainy-day craft you can do together. Follow the simple instructions included with your kit to make your own Firefly bug observation jar.
The finished bug jar makes a fun observation jar for taking into the field as you discover bugs in your neighborhood.
Turn your bug observation jar into a firefly (lightning bug) by adding a mini light (included in your kit). He makes a great night light or a fun companion when it gets dark outside.
Playdate 3: Go on a Bug Hunt Safari
A pair of gloves may help a child feel less afraid of touching an insect for the first time.
Using the tools provided, spend an hour outdoors with a child and help them develop their observational skills as you hunt for bugs together. Use the bug tongs or the bug net from your Playdatebox to gently catch some bugs for observation. Teach your child how to show respect for the insects that live nearby by being careful not to harm bugs as you observe them. You can use the jar from your firefly craft kit for collecting bug specimens. Just be sure to return bugs to their natural habitat when your observation time is finished.
Playdate 4: Make Bug Cookies
You can make bugs out of lots of different household supplies. We’ve provided Oreo cookies, some meltable chocolate, fruit leather, and edible decorative eyes in the Playdatebox, but if you are doing this from home, you can substitute your own supplies.
And keep in mind that part of the joy of this project is that it can be child-centered, and the outcome doesn’t have to meet anyone’s expectations except the child’s
A 3-year-old’s version of bug cookies. Absolutely perfect.
Playdate 5: Bug Finger Puppets
Use these fun bug finger puppets for some dramatic play, a game of bug hide-and-seek, or some play dough impressions. We’ve got some fun coming with a downloadable bug opera stage, so watch this space. Try acting out your favorite nursery rhyme, bug camp song, or just make it up as you go like O. and RaRa did on their recent playdate:
Download a printable version of the Bug Opera Theater Here:
If you’d like to purchase your own Bug Hunt Playdatebox, visit us at our Etsy Store Here before they are all sold out!