This post has monarch butterfly life cycle cards and matching free printable activity. Did you know there is a map showing the monarch migration? This is the link for the 2016 map. Students can find their own state and keep track of when the butterflies might arrive, or see if they are already there. It is April and they have not made it to Minnesota as yet.
Our neighbor made this 10 minute video of the entire life-cycle of the Monarch. At the end of the video, his granddaughter releases a butterfly. He participated in University research studies which kept him quite busy in the summer collecting eggs and raising butterflies.
Monarch Butterfly Metamorphosis
Interesting fact! At this site, there are pictures to show children how to tell the difference between a boy and girl butterfly. The males have a dot on each back wing, while the females do not.
Monarch-butterfly-3-part-cards-Montessori
The 3-part cards include facts so they are appropriate for primary grade levels. For different ages and abilities of learners, use the cards as fits the child or classroom. Pre-K and K students could use the top two cards on each page for matching pictures and/or vocabulary words. Parents and teachers could read the words for the children. For older children, all four cards could be introduced at first. When the child has learned the material, just use the reading cards for review. Rereading is so wonderful for increasing oral reading fluency.
These cards would also work with the Safari Ltd. monarch butterfly life-cycle figurines.
Here is a wonderful free product on Teachers Pay Teachers by Gramma Elliott Clip Art, milkweed posters for your homeschool or classroom. Someone in the Montessori on a Budget Facebook group asked if cards like this were available for free, so I thought I could make some. Spring has not fully sprung in Minnesota and butterfly thoughts are positive!
Thank you for reading, Carolyn