Darlington School: Private Boarding School in Georgia Tuesdays at Thatcher: Insect Expo
Darlington School: Private Boarding School in Rome, GA
Some text some message..
 

Tuesdays at Thatcher: Insect Expo

Jennifer Collins | September 14, 2016 | 222 views

It's been said that no matter where you are in the world you are no less than three yards away from a spider. This Tuesday I spent the morning with a few students doing something that many of us seldom (if ever) do: letting insects crawl around on our hands and arms! Typically the Communication Office tries to spend a day each week in Thatcher Hall, but on this particular Tuesday, Thatcher Hall came to the Upper School as students enjoyed the Insect Expo. 

The Insect Expo is an annual event spearheaded by Owen Kinney, chair of the science department at the Upper School. While there, students learn about insects not by looking at deceased specimens (although there were a few) or reading about them in books, but by looking at them and holding them as Upper School science students answer questions and help out. 

This event has been a favorite of students for many years, but this year's expo had a bit of a twist. As you may recall from last week's blog, students from pre-K to third grade are learning about the design process and have been actually crafting insects during their time in the new makerspace. These insect creations became part of this year's expo and the students were more than excited to discover their hand-crafted creepy crawlies among the beetles and caterpillars on display in the lab. 

I really enjoyed watching the expressions on the faces of the young students and Upper School helpers as they handled the many insects and learned about their habitats and unique features. 

I heard words like slithery, ticklish, sticky, tingly and creepy as they held beetles, praying mantis, caterpillars and even a worm snake. 

My morning among students and a variety of insects taught me a number of things. I learned that some scorpions actually glow under a UV light, praying manteses blend in well with their leafy habitat but not so well on a purple Darlington polo, beetles can be a constant source of laughter, and worm snakes exist and look exactly like their name suggests. 

The Insect Expo has come and gone this year, but I have no doubt that everyone who attended will forever look at the world around them a bit closer and notice the little critters that we share our world with. I know that I will!