The study of minibeasts gives children a valuable insight into living things including the relationship between creatures and their habitat. Very young children are able to handle different minibeasts and can begin to identify names of species and different body parts. Older children can also look at the different types of habitat in which minibeasts are likely to be found and look at the physical features that help animals to survive in specific places.

Other topics that can be explored are life cycles, food chains, the role of minibeasts as decomposers of plant material. Children are usually asked to work in small groups, which encourages team working and the sharing of information. They are given suitable equipment and identification guides and instructed on their use, before being allowed to investigate as a group.

After the hunt they are encouraged to discuss the types of creatures they have found and any other interesting adaptations noticed. They are then asked to return the minibeasts carefully to where they were found, thereby encouraging them to think about their natural environment and the consequences of not treating it with due care and respect.