Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches

Hey there peoples!!  I realize that it has been kind of quite in my postings, but believe it or not, I've been busy as a bee creating (and being assistant to creation). 

My oldest son is in 7th grade this year, and his class is responsible for assisting at the 8th grade graduation.  One of their jobs is to put cards/gifts that the graduates receive into large gift bags.  I've been given the job of decorating these bags.  I've been busy modifying graduation cap die cuts and die cutting out letters for names.  Hoping to get this little chore done by this weekend.   I'll post the final project when completed.

I've also been assistant creative director for my youngest DS's latest project.  He had to make a presentation board and sample of an insect.  He chose COCKROACHES (iiiiccccckkkk!!!!).  By chance he was looking at a former teacher's blog on her family's mission trip to Madagascar and saw a picture of a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.  So, we narrowed down the cockroach category to Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. 

This is his version of the cockroach....sitting on a "rotted" log (that the child has had sitting on his desk since we had to cut down the broken limbs from trees from the last snow storm). While the Toad cut the Styrofoam egg in half, DS did all the carving of the bands on the body and the paint job. He is very specific in his details.  You can't really tell in this photo, but the top of the cockroach has different shades of orange/red with a touch of yellow so that it would look more like the photos on his board.    What looks like the cockroaches "eyes" are actually the "horns" on the male cockroaches head (more on that later). 

 Here he is in front of his presentation board. It was stated in the directions for the board that if there was typing done, the student was to do it.  Do you have any idea how incredibly frustrating it is to watch a 3rd grader type?!! Actually, I was very impressed at his typing skills.  Not speedy (at all!) but overall, finger placement was correct.  Much better than what I did when I first started typing as a freshman in high school.  It is just amazing how technology has changed our lives. 

We also made the discovery that stamping on presentation boards DOES NOT WORK so well!!! The cardboard grooves does not allow the stamp to connect to a flat surface!! After stamping the title, DS had to go back and fill in all the missing spots with a marker (good thing mom has ink pads and the matching markers, hehe!!)

Now for some FASCINATING facts on the Madagascar Hissing Cockroach (because I KNOW you are just dying to know!! LOL!)

~ The Hissing Cockroach does NOT have wings, which is unusual for cockroaches

~The female gives birth to live young.  She makes a substance around the eggs that makes a cocoon like structure and then holds the eggs in her body.  After giving birth, she will take care of her young for a couple of months

~Hissing cockroaches can grow to be 2-3 inches long (iiicccckkkk!!).  The males have horns on their heads which they use to ram other males in battles. 

~The Hissing cockroach has spiracles in their abdomen that they push air out of to make the hissing sound (versus rubbing their legs together like other insects do to make sound).  This hissing sound is used in battles (winners hiss more than losers), as an alarm and in their mating rituals. 

~They can live 2-5 years. 

~Facts on cockroaches in general:  they are almost indestructible.  They can survive 2 days of freezing, not eat for 3 months and can live through radiation 100 times that which would kill a human (niiiiice). 

OK!! Now that I've given you a lesson on Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches, I need to go back to die cutting letters out for names and work on my project for tomorrow's Just for Fun Color challenge!!

Thanks for dropping by again today!!  Remember to make time for creativity~~even if it is helping your child make cockroaches!! hehe