Jeremy and Ruth are learning about birds and insects this year in science. We are attempting to complete the insect portion of the curriculum before the weather turns cold and kills off all our specimens.

We’ve been pleasantly surprised at what six-legged creatures have flown into our lives this week so that we may observe and learn. For example, a few days ago, Jeremy caught two leaf-looking insects in our backyard.

They were quite interesting to observe, and it’s easy to understand how you would not notice them right away, given their camouflaged nature.

One of the experiments in the book required a dead insect so students can observe the body segments. (So as not to upset any sensitive children, it charged students to find an already-dead insect…don’t kill one). Well, I suggested we catch one of the beetles that have been plaguing every screen and window around the outside of our house lately, then put it in a jar with some cotton soaked with nail polish remover (like we did in the old days to make our bug collections in junior high). Then, voilà, we have a dead bug!

This idea did not float well with Ruth, who has a special place in her heart for these creatures, as has been reported earlier on this blog. She has scientifically named them “friendly beetles”. Despite Jeremy and me trying to convince her that there are gobs of these friendly beetles–what’s one less in the world–she would not cave.

All turned out well when I was jogging with a friend on the prairie path the other day. We were talking when something caught my eye on the ground. It was big and green and motionless. A dead insect! I scooped it up and put it in my pocket to bring home and show the kids.

We weren’t sure how it died, but after looking closely we observed that it was missing its head. At least we could observe the other two segments. Plus, Jeremy wasted no time pulling off a wing to observe it under the microscope. Never a dull moment.