Previous Lesson  |  Next Lesson  |  Return to Research Ideas  |  Resources for Teachers  |  Site Overview

Background

In this lesson, students will practice data collection by recording their observations on a calendar. They can keep a weekly calendar, recording descriptions of their caterpillars each day of the week. They also can keep a monthly class calendar, recording a summary of the development stages of their classroom larvae. This approach to data collection enables the student to see patterns of development over time.

• Individual caterpillars to observe
• Weekly Calendar (student handout page)
• Wall-size calendar, available in most stationery stores
• Art supplies

Procedure

1. Keep caterpillars in individual containers on student desks so that individual development can be tracked.
2. Have children draw or describe "their" caterpillars each day. One way to do this is to give each student a copy of the Weekly Calendar. Students should record when their caterpillar pupates by drawing a picture of a pupa on the calendar.
3. Record student data on a class calendar. Make an entry for each caterpillar, when it forms a "J", when it pupates, and when the adult butterfly emerges. You could use a separate calendar for each caterpillar if you keep track of individuals, or show all individuals on one calendar. We have included an example of a class calendar tracking the development of 5 monarchs.

• Weekly Calendar "Caterpillar to Butterfly"

• Sample Class Calendar  
  

Previous Lesson  |  Next Lesson  |  Return to Research Ideas  |  Resources for Teachers  |  Site Overview

ã 2000 Monarchs in the Classroom  - University of Minnesota
Terms of Use