Pistes d'exploration

Compare and contrast two of the insects using a graphic organizer.

Make a list of three insects: two real ones and your own made-up insect name as the third. Have a classmate guess which one is invented.

Invent your own “weird” insect. Write a description and create an illustration in the same style as the book.

How do you think it would feel to be a weird insect? Write a monologue reflecting on life as one of these unusual insects. Read it to a partner.

Discuss what you already know about insects. Identify insect characteristics. Draw an insect and label its parts.

If you could be an insect from the book, which would you choose to be? Describe it and explain why, using information from the text.

Take turns describing a mystery insect to a partner. Have him or her locate it in the book.

Observe the use of insect descriptors. Create a definition for yourself in the same style. Guess other people’s identity through their definition. (IE)

The Insecto-Files

Mots-clés

Non-fiction , animal adaptations , animal behaviour , illustrations (photographs) , insects , scientific language

Commentaire descriptif

Weevils, beetles, flies and more inhabit the pages of this fact-filled guide to the weird and wonderful world of insects. Over 50 creepy-crawlies from all around the world make an appearance – only a tiny fraction, we are told, of the range and diversity that exists – are magnificently showcased. Each page includes an enlarged full-colour photograph, the insect’s Latin and common name, and a short, informative text describing habitat, life cycle, predators and prey, and use of defensive camouflage. Descriptions are limited to fewer than a dozen lines of readable kid-friendly text. We discover rainbow scarabs are so-named because of their many beautiful colours and that the “peanut-headed” lanternflies are misnamed “because they were once thought to produce light.” Content is not organized into specific sections. Rather, the focus is on the stunning, vibrant close-ups that invite readers to observe and appreciate in vivid detail the peculiar shapes, markings and colours of each insect. A brief introduction defines the word “insect” for readers and identifies the insect’s main physical features – head, thorax and abdomen. The book will appeal to the younger set as a read-aloud as well as to more advanced readers with a passion for entomology.