GEMS Ant Homes: Under the Ground

Laura Lansdell & Christine Ryder

• The Ant Hunt- Students share prior knowledge of ants, and search for live ants around the school.
• The Ant Farm- Students will observe live behavior of ants by creating a homemade ant farm as a class (or using a purchased ant farm).
• A Closer Look at Ants- Students become familiarized with the main anatomy of an ant, through the use of the ant poster. Students create their own paper ant.
• Ant Tunnels- Students learn about ant tunnels through viewing them on the ant nest poster. Also students will role-play crawling through a tunnel/chamber created by the teacher.
• The Ant Nest Mural- Students will construct an ant nest mural consisting of a network of connecting chambers and tunnels, filled with ants, ant food, and possibly eggs,larvae, and pupae.
• Scouts and Guards- The teacher performs a dramatization of a scout ant, demonstrating its role in the ant community. Students observe, and learn the importance of a scent trail. Students act out how an ant follows a scent trail.
• Dragging Food into the Nest- Students role play dragging a caterpillar through a tunnel, into a chamber.
• How Ants Grow and Change- Children are introduced to the ant life cycle. The roles of the queen ant and nurse ant are described.
• Fill the Hill Game- Children work with an anthill game board to reinforce their knowledge of ants and to practice important mathematics skills. The teacher will explain different variations of the game, as suggested in the GEMS guide. Students can play alone or cooperatively.

• IMPORTANT VOCABULARY FOR THIS GEMS GUIDE:

1. Caterpillar
2. Grasshopper
3. Tunnel
4. Room
5. Chamber
6. Antennae
7. Thorax
8. Abdomen
9. Larvae
10. Pupae
    
11. Queen Ant
12. Eggs
13. Nurse Ant
14. Scout Ant
15. Guard Ant
16. Housekeeper Ant
17. Cracker