Those little beauties have inspired so many stories. But where oh where did they get their name from? Why are they called the ladybugs? A tale that tells us emphatically that everything on earth has a purpose to serve. A free children’s book read aloud that is an absolute treat .
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Little Betty was walking through their
vegetable garden when all of a sudden she began to scream.“Bugs, ugly creepy bugs!
They’re all over the place.”
“What’s all the fuss?”
her grandfather enquired.
“Yuck! There are so many nasty
critters all over
our vegetables. I’m afraid to pick any for
dinner tonight. Let’s just start
to squish them.
Yikes, bad bug, bad bug, get off me.”
“Betty, wait! Don’t hurt him.
That’s a praying
mantis and he is a good bug,”
her grandfather said,
as he gently brushed the praying
mantis off
her. Betty asked, “What do you mean
by ‘good bug’?”
“Just because it’s a bug, or we don’t understand it,
or like the way it looks, doesn’t make
it bad,” he said.
“There are bugs that eat or kill our vegetables.
I think those are bad bugs. Then there are bugs that eat or chase away those bad bugs.
I think they are good bugs.
In fact, I put good bugs in my garden so
I don’t have to use chemicals to chase away
the bad bugs.I have an idea. Let’s go on
a safari. It will help you understand.”
“A safari!” she exclaimed. “Let’s go!” Betty’s grandfather then explained that she would have to use her imagination to make them very small, so that they could go on a safari into the world of the insects. In a flash, they were there. Betty was a little frightened but she knew that
it was all imaginary.
“What do we do now?” she whispered.
“Just walk slowly and observe and I will explain
about all of the good bugs I put in the garden,”
he replied.
“Over there is that praying mantis that landed
on you. He eats flies and some bad beetles.
And because he is big, he has big pincers and
can give you quite a pinch.”
LadyBugs, and other similar beetles,
eat little tiny aphids, mites, and other soft-bodied bugs and their eggs.
Spined soldier bugs (stink bugs) feed on all
sorts of garden pests. But don’t accidentally squish
one of these, they really smell.
There are many more but it’s getting late.
We need to get back to picking vegetables for
our dinner. We can go on a safari to the world of
the insects again tomorrow.”
“grandpa, that was great!” Betty shrieked with joy.
“I now understand what you meant by good bugs.
And I realize that even though they are good, they
can still bite or sting, so I’ll be real careful.”
“I can’t wait until
we go on a safari again.”
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