Pest World for Kids!

Think of pests as animals out of place. Out in nature, they're just doing their jobs. But when they move into our homes and yards, then we call them pests. So come explore the world of pests. Then use your new knowledge to outwit the pests in your world.

Research a Pest :

Each pest has special adaptations, or abilities, that let it live and thrive in and around our homes. Reserach and learn about some of these incredible adaptations that make pests so challenging to remove.

• Ants
• Bed Bugs
• Bees
• Beetles
• Birds
• Cockroaches
• Dust Mites
• Earwigs
• Fleas
• Flies
• Gophers
• Lice

• Mice
• Mosquitoes
• Moths
• Opossums
• Pill Bugs
• Rats
• Spiders
• Stink Bugs
• Termites
• Ticks
• Voles
• Wasps

Pest Games:

• Archibald's Adventure - Archibald Ant is a very fussy odorous house ant who must find food for his colony and stay out of harm's way.



• Pest Detective - You're a Pest Detective. It's your job to find out what happened and who did it. Then you can help—because it doesn't have to happen again.

• The Pest Rangers - Pest Commander Pete needs your help! Join the elite Pest Rangers and search out pest problems in a typical home.



• Name That Pest - Maybe you've seen an animal or insect in or around your home. Maybe you've even caught it. Is it a pest?

Report Writing

Assignment: Become a pest expert! Use this 10-step process for learning how to take notes and organize them into a paper on your favorite pest.

Follow these links to begin writing your paper or download our report manual (760k PDF document).

• Step 1: Choose A Subject
• Step 2: Think of What You Know
• Step 3: Take Lots of Notes
• Step 4: Sort Your Notes
• Step 5: Arrange Your Notes

• Step 6: Number Your Notes
• Step 7: Write Topic Sentences
• Step 8: Introductory Paragraph
• Step 9: Putting It All Together
• Step 10: Share Your Work

Science Fair Kits

Searching for an idea to use in your next science fair project? Visit our Science Fair Center to check out teacher-tested science experiments you can do in your own home.

• Pill Bug Habitat - Investigate the Pill Bug habitat to figure out how to keep your home free of them.
  
  
• Repelling Ants - Determine which natural repellent is effective for controlling minor ant infestations in your home.
  

• Fruit Fly Lifecycle - Study one of the most important organisms used in science - the fruit fly.
  

Lesson Plans

Want to extend the Pest World for Kids back into your classroom? Looking for attention-grabbing ideas to teach adaptation? Check out our lesson plans ideas to use with your elementary and middle school students. Each is correlated to national standards developed by the National Science Teacher Association and the National Council of Teachers of English.

• Introduction to Pests - Grades K - 2: Students will learn about basic needs, pest damage, and self-protection measures against certain pests.
  
  
• Totally Termites - Grades K - 2: A close-up look at termite specimens, special termite adaptations and insect anatomy.
  
  
• Termitology - Grades 3 - 5: Students will explore the life cycle of termites, the termite's role in the food web, and the unique social structure of termite colonies.
  
  
• Before They Were Pests - Grades 3 - 5: Explore the native habitats and behaviors of common pests to understand why and how household pests enter our homes.
  
  

• Pest PSA - Students reserach a pest and develop a Public Service Announcement on how to prevent an infestation.



• Pest Detective - A New Case - After playing the game "Pest Detective", students write a new mystery about a pest of their choice.



• Pest Taxonomy - Students learn about classical taxonomy as they work together to organize all the pest featured on Pest World for Kids into a chart.