Ward's World Activity Guides

*Note: This lab activity was submitted to Ward's Science by a third party educator for the sole purpose of sharing content and ideas with other educators. Ward's Science is not affiliated with the author of this lesson plan. All product recommendations made by Ward's Science are suggestions for completion or extension of the activity or topics addressed, but are not required to complete the activity. Lesson Plan Overview Recommended Grade Level: 8 Discipline: Life Science/Biology Topic: Insect Behavior Lab Activity Title: Rose Color Preference in Japanese Beetles Submitted By: Karen McCabe Overview: Japanese beetles are the "thorn in the side" of rose gardeners everywhere. As a child, part of my allowance was earned by picking the beetles off of my mother's rose bushes. I observed that some rose bushes seemed to have higher populations of beetles than others and thus sustained more damage. I often wondered why the beetles seemed to prefer one bush over another. This experiment will help to determine if color is the variable that caused the differences I observed. Lesson Objectives: • Students will conduct a scientific investigation. • Students will observe insect behavior. • Students will determine rose color preference for Japanese beetles, Popillia japonica. National Science Standards: SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: ALL STUDENTS SHOULD DEVELOP ABILITIES NECESSARY TO DO SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY • Identify questions that can be answered through scientific investigations • Design and conduct a scientific investigation • Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze, and interpret data • Develop descriptions, explanations, predictions, and models using evidence • Think critically and logically to make the relationships between evidence and explanations • Recognize and analyze alternative explanations and predictions • Communicate scientific procedures and explanations • Use mathematics in all aspects of scientific inquiry LIFE SCIENCE: REGULATION AND BEHAVIOR • All organisms must be able to obtain and use resources, grow, reproduce, and maintain stable internal conditions while living in a constantly changing external environment. • Regulation of an organism's internal environment involves sensing the internal environment and changing physiological activities to keep conditions within the range required to survive. • Behavior is one kind of response an organism can make to an internal or environmental stimulus. A behavioral response requires coordination and communication at many

• SCIENCE AS INQUIRY: ALL STUDENTS SHOULD DEVELOP ABILITIES NECESSARY TO DO SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY
• LIFE SCIENCE: REGULATION AND BEHAVIOR