Tots and Me... Growing Up Together: caterpillars

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Tuesday, April 30, 2019

Littles Learning Link Up: April 30, 2019: Butterfly Lapbook

Each month you will find:

A seasonal round-up (usually toward the beginning of the month)
Posts where I share what I have been up to with my early elementary children and the preschoolers I work with at our homeschool co-op (including occasional highlight posts where I share how we used ideas that have been linked up here on Littles Learning Link Up).

Each week, I will host a link up, where you can share either what you have been up to recently, or old posts that may go with the theme. Feel free to link up more than one post.

Each week I will continue to feature a couple of posts from those that have been linked up.

I hope you will continue to share your wonderful posts, and I hope you will find something new to try with your child(ren).

It would be great for everyone to stop by and visit the other linked-up posts as well. Check them out, leave some comments, pin those that interest you. Let's make this a real party and socialize with each other.

We have completely finished our metamorphosis/life cycle lessons in our class at co-op. Three weeks ago I shared the Pattern Caterpillar Crafts, two weeks ago I shared the Symmetrical Butterfly Crafts, and last week I shared the Paper Plate Butterfly Life Cycle we made. I decided to finish up our unit with another lapbook, as I did with the Tadpole/Frog Unit. This lapbook has some of the same elements, but I changed it up a bit.

We again started with a Life Cycle Flip Book. I found the printable images over at Preschool Mom. She has a whole slew of butterfly preschool printables.

The top/title page was a 4x4 inch square, while each page is 1 inch longer than the one before. This is a bit bigger than what I made the Tadpole/Frog life cycle book. I glued the words to the bottom of the page and the children had to put the pictures in order then glue them to the corresponding page.

We then made a comparison book between caterpillars and butterflies. Before making the book we discussed the differences.

I cut out a long rectangle of green construction paper and folded it into thirds. I had the children glue a picture of a butterfly to the "cover."

Then we opened that flap and glued the picture of the caterpillar to the right flap. We then glued on the information about the caterpillar on the left.

The children then opened the book completely, but then folded the left flap in so we could see the butterfly. Then we attached the information about the butterfly to the right flap (which is behind the picture of the caterpillar).

Here is what the book looks like when it is opened all the way.

We then worked on labeling the parts of the butterfly, the same way we did with the frog. We turned the lapbooks over and glued a picture of the butterfly to the back of the lapbook. This printable, from Living Life and Learning, was one that was shared on my Butterfly Metamorphosis/Life Cycle Fun Round Up.

We discussed each part and then the children were given the correct word to glue next to the line leading to that part.

In the Frog lapbook we included a pouch of number puzzles. This time I used a memory game printable from Preschool Mom. Instead of printing out two copies for each child to make a memory game, I gave them each one copy of each butterfly which I had cut in half so they could match the sides. I figured this went well with our lesson on symmetry. I decided to make the storage pouch so they could play the matching game over and over if they so chose.

I stapled the Butterfly Life Cycle book to the left flap. Then the children glued their "Let's Compare" book toward the top of the right flap and the storage pouch toward the bottom of the right flap. We then moved on to some math. I didn't want to do simple counting as we had done for the frog lapbook, where we glued the number of frogs to the lilypads. Instead, I wanted to try some simple addition.

Prior to class I had written the equations in the center of the lapbook. I had the children glue their butterflies under those equations. This butterfly template also came from Preschool Mom as it was easier than me having to draw a bunch of butterflies as I had done for our Symmetrical Butterfly Crafts. There I only needed 8 of each butterfly I made. This time, I needed 40! I just downloaded it, put it in a word processing document, and shrunk it down to the size I needed. Then I printed them out on orange construction paper.

Then we went around and applied the correct number of glue dots (with white school glue) to one butterfly at a time. Then they attached the black circles to the glue. Notice I made sure to make the butterflies symmetrical here too.

As I went around, I made sure to have the children say the equation, "One plus one equals two. Two plus two equals four," etc. When we were all done decorating the butterflies, I handed out the squared which I had written the numbers on. Then the children had to find the correct butterfly to glue these numbers under.

This completed our lapbook.

Butterfly Lapbook

Let's take a look at that review schedule real quick:

Last week I shared my review of Techie Homeschool Mom.

This week I will be sharing my review for the first two books in the Hamelin Stoop series from 12 Gates Publishing. Later in May you will find reviews for Pathway to Liberty, Elementary Math Games from The Critical Thinking Co., the book God is Better Than Trucks from Christian Focus, another picture book titled Nothing from Worthy Kids, a couple of online subscriptions from EdAlive, plus Supercharged Science.

In June I will share reviews for Simply Classical Writing from Memoria Press and Lightning Lit Grade 2 from Hewitt Homeschooling Resources.

Phew, yes we are still busy with review products.

Here are a couple of things I would like to share with you:

Butterfly Metamorphosis/Life Cycle Fun Round Up

Learning About Life Cycles: Tadpole/Frog Lessons

April Showers Brought May Flowers Round Up

Now onto:

Littles Learning Link Up Features

On my last Littles Learning Link Up post, there were 5 wonderful posts linked up. I will be sharing a randomly selected post and the top clicked on posts.

Please, don't forget to stop by other posts that are linked up. See what catches your eye, stop by, pin the post to a relevant board, and perhaps leave a comment to let the author of the blog know you have been by for a visit. I know I appreciate others commenting and letting me know they have read my posts, so I am sure others do too.

This week's randomly selected post is:

Kristen from A Mom's Quest to Teach shared Dice, Decks, and Boards: Koala Capers.

And here are this week's most clicked-on posts:

Nicole from Mama of Many Blessings shared Easy to Make Sun Catcher Kid Craft Idea.

Brandy from The Barefoot Mom shared Dandelion Investigation.

Join the Party!

I would love to have you join in this week! What sort of activities do you do with your young children? Do you have some favorite activities you would like to share? I invite you to link up below. I will be pinning posts on one of my relevant boards, and I would love to feature some of the activities each week from what is linked up.

Please know I may share a picture from your post and link back to it, along with sharing how we used your idea in our school time. By linking up you are giving me permission to use a picture from your post. I will ALWAYS give credit and link back. Additionally, if you choose to try out any of the ideas with your child, please make sure you give credit where credit is due.

Linky will be open through Monday night, to give me time to check out all the posts and get the Features organized. Please take the time to visit some of the other wonderful posts linked up.

No button currently, and there won't be one until I can figure it out seeing as Photobucket has changed things. Feel free to still share the picture in place of the button. Just link it to my Littles Learning Link Up permalink please.

I am sharing over at

Homeschool Collection {Monthly Round UP}

Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Littles Learning Link Up: April 23, 2019: Craft Highlight- Paper Plate Butterfly Life Cycle

Each month you will find:

A seasonal round-up (usually toward the beginning of the month)
Posts where I share what I have been up to with my early elementary children and the preschoolers I work with at our homeschool co-op (including occasional highlight posts where I share how we used ideas that have been linked up here on Littles Learning Link Up).

Each week, I will host a link up, where you can share either what you have been up to recently, or old posts that may go with the theme. Feel free to link up more than one post.

Each week I will continue to feature a couple of posts from those that have been linked up.

I hope you will continue to share your wonderful posts, and I hope you will find something new to try with your child(ren).

It would be great for everyone to stop by and visit the other linked-up posts as well. Check them out, leave some comments, pin those that interest you. Let's make this a real party and socialize with each other.

We have finished our metamorphosis/life cycle lessons in our class at co-op. Two weeks ago I shared the Pattern Caterpillar Crafts we made, and last week I shared the Symmetrical Butterfly Crafts. Then I decided we needed a craft that incorporated the actual life cycle. At the beginning of the month I shared my Butterfly Metamorphosis/Life Cycle Fun Round Up. There were so many great ideas that other bloggers allowed me to share in that compilation post, 30 to be exact. I decided I wanted to use one of them for our next-to-last Pre-K class at co-op.

I loved the idea of a Paper Plate Life Cycle, where you can see all the stages all at once, going around in a circle. There were a couple of different ideas for this craft shared on my round up, and I'm sure there are others out there. I decided to go with the one from over at Buggy and Buggy because it didn't require pompoms. I love using pompoms, don't get me wrong, but I had used them two weeks in a row for the caterpillars and the butterflies, so I wanted something different. As usual, I did make a couple of changes.

You will need

Paper plates (1 per child)
Yellow paint
Life cycle template from Buggy and Buddy
Green construction paper
Stick on gems
Black marker
Brown and black pipe cleaners
More pipe cleaners in assorted colors
Tissue paper (Green for the chrysalis plus various colors)
White glue
Scissors

In preparation I printed out the life cycle templates and cut them out. Older children could do the cutting on their own. I then cut the pipe cleaners to the required lengths: 2 inches for both the black and brown, I left the other pipe cleaners whole for now. Then I cut the tissue paper: 2 x 3 inches for the green, and 2 x 2 1/2 inches (with rounded corners) for the other colors. I also cut green paper into leaf shapes.

I do not have any pictures of the children working on this craft. It was actually "Teen Teach Day" at co-op while the parents had a relaxing morning of fellowship.

I laid everything out for the two teens who were teaching the Pre-K class that morning.

From what the girls told me, plus from the glimpse of the few finished crafts I saw, the children did a great job with this craft. I love that it was simple enough for me to leave with the teens along with some instructions, and each of the stage's parts sorted into plastic baggies.

These were the instructions I gave them:

Tell them they are going to be making a Butterfly Life Cycle Craft. Remind them that the butterfly lays eggs on a leaf, and in a while out pops a caterpillar. The caterpillar eats and eats, and grows and grows, until it forms a chrysalis. It goes through a change, called metamorphosis (have them repeat the word "metamorphosis" after you). After a while a butterfly emerges. Tell them they are going to make each stage.

First they are going to paint a paper plate. Place a paper plate in front of each child, and make sure to write their name on the back. Hand out the paintbrushes and put some yellow paint on the paper plate. Remind them to spread it out all over the paper plate. Have them make sure to get the edges covered. Give them a little more paint as needed. Set them aside to dry.

While the paint was drying they read some books and went to snack and gym.

Once the paper plates are dry, have them glue the life cycle circle to the middle of the paper plate with a glue stick.

Each bag is labeled for the different steps.

Step 1 (Eggs):

Have them draw a line down the middle of the leaf, then draw little lines. Demonstrate with the extra leaf. Have them turn the leaf over and apply glue with the glue stick. Attach the leaf in the egg wedge. Have them add 3 "eggs" using the gemstones.

Step 2:

Ask each child which two colors of pipe cleaners they want. You will just have to cut the pipe cleaners in half. When they all have their pipe cleaners, demonstrate how to twist them together. You may need to help some of them. When they are all twisted, hand each child a pencil and show them how to wrap the twisted pipe cleaners around and around the pencil. Again, they may need help. Then apply a line of white glue in the caterpillar wedge and have them attach their caterpillar.

Step 3 (Chrysalis):

Give them each a brown pipe cleaner twig and a piece of green tissue paper. Apple a line of white glue in the chrysalis wedge and have them attach the "twig." Then have them twist the ends of the green tissue paper together to form the chrysalis. It may help to have them wrap it around their finger diagonally, twist one end, then take it off of the finger and twist the other end. Put a small dot of glue next to the end of the twig and have them attach the chrysalis.

Step 4 (Butterfly):

Ask them what two colors of tissue paper they want for their butterfly. Give them each two. Then set a black pipe cleaner in front of them on the table, going up and down (vertically). Make sure the two pieces of tissue paper are on top of one another. Have the children grasp them in the center and pinch them. Have them tet them on top of the pipe cleaner, then wrap the pipe cleaner around the tissue paper. Help them twist it and form antennae. Then attach it to the last wedge with a line of white glue to attach to pipe cleaner and wings to.

If they had time at the end they were to read another book or two. I will be sharing all the books read during this unit in my Learning About Life Cycles: Caterpillar/Butterfly Lessons post.

I was able to get one picture of a child with a finished project (I asked her mom if she could send me a picture).

Paper Plate Butterfly Life Cycle

Let's take a look at that review schedule real quick:

Last week I shared my review of CrossWired Science.

This week I will be sharing my review of Techie Homeschool Mom.

In May I will share my review for the first two books in the Hamelin Stoop series from 12 Gates Publishing, Pathway to Liberty, Elementary Math Games from The Critical Thinking Co., the book God is Better Than Trucks from Christian Focus, another picture book titled Nothing from Worthy Kids, a couple of online subscriptions from EdAlive, plus Supercharged Science.

Phew, yes we are still busy with review products.

Here are a couple of things I would like to share with you:

Butterfly Metamorphosis/Life Cycle Fun Round Up

Learning About Life Cycles: Tadpole/Frog Lessons

April Showers Brought May Flowers Round Up

Now onto:

Littles Learning Link Up Features

On my last Littles Learning Link Up post, there were 9 wonderful posts linked up. I will be sharing a randomly selected post and the top clicked on posts.

This week's randomly selected post is:

Hilbert's Mazes shared Hand Drawn Owl Maze Part Two - Free Printable PDF.

And here are this week's most clicked-on posts:

Nicole from Mama of Many Blessings shared Friday Art: Stained Glass Butterflies

Brandy from The Barefoot Mom shared 20 Creative Ways to Practice Spelling Words.

Join the Party!

I am sharing over at

Tuesday, April 9, 2019

Littles Learning Link Up: April 9, 2019: Pattern Caterpillar Crafts

Each month you will find:

A seasonal round-up (usually toward the beginning of the month)
Posts where I share what I have been up to with my early elementary children and the preschoolers I work with at our homeschool co-op (including occasional highlight posts where I share how we used ideas that have been linked up here on Littles Learning Link Up).

Each week, I will host a link up, where you can share either what you have been up to recently, or old posts that may go with the theme. Feel free to link up more than one post.

Each week I will continue to feature a couple of posts from those that have been linked up.

Ten Little Caterpillars by Bill Martin Jr. and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.

The first book was read at the beginning of class, and the illustrations of the caterpillars really helped with our discussion about patterns. The second book was read toward the end of class when we were making our pattern caterpillar snack.

Now, onto this week's crafts!

Pattern Caterpillar Books

Here's what you will need:

Acrylic paint in various colors

Card stock cut into 3 pieces for the pages

Bottle caps (I used the size that goes on my water bottle)

Paper Plate

Permanent marker

We made three different pattern caterpillars for the books. The children were asked to choose two colors which would be used for each page. We put some of each color on a paper plate for them, and they got two bottle caps. That way they didn't mix the colors.

Though the colors were the same for each of their caterpillars, the patterns were not. I led them through making three different patterns.

ABABAB

ABBABB

and

AABBAA

I demonstrated on my own page, encouraging them to use either their first or second color, and as we got further into the caterpillar, asking them if they could figure out which color to use next.

Once we had three pages finished, we set them aside to dry.

Later on, they used the permanent markers to draw on faces.

Here are their almost finished books. I just had to staple the books together for the children to take home.

Our second craft that day was this cute little

Pompom Pattern Caterpillar:

Here is what you will need:

Craft sticks (one per child)

Brown acrylic paint

Paint brush

Q-tip tips

Pompoms

Wiggle eyes

White glue

Scissors

In preparation for this craft I cut the tips off of the Q-tips.

While the caterpillars for the Pattern Caterpillar Books were drying, the children painted their craft sticks brown.

These were also set aside to dry while the children went to snack and gym. When they came back they worked on finishing these two crafts, we also sang some songs, made a caterpillar counting book, and had a pattern caterpillar snack. I will be sharing the extra activities in my Learning About Life Cycles: Caterpillar/Butterfly Lessons post in a couple of weeks.

To finish the pompom caterpillars the children were asked to pick three colors of pompoms. They were given two of each color and asked to make a pattern out of them. Then we applied glue to the craft stick and the children attached the pompoms in the order they wanted.

Some did a ABCABC pattern, while others preferred AABBCC.

We then put a couple of dots of glue on the first pompom and the children attached the eyes. Then we put some glue between the first and second pompom for the children to stick the Q-tip tips into for antennae.

Unfortunately it gets quite hectic toward the end of class, and I didn't have a chance to take pictures of the finished caterpillars.

Let's take a look at that review schedule real quick:

A couple of weeks ago I shared my review for Poetry for the Grammar Stage from Memoria Press.

This month I will be sharing reviews of CrossWired Science and Techie Homeschool Mom.

In May I will share my review for the first two books in the Hamelin Stoop series from 12 Gates Publishing, Pathway to Liberty, Elementary Math Games from The Critical Thinking Co., the book God is Better Than Trucks from Christian Focus, another picture book titled Nothing from Worthy Kids, plus a couple of online subscriptions from EdAlive.

Phew, yes we are busy with review products again.

Here are a couple of things I would like to share with you:

Learning About Life Cycles: Tadpole/Frog Lessons

Springtime Fairy Round Up

Focusing on the Cross With 15 Jesus-Centered Books for Resurrection Sunday

Focusing on Jesus Resurrection Day Round Up

Now onto:

Littles Learning Link Up Features

On my last Littles Learning Link Up post, there were 9 wonderful posts linked up. I will be sharing a randomly selected post and the top clicked on posts.

This week's randomly selected post is: