Our mealworms have arrived!!! This year the two third grade rooms will be observing the 4-Stage Life Cycle of the beetle. Last week, we created the habitats for each group's insects. The boys and girls were excited to fill their tubs with a mixture of oat bran and grits and include a slice of raw potato to nourish and provide water for their mealworms. They even came up with creative names for their developing beetles. Over the next couple of weeks, they will see the mealworms go through the metamorphic process. They will shed their exoskeletons of the larva stage and enter the pupa stage where they remain in a chrysalis. This stage may take a while to complete, but the end result will be a fully developed adult beetle. The project will be an ongoing one. Along the way, the students will chart their observations in their Lab Manual Logs, noting such things as feeding habits, behavior, and body changes. It's a fun experience for the children. Don't forget to ask, "How's your beetle doing?"