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'Drawing From Nature'
A SCIENCE AND ART LESSON FOR KIDS
This appeared on April 3, 2005 in the Los Angeles Times
THE KIDS’ READING ROOM
By Carol Felixson
Special to The Times
April 3, 2005
If you stay very still when a ladybug lands
close by, you can see the colorful patterns
on its oval-shaped body. People all over the
world think these insects bring good luck
and help keep their gardens free of pests.
Many rhymes and stories are told about
ladybugs. Here's an example:
Five little ladybugs dancing on the
floor; one flew away and then there were
four.
Four little ladybugs climbing on my knee;
one flew away and then there were three.
Three little ladybugs landing on some glue;
one flew away and then there were two.
Two little ladybugs out for a run; one flew
away and then there was one.
One little ladybug eating a honey bun; she
flew away and then there were none.
Catherine, 5, learned that ladybugs are
also known as ladybird beetles. She also
learned that one of the reasons ladybugs
cluster together is to save body heat. She
decided to make a cluster of them out of
pieces of a cardboard egg carton.
After Catherine prepared her work area, her
mom helped her cut out the individual
sections of an egg carton. She turned the
sections upside down and carefully painted
them red. After the paint dried she added a
black head, a stripe and black spots to each
one. With her mom's help she cut pipe
cleaners into pieces about a half-inch long,
stuck them into the black face of the
ladybug and painted them black too. When
everything was dry, she glued the ladybugs
to a piece of green construction paper.
"Finally," she said, "I added paper flowers
to make them happy."
Good job, Catherine!
About the series: Carol Felixson introduces
children to a subject from nature and an art
technique. She is director of education and
community outreach for UCLA's Stunt Ranch
Reserve and Mathias Botanical Garden. June 5
lesson: bird of paradise flowers and
cartoons. Previous projects can be seen at
nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt/newsforkids.html.
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