Life Cycle of a Butterfly

Objectives:
-Students will be able to identify the 4 different stages in the butterfly life cycle.
-Students wil be able to witness and document the 4 stages in the butterfly life cycle

Prep Material:
-Order caterpillars from the Butterfly site (http://www.thebutterflysite.com/) or another preferred site.
-Create a board that will be able to display the pictures of the butterflies at different life cycles.
-Picture cards of the 4 life cycles: egg, larva, chrysalis and adult butterfly

Engagement:
1. Ask the students what they know about butterflies. Have they ever seen one? Have they ever touched one? What did it look like? Was it colorful?
2. Ask the students if they know what the butterfly was before it was a butterfly?
3. What do caterpillars look like? How do you think they go to caterpillars? What do they feel like? Are they furry? Slimy?
4. How does a caterpillar turn into a butterfly?
5. Show and discuss a picture of a chrysalis.
6. Discuss the cycle: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis and butterfly.
7. Have volunteers come up and put the life cycle cards in order


Procedures:
1. Teacher wil set up and display the caterpillars in their butterfly habitats in a central location in the classroom for all students to see.
2. Students will take daily pictures to document any changes to the larva (caterpillar).
3. At the end of each day, the teacher will print out 1 picture and post it on the board (under the corresponding day)
4. Step 2 and 3 will be repeated until the caterpillars have turned into butterflies.
5. Between the major cycle changes; caterpillar, chrysalis and adult butterfly discuss the life cycle changes and record students observations.
6. Once you have adult butterflies, release them into the sky and let the students see them fly away!

Conclusion:
The teacher, with the students help, will make a PowerPoint of the pictures the students took throughout the butterfly life cycle. The slideshow can be set home, posted on the classroom website, or viewed at home!