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Butterfly Metamorphosis (Grade 2-3)

Master Teacher

Hope C. Robinson

Time Allotment

One 90-minute class period

Overview

This lesson is one that should be used at the end of second grade or at the beginning of third grade. It is used to teach the process of butterfly metamorphosis. This lesson is introduced with students hearing the story Charlie the Caterpillar. Students will then watch a video about how the stages of metamorphosis occur and visit an interactive butterfly Web site.

Subject Matter

Science

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

Name each stage in butterfly metamorphosis;
Discuss metamorphosis;
Describe ways that butterflies use camouflage in different stages of metamorphosis.

South Carolina Standards

Visit Web site

Second Grade Science

II.B. Life Cycles of Organisms

2.a. Investigate that some animals go through distinct stages (metamorphosis) during their lives.

Third Grade Science

I.A. Process Skills:

6. Predict-Use prior knowledge and observations to identify andexplain in advance what will happen.

II.A. Characteristics of Organisms:

2.a. Investigate and predict how structural adaptations, such as camouflage, function to allow animals to respond to life's needs.

Media Components

Video

Backyard Safari, Lesson 3: "Butterflies." This video takes place in a butterfly garden. Students can see the stages of a butterfly as it goes through metamorphosis and learn why certain things happen in each stage.

(Length: 25 minutes)

Web Site

"Zoom Butterfly-All About Butterflies!" - This Web site is a page of links about butterflies. Students can see each stage in a close-up, printable version. There are also print-outs that can be colored, an illustrated butterfly dictionary, and other activities.

Materials

Charlie the Caterpillar by Dom DeLuise; published by Aladdin Paperbacks, 1990
Teacher example of "Butterfly Writing"
Stages of the Butterfly Life Cycle
Student "Butterfly Writing" Sheet

Equipment

television and VCR
computer with Internet access
AverKey

Prep for Teachers

Make copies of Student Butterfly Writing Sheet for each student.
Purchase the book Charlie the Caterpillar or check it out from the library.
Preview the Backyard Safari video.
Preview the Life Cycle of a Butterfly Web site and bookmark it.
When using media, always provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction, a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after viewing of video segments, Web sites or other multimedia elements.

Introductory Activity

Step 1: Discuss with students what they already know about metamorphosis and the life cycle of a butterfly.

Step 2: Read the story Charlie the Caterpillar to the class. After reading the story, discuss what changes Charlie went through in the story. (Answer: Charlie felt ugly and he did not have any friends. He was a caterpillar, then a cocoon, and finally a butterfly.)

Learning Activities

Step 1: Watch the Backyard Safari video. After the introduction, listen until after the man says, "Whoever it was left their luggage." PAUSE to provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking students, "Why did he think someone stole his caterpillar?" (Answer: It is gone and there is something left on the tree.)

Step 2: PLAY the video and listen until the narrator says, "The life cycle of a butterfly begins when a caterpillar hatches from its tiny egg." Then PAUSE to provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking, "What is the first stage in the life cycle of a butterfly?" (Answer: egg)

Step 3: Press PLAY and watch until the narrator says, "The young caterpillar must eat almost continuously in order to store up the energy necessary for metamorphosis," then PAUSE to provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking students, "What does the caterpillar have to do to prepare for metamorphosis?" (Answer: Eat almost continuously.)

Step 4: PLAY the video again and watch until the woman says, "Who eats more for their size-my cousin or my caterpillar?" Provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking students to predict who they think eats more for their size. (Answers will vary.)

Step 5: Press PLAY, then students will hear the correct answer (caterpillar). Continue to PLAY until she says, "Boy-caterpillars can be real tricksters, huh?" and then provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking students to name things that caterpillars do to protect themselves from being eaten. (Answers: blend into leaves and branches, sway like a leaf, show spikes, show fake face on tail.)

Step 6: Press PAUSE when she says, "I like it," and provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking, "In what ways does a chrysalis, like a caterpillar, protect itself?" (Answers: blends into leaves and branches, has a false face on its body to scare away predators.)

Step 7: Press PAUSE after the man says, "Let's let it dry a little bit more" and provide a Focus for Media Interaction by asking students, "Are butterflies ready to fly when they first come out of the chrysalis?" (Answer: No-wings are wet.) Ask: "What must happen first?" (Answer: Wings must dry.) Then PLAY until she says, "Don't forget to write." Then STOP.

Culminating Activity

Step 1: Show pictures from the Zoom Butterfly Web site. Show each stage in a close-up view and read the description of each to the class.

Step 2: Tell students to imagine themselves as Charlie the Caterpillar when he was an egg. They must pretend that they have experienced all four stages of metamorphosis (the duration is not important).

Step 3: Show the students the Activity Sheets illustrating the different stages of the butterfly life cycle. Then, read the teacher example of "Butterfly Writing." Next, pass out the Student Butterfly Writing Sheet and tell students to write about what it would be like to experience metamorphosis from beginning to end of the cycle.

Assessment

"Butterfly Writing" activity

Cross-Curricular Extensions

Art: Make a metamorphosis mobile. Students will make cut-outs or use other materials to make each stage in the life cycle. Other materials can be seeds/pebbles for the egg; a milk carton for the caterpillar; pantyhose stuffed with cotton for the chrysalis; and tissue paper with a clothespin in the middle for the butterfly. They can then be connected to a hanger to make a mobile. (Note to Teacher: You might want to show the students the stages of the butterfly life cycle again before starting this activity.)

Literature: Have students write an acrostic poem using the letters in the word "Metamorphosis."

Math: Record the length of each stage of butterfly metamorphosis.

Observe symmetry in butterflies.

Community Connections

If there is a nearby butterfly garden, plan a field trip. Students will have the opportunity to observe the different stages of metamorphosis.
Invite an entomologist to speak to the class about insects (specifically butterflies).