children learn about the natural environment, while also building
physical and team skills. Viv Hampshire explains.
Insects need safe places all year round, but particularly in winter when they are at their most vulnerable. One way to help protect them is by building a bug hotel, a sheltered purpose-built structure designed to accommodate a variety of insects and other invertebrates in as natural a habitat as possible.
This offers children the opportunity not only to get involved in its construction but to learn more about their environment, as they collect and handle natural materials and observe the local wildlife in all weathers and at close range.
UK gardening charity The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) believes that everyone should have access to life-enhancing gardening experiences, whatever their age or level of ability. Late last year, in association with The Wildlife Trusts, it launched its Give a Bug a Home competition to encourage individuals, schools and community groups to build a bug hotel and to forward their photos for judging.
When the competition closed, there had been more than 100 entries, and the organisers hope that the winning photographs will now inspire others to have a go at creating similar structures of their own.
WORK IN PROGRESS
I recently visited the Uxbridge Children's Centre in Middlesex, where senior early years practitioner Sadie Haynes and a group of children and parents have been building their own bug hotel.
'I first saw a bug hotel on a visit to a zoo with my nieces and nephew, and they loved it,' says Ms Haynes. 'I had never built one before, but we have a wonderful newly created garden at the centre and I wanted to do something different with the children that would also get their families involved.
'Together we created a structure about 3ft high, and built around a framework of five wooden pallets, all sourced for free through local gardeners and builders. The garden is full of natural resources and the children went around deciding what to use, collecting up sticks, twigs, leaves, ivy, sand, stones and mud and pushing them into all the little nooks and crannies. The only things I had to purchase were straw and sawdust.'
The bug hotel has only been in place for a few weeks and is viewed very much as a work in progress, with the children visiting it daily and adding more to it all the time. Building it involved working together as a team, talking, listening and planning, with plenty of bending, stretching, lifting and carrying, so it was useful in developing physical skills too.
Its position in a part of the garden away from play equipment and pathways has encouraged children to use the whole outdoor area, and because it is visible from the entrance it has also become quite a talking point among parents and visitors.
So now that the project is more or less complete, what benefits has Ms Haynes witnessed and are there any tips she would pass on to others? 'I loved making the bug hotel and seeing the children explore it and gain learning experiences,' she says. 'They made independent decisions about what to put where and asked lots of questions, and they learned about which bugs might want to live in the hotel and which are native to our local community.
'I wish now that I had added some thin planks of wood across the inside so the children could poke things through without them falling between the pallet slats to the bottom. I would also recommend putting written facts around the hotel for parents to read and discuss with the children, and to keep a few magnifying glasses nearby. Our main bug visitors so far have been spiders. We are waiting to see who the next guests will be!'
BUILD YOUR OWN
Some bugs enjoy damp, dark conditions while others prefer some sun, so choose an area only partly in shade but sheltered from the worst of the weather, perhaps close to a wall or hedge or under a tree. Remember it will be quite a large and heavy structure, so it will need to be built on a flat, firm surface, also essential for drainage.
The hotel will hopefully accommodate many different species so it is important to use a wide range of materials, recreating something close to their natural environment and providing nooks and crannies of varying sizes and shapes where all will feel at home.
Think in an environmentally friendly way and try to use reclaimed and recycled materials as much as possible. There is no set plan. Just gather up as many materials as you can, and be as creative as you like.
Here are a few resources you might find useful:
Wooden pallets - piled on top of each other to construct the basic framework. Four or five levels is a good height to aim for.
Straw or hay - crammed in anywhere there is a gap, to provide burrowing opportunities and safe hibernation sites.
Flowerpots - placed sideways between pallet levels, with the open ends facing outwards. Left empty or packed with straw, sand or mud, they are individual homes, nesting sites and hideaways.
Dead wood, logs, branches and twigs - pushed in separately or in bundles, providing a home for larvae of wood-boring beetles. The crevices between and underneath the sticks should attract centipedes and woodlice, too.
Hollow pipes, tubes and bamboo canes - holes of all kinds and sizes are invaluable as nesting sites and hiding places for a wide range of creatures, including solitary bees.
Dry leaves, sawdust and loose bark - liberally sprinkled, these will mimic the forest floor environment, suitable for spiders, beetles, centipedes, woodlice and hibernating ladybirds.
Stones and tiles - providing cool, damp and frost-free conditions inside your hotel, which might even attract a few frogs and toads. Stones can also add weight to hold looser materials in place.
Waterproof signage - telling the children about some of the bugs they are likely to meet.
Magnifying glasses - for closer inspection.
MORE INFORMATION
For more on bug hotels, see the Nursery World article 'Wild at heart'
Good examples of bug hotels can be found at www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/sites/birmingham.live.wt.precedenthost.co.uk/files/Insect%20Hotel.pdf and http://www.rspb.org.uk/makeahomeforwildlife/advice/gardening/insects/ wildlifestack.aspx
My First Book of Bugs from the RSPB. Clear illustrations and simple but informative text, ideal for identifying different bugs by name and learning more about them. Includes a glossary of 'bug words' to help expand children's vocabulary.
RHS website - information about its educational programmes to engage children in gardening activities, and training days for teachers, www.rhs.org.uk/education-learning/gardening-children-schools
RHS/The Wildlife Trusts bug hotel competition is at www.wildaboutgardensweek.org.uk/buildabughotel
- Watch a two-minute, high-speed video clip of the Intimation Creative team building a complete bug hotel from scratch at www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjc-Y2d8NbY.
Viv Hampshire is a former outreach worker and educator for children's centres and libraries in the London Borough of Hillingdon, and is now a full-time writer
