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Resources for learning about the life cycle of a caterpillar

May 22, 2015 by Ellen Russell

 

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

We found a tree in our yard covered with these little caterpillars after a winter storm a couple weeks ago.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

We carefully put one in a jar with some leaves. Malcolm calls him the caterpillar with “crazy hair” because of all his spikes.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

Tim did some research, and thinks that he will actually turn into a moth rather than a butterfly, so we’ll see what happens!

The boys enjoy watching him every day, and are fascinated by the way he eats his leaves. We can even hear the crunch of him chewing if we’re really quiet.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

And just the other night, we watched him attach himself to a branch. He hasn’t started cocooning yet, but we are hoping to see that soon.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

We’ve been doing some neat projects and activities to learn about caterpillars and butterflies. I’m sharing some of our favorite resources below.

This post contains affiliate links. You can read my disclosure policy here.

Life Cycle of a Butterfly Resources

If you don’t have easy access to caterpillars where you live, you can get a fantastic butterfly kit here. It includes a voucher for you to order your caterpillars whenever you’re ready to use them with your kit.

We, of course, read The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

I found a great set of printable props for The Very Hungry Caterpillar here.  I printed, colored, and laminated these props last summer, so we pulled them back out to use again. The boys love acting out the book as we read it together.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

I downloaded these cut-and-paste activities about the butterfly life cycle from Lakeshore Learning.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

We also watched the butterfly episode of The Magic Schoolbus on Netflix.

Some other great resources for learning about caterpillars and The Very Hungry Caterpillar:

  • Here is a cute idea to make Very Hungry Caterpillar lacing cards.
  • Creating the life cycle of a butterfly with Legos. We might still do this activity because I think the boys would love it.
  • And here is a whole printable pack of Very Hungry Caterpillar activities.

I also made the boys a set of felt butterfly life cycle pieces to play with. You can see the tutorial here.

Very Hungry Caterpillar activities + learning with a live caterpillar www.createinthechaos.com

Here are even more fun caterpillar & butterfly books and activities you can use:


Filed Under: Activities, Crafts

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Geek, crafter, and papercraft maker - I love helping you craft more with your kids or students. Read more here!

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