Invasive ants for teachers and young people

Lesson plans for invasive ants : SPREP invasive species school resource toolkit : Other resources for teachers and young people

Lesson plans for invasive ants

As well as the lesson plans we have a number of fun activities that can be incorporated into the lesson plans. Activities include a crossword, wordsearch, and ants & ladders (based on the snakes and ladders concept).

PIAT lesson plan for invasive ants

The PIAT lesson plan is intended to introduce the worst 5 invasive ants in the Pacific to children between the ages of 7 and 11 years.

The lesson introduces the children to the idea of invasive ants, the sorts of problems they cause, where they come from, how they travel and how they enter a country, and engages the students in biosecurity.

Connected lesson plan

Allan Burne of Pacific Biosecurity wrote an article on the invasion of yellow crazy ants in Tokelau for Lift Education's Connected Series (Connected 2016 Level 2 – Show and Tell) for the New Zealand Ministry of Education.

Invasion of the Yellow Crazies is available as a pdf (download 6 MB), a PowerPoint (download 6 MB), and online as a Google Slide presentation.

The article also has a lesson plan based around it that includes activities involving research, numeracy and statistics as well as ant biology.

Invasion of the Yellow Crazies © Crown (New Zealand Ministry of Education)

SPREP invasive species school resource toolkit

A message from Dave Moverley, Invasive Species Adviser at SPREP, on the launch of the school resource toolkit:

"Talofa!
There is a saying in our region which is very true for the battle against invasive species - 'If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together'.
At SPREP we help countries to put in place strategies to help Pacific island countries battle together on shared invasive species problems.
We also have a network of 'Invasive Species Battlers' who are working together within the countries and are part of the regional 'Pacific Invasive Learning Network'.
But the biggest difference can be made by YOU every day.
Being AWARE of invasive species and how they may MOVE or be moved by people will help reduce the effects they have on you, your family, friends, your community and your country.
I hope you enjoy learning about invasive species from this toolkit and that it enables YOU to take action.
Invasive species are everyone’s responsibility.
Join the fight and protect our islands from invasive species."

Dave Moverley, Invasive species adviser at SPREP

The toolkit includes four factsheets on invasive species for school children. This factsheet provides information on little fire ants.

Four videos and radio slots of the little fire ants are available in English and French language versions.

Two minute video on little fire ants, YouTube video (© SPREP)

Thirty second video on little fire ants YouTube video (© SPREP)

The full toolkit can be downloaded from dropbox (you don't need a dropbox account).

Other resources for teachers and young people

Invasion of the yellow crazy ants YouTube video (© Minute Earth / Wet Tropics Management Authority)

Kids can stop invasive species. In this video a seven-year old girl found fire ants in the school playgound, YouTube video (© Biosecurity Queensland)

The "pawder patrol" dogs help protect from invasive species, YouTube video (© New Zealand MPI)

Pest world for kids has a section on ants.

The StoptheAnt website has resources for educators and volunteers on little fire ant surveys.

Hō‘ike o Haleakalā curriculum has a unit on fire ants (both little fire ants and red imported fire ants), a unit on native versus invasive species, and a whole module on invasive species.