Unlock document.
This document is partially blurred.
Unlock all pages and 1 million more documents.
Get Access
Short Writing Assignment #2.
Create a fictional short story about an insect order. The story must include the scientific and common
name of the order and accurate biological facts about that insect order. These facts are found in your
sourcebook, on the internet, and will be covered in lecture. The biological facts to include are: Life cycle
(does it have complete or incomplete metamorphosis), and characteristics that separate it from other
orders (mouthparts, wing modifications, can it sting, feed on blood, etc.). Your story must be between 1.5
and 2 pages and will be graded for accuracy. You can select a species or a family within the insect order
to write about as long as you include the characteristics of the order. For example, flies in the order
Diptera only have two wings, the second set is modified into halteres. Flies can feed on blood or liquids
with sponging mouthparts (some like mosquitoes can drink blood through a “straw”) but they can’t
chew. They have complete metamorphosis so they have larvae (maggots), a pupa, and turn into a fly.
Your story will be graded based on biological accuracy (5 points); creativity (3 points) and writing style
(2 points). Your assignment should be submitted to dropbox on D2L by Friday Feb. 3rd by 5:00 PM.
Work independently, use 11 point font, double spaced, and write a story between 1.5 and 2 pages in
length.
You will create a short story based on your last name. If your last name begins with A-D: Orthoptera, E-
H: Hymenoptera, I-M: Coleoptera, N-R: Hemiptera, S-Z: Lepidoptera
Grading Criteria: For your piece of creative fiction, show, don’t tell. Use strong descriptions of the
characters and the characteristics of your order in your writing. Include 6 “literary images” that address at
least three of the senses (sight, taste, touch, hearing, smell). Highlight each of these by underlining them.
Your essay will be graded for both the biological accuracy in describing your order’s characteristics and
the story telling.
5 3 1 0
Insect order has all
major characteristics
Author writes story
Style
theme, perspective,
and tense
Story does not
follow a theme
without a clear
narrative
