Worms, Slugs, and Roly Polies

As your kids get outside, and begin exploring, they’re bound to find the wonderful things that that nature has to offer. I’m not talking about finding fruit on trees, or vegetables in the garden. No, they’ll be finding all of the little creatures that roam around outside, in the grass, under rocks, and in the bushes.

Kids have a knack for finding the insects that live in your yard. Probably because they’re lower to the ground, but also because they are not overly familiar with what these little creatures are. When they see something new that moves, they’re bound to be interested by what the creature is, and what it has to offer.

Many adults may not like some of these insects, and you may be outright scared of some of them. However, most of these little creatures aren’t really dangerous if you’re just picking them up and putting them somewhere else. That doesn’t mean you have to let them in the house, or pick them up yourselves, but you also don’t need to worry too much about your child picking them up.

Instead of not letting your kids play with them, one idea is to teach your kids more about each of these insects. When your kids find a worm, explain to them about what worms are for, why we have them, and why they live in the dirt, and under rocks. Explain to them the importance of each of the insects. If you don’t know, that’s totally fine. Spend some time to learn - learning new things is something you’ll be doing all of your life.

Don’t be afraid to let your kids gather these insects together. We recently had a big slug party - the kids each found a couple of slugs that they brought to a central place on the patio. They had a fun time watching the slugs move around slowly, and watched on as they would crawl over each other. They also looked for several more insects as well.

We are often finding roly polies all over in the yard - well, the kids just seem to have a knack for finding them. They have a bucket that they like to put them into, and watch them as they roll around, close themselves, and open themselves up. The shells on roly polies are quite interesting, and learning about them is a lot of fun for kids.

You don’t have to allow the kids to bring the bugs and insects in the house. In fact, you probably shouldn’t. Slugs and worms can leave a bit of a residue all over as they move and crawl around that you probably don’t want in your house. However, if they do come in with them, you can clean up after them. What you really don’t want is for them to get lost in the house - better just to have them left outside.

Depending on the age of your kids, you’ll want to watch them closer. You really don’t want your kids eating those insects. Slugs can be especially dangerous as they can carry different diseases, but worms and roly polies and other insects are not meant for human consumption - I’m throwing up a little in my mouth just thinking about it.

Teaching kids about nature, and the creatures that are in it can be a lot of fun. Don’t let it gross you out too much. Teach your kids about how the world works.