Pupils in the 3rd grade of elementary school study the fundamental structure of insects. It is important to learn the food of various insects because food habit dictates the morphology, particularly that of the mouth, and habits of a species and interspecifi c relationships. First, we administered a questionnaire survey on the diet of 10 insect species to 136 3rd grade pupils in an elementary school. Many pupils did not know or had incorrect knowledge of the diet of popular insects. Next, we collected dead insects within the buildings of 22 elementary schools. Various insects entered the school buildings and could not escape because the buildings acted as a trap. We collected 1935 dead insects (10 orders) at 22 schools; most of them were found in the galleries of gymnasiums. There was a signifi cant correlation between the area of ʻgreen spaceʼ around each school and individual density, but the number of species was independent of the environment around the schools. The proportion of insects with intact bodies was 47.1％ (of 1935 individuals). Based on these results, we discussed the utility of dead insects collected in school buildings as teaching material.

As it is very important for small children to be in touch with the natural world, they need to experience nature in their neighborhood through activities focusing on their natural surroundings.　Biotopes are available for this purpose and every child-caring person should be conscious of ESD (Education for Sustainable Development) to extendthe childrenʼs world.　　 In order to know the present situation of nature education for preschool children, we researched the playground environment of preschools throughout Japan using a questionnaire.　We also observed the childrenʼs actual activities at preschools, and examined the importance of biotopes for the preschool children. We suggested desirable ways to utilize biotopes at preschools in the near future.

Continuous observation of animals is necessary for students to understand seasonal changes in animal activity and biodiversity.　We expected that the nest box would be a good material to observe many species throughout the year.　We set 10 nest boxes in the yard of an elementary school and investigated the species that used the nest box, the seasonal changes in their number, and their life style during the year.　Twelve species used the nest box.　Birds, ants, wasps, cockroachs etc., used the nest box as a breeding site from April to August.　On the other hand, spiders, cockroachs, rough woodlouses, etc., used the nest box in winter, from October to March.　Based on these results, we discussed the utility of animals which used the nest box set in the schoolyard as teaching material.