Objective:   Students will be able to draw the life cycle of a monarch.

Introduction:  All insects start life as tiny eggs.

Materials:  Student task card, markers or crayons, colored paper plate, glue, scissors, computer

Vocabulary:  egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly , metamorphosis, larva

Procedure:  
1. Teacher reads aloud The Butterfly by Sabrina Crewe or The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

2. Discuss the life cycle of a butterfly.

3. Give each student a task card.  Color the life stages and then cut them apart.  Glue the pieces onto the plate and label each stage.

4. Plan a butterfly garden. Visit The Butterfly Conservatory and click on Grow a Butterfly Garden.

5. Read and determine what is needed for a garden: 

• Sunny gardens attract the most butterflies, so plant in the brightest part of your garden.
• Some important details to consider are sunny spots for basking, shelter from wind and rain and sources of fresh water. Mud or sand puddles are used by adult male butterflies to obtain essential salts, needed for reproduction.
• Nectar plants provide food for a variety of adult butterflies, while different host plants, which supply caterpillars with food, attract specific species. Keep in mind that nectar plants may also serve as host plants to some species. You may want to include both in your garden.
• Most caterpillars feed only on specific types of host plants, so female adult butterflies deposit their eggs only on those plants their offspring will eat. By including host plants in your garden, you could witness the entire life cycle of the butterfly.
• Choose plants that will bloom at different times throughout the season. Try experimenting with a variety of plants that appeal to different butterfly species.
• Pesticides can harm butterflies, so avoid using them whenever possible.

6. Using desktop publishing, create a butterfly garden "How To" book.

7. Break students into small groups and have each group design the front cover,

8. Write a page for each component needed.

9. Add graphics, clip art

10. Adjust font, style, color, size and alignment

11. Proofread, edit

12. Publish

8. Write an introduction.

Home Learning:  Using a search engine from the Internet, such as Yahooligans or other books from the classroom find out how other insects metamorphose. Draw a life cycle for the insect. A great site is The Butterfly Conservatory click on metamorphosis.

Evaluation:  After the students have labeled the stages on their plates ask them to draw arrows between the sections to show the direction of the metamorphosis.
 
Extension 1:  Students visit  Where do Butterflies Come From? and have them build their own chrysalis.

Extension 2: Create a Butterfly Card

• Use a greeting card program such as Super Print
• Have students write a butterfly poem for the card
• Proofread and edit
• Use the card format and insert text
• Choose clip art for card
• Adjust font, size, color, alignment, and effects like bold, underline and italics
• Print
• Bring home to parents
• Poem can be posted at Kid Authors

Field Trip: Take a virtual field trip to a butterfly garden at the Butterfly Conservatory, click on Virtual Tour.