Introduction | Task | Process | Resources | Evaluation | ConclusionIntroduction "In the light of the moon a little egg lay on a leaf. One sunny Sunday, the caterpillar was hatched out of a tiny egg. He was very hungry. On Monday, he ate through one apple; on Tuesday, he ate through three plums--and still he was hungry. Full at last, he made a cocoon around himself and went to sleep, to wake up a few weeks later wonderfully transformed into a butterfly!"
Excerpt from The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric CarleHave you ever wondered what it would be like to be a beautiful butterfly. Can you imagine what it would be like to transform from a little egg into a beautiful butterfly? Living your life day to day flying around the sky landing on flowers, tree branches or even people's noses.
Well start imagining!! You are now going to enter the world of a butterfly. However, before you fly right through, you will need to find information about yourself and your lifestyle. First, you will need to learn about the 4 stages of your life cycle. Then, you will choose any butterfly that you would like to become that is found in New York State. You will then learn a little bit about you life. You will find out your name, in which area of New York you live, the weather in that area, and if there are any threats to your life!!!!
For this assignment, you will be creating an oral and written report including all the above information about your new life as a butterfly. A worksheet is provided to help guide you through the writing process. You will also be making a poster board with your life cycle as a butterfly.
Resources
- Go to the life cycle links and explore the four stages of a butterfly.
- In your butterfly journal write down and draw a picture of these 4 stages of your life as a butterfly
- Next using your butterfly worksheet as a guide, go to the butterflies in New York Links and choose a butterfly that can be found in New York State that you would like to become
- On the worksheet, write the name of the butterfly you would like to become
- Write down which part of the state you could be located.
- Go to the weather link and find out the weather for the area you now live in. Write down what the weather is like in the area on your butterfly worksheet.
- Examine your natural preditors by going to the defense links. You will find there which animals may be a threat to your survival. Write these animals names and how they may threaten you on your butterfly worksheet.
- Write a two page report on your life as butterfly. Make sure you include all the information above and how you felt about living a butterflies life.
- Make a poster board of the 4 stages of a butterflies life cycle including what happens during each stage.
- Make an oral presentation to your classmates
Links to Find Butterflies in New York
http://butterflywebsite.com/atlas/index.cfm
http://butterflywebsite.com/Articles/npwc/butterflychecklist.htmLife Cycle Links
http://www.hhmi.org/coolscience/butterfly/
http://ehrweb.aaas.org/scinetlinks/curriculum/sld001.htmWeather Links
http://www.weather.com/
http://www.wunderground.com/US/NY/Defense Links
http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/butterflies/ecology.html
http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/butterflies/defense.html
http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/butterflies/faq.htmlGeneral Search Engines
http://www.google.com/
"He built a small house, called a cocoon, around himself. He stay inside for more than two weeks. Then he nibbled a hole in the cocoon, pushed his way out and ...he was a beautiful butterfly!"
Excerpt from The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric CarleNow that you have experienced life as a butterfly, how did your life as a butterfly compare to your human life? Would you trade in your present life to become a butterfly if you could?
Copyright © 2003
by Katie Jennings, Alex Soler & Katherine Wright
(All Rights Reserved)
