Question 1 of 6
Informational text
The Courtyard Count
1At Bellbird Primary, a paved courtyard became so hot in summer that students hurried across it at lunch. A Year 4 class proposed replacing one corner with a garden of local flowering plants. Before anything was planted, pairs of students counted the insects they could see during a ten-minute period at the same time each Friday. Across six weeks, they saw an average of four insects per count.
2Three months after the garden was finished, the class repeated the counts. The new average was thirteen insects. Native bees visited the purple fan-flowers, while tiny beetles sheltered under fallen leaves. Shallow water bowls contained stones so insects could land without falling into deep water. The gardeners avoided pesticides.
3The class was pleased, but the school caretaker reminded them that the second count happened in warmer spring weather, when more insects might be active anyway. The results suggested that the garden was useful, she said, but a comparison with an unchanged courtyard would make the evidence stronger.