Learn How to Make Butterflies Out of Art Materials

Project Title: Butterflies

Description: Students create butterflies out of non traditional materials.

Project Ideas: Compassion, Science, Intra-personal, Theatre, Body Kinesthetic.

Grade Level: preschool

Vocabulary: insects, metamorphosis, wings, antennae

Materials: liquid water colors, tin bowls/containers to put watercolors in, small plastic droppers, coffee filters, and pipe cleaners

Demo/Directions: 

1. Give each student a coffee filter.
2. Demonstrate how to use the plastic droppers (squeeze very gently so that watercolor doesn’t spray everywhere).
3. Once the butterflies have dried, pinch the center and wrap a pipe cleaner around it.
4. Have the student curl the antennae.
5. Students act out stages of a caterpillar pretending to be a caterpillar, then hug themselves in a cocoon, then break  free then flying around room looking for flowers.

Discussion:

1. In the classroom, we have discussed migration and travel based upon the life of monarch butterflies.
2. We have discussed the important role butterflies have as pollinators and their habitat needs. 
3. Life cycle of butterfly  discussion and comparison to the stages and challenges of kids growing up themselves.

Reflections: 

1. This is a great project for younger students to practice flying around classroom.
2. We have followed this project with older and more advanced students making origami butterflies.
3. We have stapled butterflies to string to make mobiles and installations.
4. Tissue paper flowers are a good follow up project after habitat discussion.
5. Symmetry paper butterfly painting (folding a paper in half and putting paint on one side students refold paper and then rub transferring paint for wings to other side of paper.

To go along with this project you could also create paper flowers! Visit http://artsphere.org/creating-legacies-through-art/ to download our free book of lesson plans, including instructions for creating paper flowers.

References:

Monarch Butterfly Migration and Overwintering – USDA Forest Servicewww.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/…/Monarch_Butterfly/migration/index.shtml The annual migration of North America’s monarch butterfly is a unique and amazing phenomenon. The monarch is the only butterfly known to make a two- way

As Dwindling Monarch Butterflies Make Their Migration, Feds Try to news.nationalgeographic.com/…/141010-monarch–butterfly–migration– threatened-plan/

Oct 10, 2014 … As Dwindling Monarch Butterflies Make Their Migration, Feds Try to …migrating monarch butterflies transformed the lush gardens of Cape May

Monarch Butterflies – National Geographic video.nationalgeographic.com/video/butterfly_monarch

The monarch butterfly’s wintering grounds in Mexico are in peril. Are the monarchs in trouble too?