What creature comforts would you provide if you were creating a hotel just for creepy crawlies?
This was a challenge posed for Year 3 boys and girls at Upton Junior School in Broadstairs.
They had to consider the layout of their bug hotel and what sort of resources would prove appealing to their guests.
The children recycled their own materials, as well as scavenging resources from the school playing fields as their designs took shape.
Cardboard boxes and drinks bottles were re-cycled to create the hotel buildings while paper and cardboard tubes were adapted to become rooms and bedrooms.
Leaves, twigs and other material were installed for comfortable living, and possibly as the odd hotel snack, as the projects were completed.
Head of Year 3 Fran Pellett said: “The children absolutely loved creating their hotels and they were very resourceful. It really helped to bring their learning to life and activities such as this really help to enrich our curriculum.”
The bug hotel project was part of a wider week of activities where the year group were learning about ‘respect’, one of Upton’s core values.
Mrs Pellett added: “We discussed what respect is and how we can show respect towards others. We also thought about how we can show respect, beyond respecting people.
“We then spent time learning about ways in which we can respect and care for our environment. This included sharing cars and journeys to reduce pollution, throwing our rubbish in the bin for proper recycling and not discarding it thoughtlessly, turning off electric lights when they are not in use to save power, and using less plastic to support ecology and the environment.”
Head of School Darci Arthur said: “There were some imaginative and interesting hotels on display.
“This mini project was part of their learning about how to show respect on a wider scale and it challenged pupils’ creative thinking. It encouraged them to consider the bigger picture of how we react to all creatures and our environment.
“It was also great fun as the children worked out just what their ‘guests’ would opt for in their favourite hotel.”
The final verdict from pupils and staff was that any creatures that stayed at Hotel Upton would be snug as a bug…