[STEM][ANIMAL]🐜 The Ant and the Grasshopper | Seasons, Insect Science, Planning, and Cooperation
🎯 Target Learners
Preschool and elementary school students
English and Korean language learners
Families and teachers using story-based STEM lessons
Learners interested in insects, seasons, music, and nature
⏱️ Recommended Learning Time
40–60 minutes
❓ Essential Questions
Why does the ant collect food during summer and autumn?
How do seasonal changes affect insects?
How do ants and grasshoppers produce or respond to sound?
Why are planning and cooperation important?
How can work, rest, music, and creativity remain balanced?
Which parts of the story are scientific facts, and which are imaginary?
🎓 Learning Objectives
After completing this lesson, learners will be able to:
Describe changes during summer, autumn, and winter.
Identify the basic body parts of an insect.
Compare the physical features of ants and grasshoppers.
Explain how some ants live and work together in colonies.
Explore how insects produce sounds.
Design a model ant nest or winter food-storage system.
Count, divide, measure, and calculate percentages.
Distinguish scientific facts from fictional story elements.
Explain the importance of planning, sharing, cooperation, and responsibility.
Verify AI-generated information using reliable sources.
📖 Story Summary
On a bright and hot summer day, the ant works hard. It carries seeds and gathers food in preparation for winter.
The grasshopper sits on a leaf, plays music, and sings:
“Come and play with me!”
The ant shakes its head and continues working.
When autumn arrives, red and yellow leaves fall from the trees. The ant continues collecting food and filling its storage chambers. The grasshopper keeps dancing and playing music in the autumn breeze.
Winter finally arrives. Cold winds blow across the frozen ground. The ant remains warm inside its home, but the grasshopper becomes cold and hungry. Even the grasshopper’s violin is frozen.
The grasshopper asks:
“Ant, can you help me?”
The ant welcomes the grasshopper into its warm home. They share a bowl of soup and make a new promise:
“Next year, let’s work, rest, and make music together!”
💡 Story Message
This version of the fable teaches more than the idea that working is good and playing is bad.
Preparing for future needs is important.
Rest, music, and creativity also have value.
Work and relaxation should remain balanced.
Helping someone in difficulty can strengthen a community.
A person who receives help can learn to participate responsibly.
Different skills become more valuable when people cooperate.
Good planning can make time for both work and enjoyment.
📚 Literature and Language
The story uses personification, which means giving human thoughts, emotions, speech, and behavior to animals.
Examples include:
The ant plans for winter.
The grasshopper plays a violin.
The insects speak to each other.
The ant prepares soup.
The characters make a promise.
These actions make the story entertaining, but they do not describe the exact behavior of real insects.
Vocabulary
Prepare: to get ready for something
Gather: to collect things
Store: to keep something for future use
Harvest: food or crops collected from the land
Shelter: a protected place
Cooperate: to work together
Responsibility: a duty or task someone should complete
Personification: giving human qualities to animals or objects
Language Activity
Arrange these events in the correct order:
Winter arrives.
The ant gathers food.
The grasshopper asks for help.
Autumn leaves begin to fall.
The two characters share soup.
Correct order: 2 → 4 → 1 → 3 → 5
🔬 Science | What Makes an Animal an Insect?
Ants and grasshoppers are insects. A typical adult insect has:
One head
One thorax
One abdomen
Six jointed legs
One pair of antennae
An external skeleton called an exoskeleton
The six legs are attached to the thorax.
Many adult insects also have wings, but wings are not present or visible in every insect, life stage, or colony role. Most worker ants, for example, do not have wings.
🔬 Science | Comparing the Two Insects
| Feature | Ant | Grasshopper or Katydid |
|---|---|---|
| Body sections | Head, thorax, abdomen | Head, thorax, abdomen |
| Number of legs | 6 | 6 |
| Antennae | 1 pair | 1 pair |
| Strongest legs | Legs adapted for walking and carrying | Large hind legs adapted for jumping |
| Social behavior | Many species form organized colonies | Usually not organized like ant colonies |
| Sound | Some communicate through vibrations and chemical signals | Many species create noticeable sounds |
| Food | Varies by species | Varies by species |
🧬 Taxonomic Classification | Ant
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
There are many ant species around the world. The ant in this story does not represent one particular species.
🧬 Taxonomic Classification | Grasshopper and Katydid
Grasshopper
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Suborder: Caelifera
Katydid
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Suborder: Ensifera
Family: Tettigoniidae
The musical insect in English versions of Aesop’s fable may be called a grasshopper or a cricket.
The Korean word 베짱이 (bejjang-i) generally refers to a katydid. Therefore, the exact insect can differ among translations and adaptations.
🌿 Ecology | Where Do Ants Live?
Ants inhabit many different environments, including:
Forests
Grasslands
Farms
Gardens
Deserts
Mountains
Urban areas
Depending on the species, ants may build nests:
Underground
Under stones
Inside dead wood
In trees
Inside plants
Around buildings
Many ants live in colonies. Colony members may perform different jobs related to gathering food, caring for young, building the nest, and protecting the colony.
🌿 Ecology | Where Do Grasshoppers and Katydids Live?
Grasshoppers and katydids commonly live in places with abundant vegetation, such as:
Meadows
Grasslands
Gardens
Farms
Shrubs
Forest edges
Trees and tall plants
Many species eat plant material. Some katydids may also eat small insects. Their diets and behaviors vary according to species and habitat.
🌿 Ecology | How Do They Survive Winter?
Real insects do not experience winter exactly as described in the story.
Many ants remain inside protected nests and reduce their activity.
Deeper underground chambers may provide more stable conditions.
Different grasshopper and katydid species may survive winter as eggs, nymphs, or adults.
Their winter survival strategies depend on species, climate, and location.
A grasshopper visiting an ant’s home to ask for soup is an imaginary event.
✅ Scientific Fact Check
Fact: Ants can carry objects and gather food.
Needs clarification: Not every ant species stores seeds or grain for winter.
Fact: Ants often cooperate in colonies.
Fact: Grasshoppers and katydids can produce sounds.
Fiction: The grasshopper plays a human violin.
Fiction: The ant cooks soup and speaks to the grasshopper.
Different ant species eat different foods. Some collect seeds, while others consume insects, nectar, plant material, fungi, or sweet liquids produced by other insects.
💻 Technology | Observing Insects
Students and scientists can use technology to study insects.
Magnifying glasses
Microscopes
Macro cameras
Motion-detection cameras
Temperature sensors
Humidity sensors
Digital observation journals
Audio-recording applications
Sound-analysis software
AI insect-identification tools
Observation Activity
Find a safe place where ants are active.
Record the date, time, weather, and temperature.
Mark the ants’ direction of movement with arrows.
Count how many ants pass one point in one minute.
Observe whether they are carrying anything.
Take a photograph without disturbing them.
Compare the photograph with a reliable insect guide.
Use an AI identification tool and compare its answer with the guide.
Do not dig into an ant nest or handle unfamiliar insects.
⚙️ Engineering | Design an Ant Nest
An ant nest may contain connected tunnels and chambers. Different areas may be used for food, colony members, waste, or developing young.
Engineering Questions
Which tunnel shape is least likely to collapse?
How could the nest prevent rainwater from entering?
How could air move through the tunnels?
Where should the food-storage chamber be placed?
How many entrances would be useful?
How could ants avoid congestion inside the nest?
Ant Nest Design Challenge
Use paper cups, cardboard tubes, paper straws, blocks, clay, or recycled materials to construct a model ant nest.
Include:
An entrance
Connecting tunnels
A food-storage chamber
A resting chamber
Ventilation passages
A rainwater drainage route
An emergency exit
Roll a small bead through the model to test whether its tunnels are properly connected.
➗ Mathematics | Counting the Food
The ant collects 12 seeds during summer and 18 seeds during autumn.
The ant collects 30 seeds in total.
➗ Mathematics | Calculating the Winter Supply
Two insects each need two seeds per day. How many seeds will they need for five days?
They will need 20 seeds.
➗ Mathematics | Sharing Equally
The ant and the grasshopper share 24 seeds equally.
Each insect receives 12 seeds.
➗ Mathematics | Calculating a Percentage
The ant spends 21 out of 30 days preparing for winter.
The ant spends 70% of the period preparing.
➗ Mathematics | Create a Seasonal Graph
| Season | Seeds Collected |
|---|---|
| Summer | 12 |
| Autumn | 18 |
| Winter | 0 |
| Total | 30 |
Create a bar graph using the data.
Then answer:
During which season did the ant collect the most seeds?
How many more seeds were collected in autumn than in summer?
What percentage of the seeds was collected during autumn?
The ant collected 60% of its food during autumn.
🎨 Arts and Music | How Is Sound Produced?
A violin produces sound when the bow causes its strings to vibrate. The body of the violin strengthens and projects those vibrations.
Grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids do not play violins. Many species produce sounds by rubbing specialized body parts together. This process is called stridulation.
Both examples can be connected to this sequence:
Movement → Vibration → Sound
Music Activity
Use a fast, bright rhythm for summer.
Use a gentle rhythm for autumn.
Use slower and lower sounds for winter.
Use percussion to imitate footsteps, wind, and falling leaves.
Finish the story with a warm and hopeful chorus.
🎧 Listen to the Song
Enjoy The ant and the Grasshopper in Korean.
🎵 Listen to the Song : The Ant and the Grasshopper in English.
Watch the song with KOREANAMBRO, then visit DiscoverKoreaGuide.com to continue learning through STEM activities and AI literacy.
💛 Social and Emotional Learning
Discuss these questions:
What could the grasshopper have done differently during summer?
Why was the ant’s decision to help important?
How could the grasshopper’s music contribute to the community?
Should we immediately blame someone who is unprepared?
How can kindness be combined with responsibility?
Why do people need both work and rest?
What promise should the characters keep the following year?
💛 Create a Cooperative Ending
Imagine what the characters could do together the following year.
The ant searches for and stores food.
The grasshopper uses music to encourage the group.
Both characters repair the nest.
They calculate how much food is needed.
They create a schedule for work, rest, and music.
They reserve extra food for emergencies.
They help other insects prepare for winter.
This ending changes the story from a conflict between work and play into a lesson about planning, cooperation, and community support.
🧩 Integrated STEM Project | Winter Preparation Box
Materials
One small box
30 paper seeds
Recycled paper
Cardboard dividers
A ruler
Colored pencils
Glue
Instructions
Design the box as a winter food-storage system.
Measure its length, width, and height.
Sort the paper seeds by size or color.
Test different arrangements to use the space efficiently.
Calculate how much food two insects need.
Reserve part of the food for an emergency.
Create a work-and-rest schedule.
Present the design and explain the calculations.
STEM Connections
Science: insects, seasons, habitats, and sound
Technology: cameras, sensors, audio recordings, and digital journals
Engineering: ant-nest and storage-system design
Mathematics: counting, measurement, division, graphs, and percentages
🤖 AI Literacy Activity
Ask an AI system:
Do all ants store food for winter?
How do grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids produce sounds?
How do ants survive cold weather?
What chambers can be found inside an ant nest?
What is the difference between a grasshopper and a katydid?
Which parts of the fable are scientifically accurate?
Which parts are examples of personification?
✅ AI Verification Checklist
| Check | Verification Question |
|---|---|
| Source | Did the AI identify reliable sources? |
| Species | Did it explain that behavior varies among species? |
| Location | Did it consider differences in region and climate? |
| Anatomy | Did it show six legs attached to the thorax? |
| Classification | Did it distinguish grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids? |
| Fact or fiction | Did it separate real behavior from imaginary events? |
| Cross-checking | Does the answer agree with scientific or museum sources? |
AI-generated information and images may appear accurate even when they contain mistakes. Check the number and position of legs, antennae, wings, habitat, diet, sound-producing structures, and winter survival strategies.
💬 Discussion Questions
Is working all the time without resting healthy?
Can music and art be valuable forms of contribution?
What should the ant do if there is not enough food for everyone?
Is it appropriate to judge real insects using human moral standards?
How is this cooperative ending different from the traditional ending?
What is the difference between helping someone and completing all their work for them?
How can a community prepare for unexpected problems?
📝 Learning Check
Complete the sentences.
An insect’s body consists of a ________, ________, and ________.
An adult insect has ________ legs.
An insect’s legs are attached to its ________.
The grasshopper’s violin is an example of ________.
The ant prepares for changes in the ________.
Movement can produce ________, which creates sound.
A healthy routine includes both work and ________.
AI-generated insect information should be ________ before use.
Answers:
head, thorax, abdomen
six
thorax
personification or imagination
seasons
vibrations
rest
verified
🏆 Expected Learning Outcomes
Learners can:
Identify the main body parts of an insect.
Compare ants with grasshoppers or katydids.
Explain how seasonal changes influence living organisms.
Describe the difference between facts and fictional details.
Explain how movement and vibration produce sound.
Design and test a simple ant-nest model.
Calculate totals, equal shares, differences, and percentages.
Explain the importance of planning, cooperation, creativity, and kindness.
Evaluate AI-generated information using reliable references.
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