* at the beginning of the week have the kids make a caterpillar from an egg carton...then they roll it up in a cocooc...construction paper...then we hung them around the room...we read stories all week about caterpillars/butterflies....then at the end of the week the children opened the cocoons.... (you had taped or glued tissue paper wings to them)......and out came a butterfly!!!!...it was great!!! ******************************************************** Basic butterfly ideas: • make a paint blotto on folded edge of paper, the unfold • gather a coffee filter into a butterfly shape with a twist tie, the filter can first be dipped and dyed in food coloring or dye • footprints or handprints make good butterflies ******************************************************** Here are some craft ideas, fingerplay, poem, and songs. Hope they help! BAGGIE BUTTERFLIES Fill the snack size ziplock bags with scraps of tissue paper and celophane and then gather them in the middle with a half of a chenille stem. Twish and bend the stem into antennae. CUPCAKE LINER BUTTERFLIES Flatten out cupcake liners and color with markers or crayons many different colors. Pinch liners in the center and wrap with pipe cleaners using the left over to make antenae. CRAYON BUTTERFLY SUN CATCHER Using vegetable peeler shave crayons into small thin pieces. Place a sheet of wax paper onto newspaper and sprinkly with crayon bits. Place another sheet of wax paper on top and press with a warm iron for a few seconds. Cut into butterfly shape and hang in a window. COFFEE FILTER BUTTERFLY Take a cone shaped coffee filter and cut it apart. Have the children watercolor each side. Paint a clothespin black and then attach the two wings with it. Then add a pipecleaner tied around the clothespin for the antennae. STAINED GLASS BUTTERFLIES Precut a butterfly shape out of construction paper. After cutting out the shape, cut out holes in various spots in the butterfly shape. The children can glue squares of colored tissue paper over the holes. Glue sticks work well for this...have children glue around hole and place tissue on top of glue. Trim around edge of butterfly if any tissue paper is overhanging. TISSUE PAPER BUTTERFLIES Cut butterfly shapes from white construction paper. Set out assorted colors of 1-inch tissue paper squares, small containers of water and paintbrushes. Have the children paint the butterfly shapes with water and place the tissue paper squares randonly on the shapes. Have them count to ten, then remove the wet tissue paper to view their colorful creations. CLOTHESPIN BUTTERFLIES Cut various colors of tissue paper into 12-inch squares. Set out slot-type clothespins, colored pipe cleaners and assorted felt-tip markers. Have the children pinch their tissue squares together in the middle and then insert the tissue into the slots of their clothespins to make wings. Have them wind pipe cleaners around the heads of their clothespins, leaving two small ends sticking up to form antennae. Let the children use felt-tip markers to color on eyes and to draw designs on the clothespin bodies of their butterflies. INK BLOT BUTTERFLIES Spread newspapers on a table. Set out tempera paints in individual containers with an eyedropper in each. Let the children use the eyedroppers to drop paint onto pieces of drawing paper and help them fold the papers in half. Have the children press and smooth their papers, then unfold them to reveal the designs they have made. When the paint has dried, cut the papers into butterfly shapes. LITTLE BUTTERFLY (sung to I'm A Little Teapot) I'm a little butterfly I have wings I fly around And see all things. When I see a flower That looks great I call out To all of my mates. THE BUTTERFLY I spin and spin my chrysalis (or cocoon) circle middle finger on opposite palm Then go to rest inside close hand around finger When I come out open fingers slowly I've changed indeed... Look! I'm a butterfly! fly fingers away I'M A BUTTERFLY (sung to: Skip to My Lou) I'm a butterfly, come fly with me I'm a butterfly, come fly with me I'm a butterfly, come fly with me Come fly with me, my darling A butterfly, come drink nectar with me A butterfly, come drink nectar with me A butterfly, come drink nectar with me Drink nectar with me, my darling. A butterfly, now sleep like me A butterfly, now sleep like me A butterfly, now sleep like me Come sleep like me, my darling. BUTTERFLIES IN FLIGHT Butterflies in flight, Are such a lovely sight. They dart about...1, 2, Way up high into the wild blue. Their colors are so lovely and bright, in orange, yellow, green and white. Butterflies in flight, Are beautiful both day and night. * Didn't want you to forget to include a list of books with your butterfly ideas. We can't forget Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar. And if anyone does butterflies, be sure to order a Butterfly Garden. By the way, I found out that they can be ordered through Discount School Supplies at a lower price than the Insect Lore Catalogs. * Use a folded coffee filter, dampen or spritz with water and squirt food coloring onto filter. After colors have run and blended open filter to dry. While drying, distribute wooden clothes pins for students to decorate. Then have students clasp filter with clothes pin (great for fine motor practice) and fan out the filter to give it symmetrical butterfly effect. Finally use black or brown ( or any color you desire!) pipe cleaners...have children attach to clothes pin for antenni. * Have you ever used coffee filters and eyedroppers? Fill muffin tins with water and food coloring. Let the children use the eyedropped to pick up the colored water. ( great for small motor skills ) Have children release the eyedropper on the filter. Blott...let dry...and then gather all of the filter up into a regular clothes pin. Make eyes and pipe clearn atennas and there you go...you have your butterfly. Another fun way....use blob art. Let the children paint a blob...on construction paper. Fold...un unfold. Looks like a butterfly already...cut and let children do the rest. (eyes and etc) Have fun....making butterfly nets is one of my favorties...and going on a butterfly hunt. We cant always be sure that we can find any, so I make paperbutterflies ahead and have a parent "plant" them in our trees. The kids squeal with excitment when they find them,