Students follow the life cycle of a butterfly — from egg to caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly — discovering that many animals change shape completely as they grow up.
Students will be able to…
A caterpillar and a butterfly look nothing alike — yet they are the same animal! How does a crawling caterpillar become a flying butterfly?
Project this and have students place the butterfly’s life-cycle stages in order — from egg all the way to butterfly.
Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.
A caterpillar and a butterfly — the SAME animal? How?
Students investigate.
Teacher explains.
Apply.
Three quick checks.
Aligned to Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core literacy. State-standard crosswalks available on request.
Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles.
Compare the diversity of life in different habitats.
Describe the connection between a series of events or steps in a text.
Recall information from experiences to answer a question.
Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.
Have students compare the butterfly’s life cycle to a frog’s (egg → tadpole → froglet → frog) and find what is alike. A printable life-cycle sheet is in the Science library.
Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.
A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.
A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.