Free Insect Worksheets and Printable Activities

Bugs are weird and cool, and little kids love learning about them. I like to give my preschool aged children printable worksheets about what we are learning about in our homeschool. These free insect worksheets are going to go along great with a bug and insect unit study and will teach them all sorts of interesting facts about insects.

Fascinated by Bugs

When my son was in kindergarten he was fascinated with bugs. Everything had to have a bug theme. So much so that we had a bug themed birthday party for his 6th birthday. We went on a bug hunt and had fun bug themed desserts. Kids really enjoy creepy crawly things at a young age.

If you can introduce them to bugs when they are young, they may not be afraid of them later. They will also start to be able to understand the differences, be able to better identify them and understand why they are beneficial.

Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the post for lots of free insect printables. 

Difference Between Bugs and Insects

You may be wondering, what is the difference between bugs and insects? All bugs are insects, but not all insects are bugs.

Confused yet? I know, I was too, until I started to research about different insect species with my kids. A true bug belongs to the order Hemiptera, while insects belong to class Insecta. 

What’s a true bug?

True bugs have sucking mouth parts. They use their mouths to suck juices from plants and also animals and people. Examples of true bugs are leafhoppers, cicadas, stink bugs, water bugs, bed bugs and aphids. They have similarities to other insects because they have an exoskeleton, 6 legs and segmented bodies. Their mouth parts is what put them in their very own order.

Insects are arthropods and those are divided into many different classes with class Insecta being one of them. In the Animal Kingdom they can be found in the phylum Arthropoda. Arthropods have an exoskeleton, segmented bodies and six jointed legs.

Bugs or Insects?

Some people call them bugs, and some people call them insects. No matter what you call them these weird, creepy, crawly, sometimes gross and sometimes cute creatures all serve a purpose. While some are pests that bite and destroy crops, there are many beneficial insects as well. 

Ideas for Fun Bug Activities

• Teach lowercase letters by using an insect alphabet
• Hone fine motor skills using plastic bugs and tweezers to sort
• Create a math center with a bug theme
• Use dry erase markers to play hangman bug-style
• Use insect fact cards for review or a wordwall
• Teach insect words using a crossword puzzle
• Teach letter recognition using bug names
• Practice writing skills by telling a story about a bug

Recommended Resource: Exploring the World of Insects – A Notebook Companion™ for Encyclopedia of Insects Kids will learn about more than 300 insects using this Notebook Companion™ alongside Encyclopedia of Insects!

Bug and Insect Activity Packs and Worksheets

These free insect worksheets are perfect for preschool and kindergarten up through second grade students. Your little ones will have a blast learning about a lightning bug, honey bees, bumble bees, and lifecycle of butterflies.

Do you want to learn how to teach your preschoolers about insects and bugs? This article and free insect printable tot pack is chock full of ideas and fun bug worksheets to get your little ones excited about insects.

Insect Worksheets

Bugs Preschool Printable Worksheets – In this colorful worksheet you can find lacing cards, coloring sheets, letter writing practice sheets and much more. 

Insect Printable Pack – This activity pack is perfect for ages 2-7 and has 75 insect worksheets with tons of cute activities.

Bug Themed Worksheets – There are lots of different bug themed worksheet with alphabets, number words, matching, coloring sheets and more. 

Preschool Themed Insect Printables – These are pretty vintage looking printables that will have your little ones identify the parts of an insect and there is even a printable guide to learn more. 

Counting Bugs Coloring Activity Book – Your little ones will have fun assembling this cute bug themed counting book.

Insects, Bugs and Spider Themed Printables – There are tons of different printables to learn about various insects broken down by category and perfect for preschoolers.

Learning About Insects Printables

Do you enjoy nature study with your kids and taking nature walks? Young children love going on nature walks and exploring the world around them, and it makes for a great activity. I am sure you have encountered many different species of insects on your journeys.

These fun worksheets will help your preschoolers to understand what they are looking at. They will be able to learn fun facts and how to identify them the next time you come across them.

Insect Nature Study Flash Cards – These Charlotte Mason style insect flash cards will teach your children about 35 amazing insects. It includes two sets of printable flashcards with water color images and insect facts on the other set.

Insect Worksheet Printables

Learning About Insect Body Parts – This insects worksheet will have your kids cut out and assemble their very own insect while learning about the different body parts.

Insects, Worms, Snails and Spiders Life Cycle Cut and Paste – This no prep science activity will delight your little hands-on learners with worksheets for an insect life cycle. Kids will learn about 13 different life cycles and get to cut them out and put them back together again with this thematic unit.

Insect Nature Study Printable Activity Book – This 26 page activity book will teach your kids about insect life cycles, parts of an insect, insect flash cards and more, perfect for your first grader.

Recommended Resource: The Notebook of Bugs – A Companion to The Big Book of Bugs Kids will learn all about bugs and enjoy drawing, sketching, and labeling pictures of the insects they learn about in The Big Book of Bugs.

Educational Insect Games

We love playing games in our homeschool. My kids retain information so much better when they are learning through play. A lot of these games and insect activities help with identification and memorization too, which is super helpful when you are trying to learn about something specific.

Insect Bingo – This fun bingo game will help your kids to name and identify 10 insects while they are playing.

Insects Roll and Cover Math Game – There are 3 different level math games that are insect themed and cover many basic math problems. These would go great with a bug theme.

Bug Games for Kids to Build Fine Motor Skills –These fun bug themed games will help your kids to learn about bugs while being active and building their fine motor skills at the same time.

Insects Sudoko Puzzles Printables – There are 4 different adorable insect themed puzzles to choose from. 

Bug Jar Counting Game for Kids – This is a cute game where you children will roll and count the bugs and fill them in the jar.

Catch 20 Bugs Counting Game – Teach your children how to count to 20 with this fun bug themed counting game perfect for a bug unit.

Bug Bingo Game Cards for Early Learners -This bug themed bingo game will help your children with number recognition up to 100 in a fun bug theme.

Studying Nature

If you enjoy studying nature in your homeschool, be sure to take a look at the Nature Notebook, a companion to Nature Anatomy, by Julia Rothman.