Monarch Butterflies Teach St. Jerome Students about the Life Cycle

The First grade students at St. Jerome School got to learn first-hand the life cycle of a Monarch Butterfly. The children, being as inquisitive as they are found the caterpillars while playing outside at recess. The students were so excited about their discovery we decided to make our classroom their home. The first graders put the caterpillars in a butterfly net along with some milkweed, and over the course of a two week span watched the caterpillars form into the chrysalis stage. At the chrysalis stage the caterpillar spins a silk pad onto a horizontal substrate. It will then hang from that pad by the last pair of prolegs upside down. The caterpillar will shed its skin and begin to undergo a beautiful transformation called metamorphosis. The students were able to witness this stage along with witnessing the butterfly emerge after about a two week span. Also during this period, the children documented their observations until it was time to release the butterflies into their natural habitat. The students truly had a hands on experience seeing first-hand the life cycle of a monarch butterfly.

Katie Coan

Teacher at St. Jerome SCHOOL

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Volume 6, Issue 10, Posted 2:50 PM, 11.17.2014