IOWA 4-9 SCIENCE PROJECT

Teacher Guide for: Mealworm's Meal Grades 4-6
Ecology.464 RETA LEMON

CONCEPT OBJECTIVE:
Students will investigate the effect of several kinds of meals, and flakes on the behavior and life of mealworms.

PROCESS OBJECTIVES:
Students will develop observation and recording skills.

TEACHER INFORMATION:
Mealworms can be obtained in quantities of 100 from Huttons or Hawkeye Seed in the Cedar Rapids area. Collect pill bottles, small jam jars, baby food jars or any other similiar sized container for housing the mealworms before starting this activity. This activity can be used in conjunction with cycles # Obtain the following meals and flakes from the cereal section of any grocery store or prior to starting the activity have students bring in small quantities of any of the following: corn meal (white and/or yellow), oatmeal, wheat meal, soybean meal, corn flakes, bran flakes, wheat flakes, oat flakes etc.
Divide the class into groups of three or four depending upon the number in the class.
One group of 3-4 mealworms needs to be left in the food they come from the store in as a control group.

MATERIALS:
Each group of 3-4
One container (pill bottle, baby food jar, etc.)
3-4 mealworms (depending upon the number of groups, and worms.)
1 recording paper and pencil
1/4 cup of flakes and meal to be used for food.
1 baggie or piece of wax paper

EXPLORATION:
Divide the class into groups of three or four students. Direct each group to create a recording chart whereby they can predict and record the activities of their mealworms for 5-7 times over a period of two weeks. Their chart should also include a place to make comments about what they observe.

Direct each group to:
1. Select a recorder, materials person, and two observers. The materials person will select the flakes or meal the group decides to investigate and the mealworms they will observe.
2. Construct their recording chart.
3. Label the container with their group names or a name they choose to call themselves.
4. Predict and record how they think the mealworms will react when placed on the paper. Observe and record how the mealworms do react.

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT:
Bring the students together in their groups with their recording chart and discuss the results of their predictions and observations. The class may choose to do this after each day of observing, after the first week or at the end of the exploration period (the end of the 5 or 7 days of observations).
On the board, overhead, and or large sheet of paper record the observations made of the control group, and each of the other groups. Observations will include the number of mealworms still living, how active or inactive they are, the number that have change their form, perhaps to the adult stage of beetle.

APPLICATION:
Challenge each group to create and conduct an experiment with a different kind of food with the results to be shared with the class in two weeks.

EVALUATION:
The group interactions, the recording charts, and/or the student generated experiments are all valid means of evaluating this activity.