The Bug Hunt with Alba
Alba discovers a strange beetle and follows the clues to find out what it is.
On a summer morning, Alba found a strange insect on a log. She had never seen one like it. She took out a notebook and magnifying glass. ‘This is a mystery,’ she whispered.
Alba drew the bug carefully. She counted its legs: six. She noticed its shiny shell and tiny feelers. ‘Come look,’ she called to Lola. They crouched in the grass, watching it walk.
They visited Dot the deer, who knew everything about insects. ‘Ah,’ said Dot, studying the drawing. ‘That’s a stag beetle! It has big jaws that look scary but only wrestle other beetles.’
‘Amazing,’ breathed Alba. They went back and watched the stag beetle for a long time. They were careful not to touch or hurt it. When it had gone, they wrote down everything they had learned.
At school the next day, Alba showed the class the drawing and told them all about the stag beetle. ‘Bugs are brilliant,’ she said. And the whole class went out to look for more.
From then on, Alba was known as the Bug Scientist. And whenever she found a new creature, she sat down quietly, took out the notebook, and began to wonder.
The little lesson
Careful watching and asking questions lead to discovery.
Let’s talk about it
- What would you do to learn about a bug?
- How did Alba take care of the beetle?
Finish stories to collect Alba as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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Rory builds a volcano for the science fair, and the experiment goes bubbly wrong!
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