Fun and Easy DIY Bug Hotel for Kids

Spring is here and the air is buzzing with insect sounds. It’s the perfect time to head outside and use your creativity to build a Bug Hotel! By providing a warm and safe place for beneficial insects to stay, like butterflies, moths, ladybugs, and bees, you’ll help with flower pollination, food harvest, and pest control in your garden. 

The BEST part about making a Bug Hotel is that there is no right or wrong way to do it. You can keep it as simple or make it as complex as you want. Look around the house for recycled materials and gather natural materials from your yard or local park to furnish and decorate your hotel. Get outside and let your creativity soar with the bugs!

Below is a list of possible materials you can use. You do NOT need to have this complete list to make a Bug Hotel. Read through the list and make it your OWN:

Bug Hotel Steps:

1. Look at your materials and choose which cardboard boxes you want to use for the Bug Hotel structure. 
2. Use a hot glue gun to attach the pieces together. You’ll need a decent amount of hot glue for this project.
3. Place and glue the different recycled materials inside the structure to create safe places for insects.
4. Find a good location outside to set up your Bug Hotel.
5. Take baskets, buckets, or bags on a nature walk or explore your yard to collect items to furnish your Bug Hotel.
6. Decorate your Bug Hotel with natural items, such as pinecones, sticks, and flowers.
7. Observe the wonder.

Crafter’s Tips:

1. You can get creative and paint your hotel for a pop of color.
2. If your Bug Hotel begins to tip over due to uneven weight distribution, use bricks or jars full of dirt or sand to add weight and support to the base.
3. If you prefer a smaller, simpler project, just use a single shoe box.
4. Encourage children to look for an array of colors and types of natural items to use as decorations.
5. Look for a location that is not too close to the house, has shelter from the rain, and is in close proximity to the garden.
6. Bees have excellent vision, so if you want them to be attracted to your Bug Hotel search for yellow, purple, blue, and white flowers.
7. Each insect species has different preferences, so get creative and offer a wide range of diverse habitats and food sources that will help attract a wider range of beneficial insects.

Desired Bug Hotel Guests (Beneficial Insects)

Flower Power Insects: Bees, butterflies, flies, and moths are helpful because they help pollinate flowers, fruits, and vegetables promoting healthy plant growth.

Insect Warriors: Ladybugs, praying mantis, and green lacewing larvae are considered predator insects who help by eliminating garden pests. They help control populations of harmful insects. Goodbye annoying bugs!

For more information and pictures to help you identify beneficial bugs check out Beneficial Insects in the Garden.

🫙Educational Opportunities Beyond the Bug Hotel

• Children can plan out the design of their Bug Hotel by drawing a blueprint. Encourage creativity by having them design designated rooms, such as the kitchen, bedrooms, exercise room, restaurant, or swimming pool. Come up with a unique name for your hotel. 
• Do some research beforehand to look for natural items that will attract a certain type of insect that you’d like as a guest at your hotel. 
• Document the process by taking a picture of your hotel every day to see the progression of insect guests, and make a guest book of all the different bugs that come and stay at your hotel. 
• Create a Bug Identification Poster! Research specific bugs that visit the hotel. On poster board, draw the insects and caption the pictures with details learned from research.
• Explore the life cycles of insects by focusing on specific bug hotel inhabitants. Choose a few insects such as butterflies, ladybugs, or bees, and learn about their life stages from egg to adult.
• Incorporate an artist edge to the bug hotel construction. Children can create signs or labels for different rooms of the bug hotel, paint rocks to decorate the area, design furniture from items found in nature, or design colorful butterfly or bee cutouts to hang nearby.
• Prompt children to write imaginative stories about their bug guests at the hotel. Encourage descriptive language and creativity, allowing them to explore their imaginations while connecting with the insects’ world.
• Create a Bug Menu for the Bug Hotel Restaurant. Identify bugs staying at the hotel and research what they eat for survival. Creatively come up with a breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert menu. Lavender Mud Tea anyone?

So get outside in the Spring air and build a Bug Hotel and watch the fascinating world of insects!

🍁If you were BUGGIN out about this post, check out Scavenger Hunt in Nature Using FREE Printables!🌿

Disclaimer: We only endorse/link things on this page that we have personally used or come HIGHLY recommended by trusted peers. All items mentioned are bought and paid for by us. If you grab anything using our referral/affiliate links above, we may receive a small commission (at no cost to you). This enables us to provide quality content for this site and keep it up and running. Thank you.