In this lesson, you will learn about cicadas and the hype over their emergence in several states. Then you will determine the degree to which you believe the hype is warranted.
Warm Up
The article you will read today begins, “They break through the ground, like the undead emerging from graves.”
How does that sentence make you feel? Does it make you want to know more — or less — about cicadas, the insects you see pictured above? Why might people think of the emergence of cicadas as a noteworthy event? Make a prediction about why the article’s headline calls it “a 2020 Southern Invasion.”
Questions for Writing and Discussion
Read the article, then answer the following questions:
1. Why are cicadas such a topic of interest? What makes them different from other insects?
2. What are some of the good things about cicadas, perhaps surrounding their return happening now? What are some bad things about the insects?
3. What represents danger to cicadas? At what point in their life span are they most vulnerable? Why?
4. What do they have working in their favor in terms of protection from predators? Explain how most of them are able to evade danger?
5. Why does it take so long for cicadas to emerge? How can people plan accordingly for an emergence?
Going Further
Now that you’ve read about the cicadas in Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina, do you think comparing their return to “an invasion” is apt? What about the article’s first sentence: “They break through the ground, like the undead emerging from graves”? Or, do you think the author is just having a little fun with language? Why do you say that?
If you don’t live in a place where cicadas emerge, do you wish to experience this phenomenon? If you have experience with cicadas, to what extent do you think the hype is deserved? Explain.
