Try a Mini - Beasts Safari

What about organising a bug hunt for the kids in the garden? Or if you don’t have a garden, a patio or the local park will work too. Even a virus can’t cancel spring and this is the time of year when all manner of mini-beasts are at their most active. So, set a challenge. How many insects can the kids find and identify, while not touching or otherwise disturbing the tiny creatures? Good places to search are on flowering plants, beneath logs and stones, and amid grassland roots.

To start you could give them a pen and paper to note such details as colour, size and how many legs the bugs have and then send them off (a magnifying glass is extra fun if you have one). Afterwards, go online with them to research the insects’ names and be amazed by how many mini-beasts are sequestered in even the smallest spaces. A useful website for doing this is insectidentification.org.