Monarchs in First Grade

     Monarchs in First Grade

First graders have begun exploring the life cycle of the Monarch beginning with the arrival of tiny caterpillars. 

They arrived last week, special delivery, and we began sharing what we know, wonder and noticed about these tiny monarchs. Some things they noticed and are wondering about are:

They have black heads.
They are black and white.
One has little horns.
There are horns on both sides.
I see green stuff in the cup. Maybe it is caterpillar baby food. 
They will need a bigger container to turn into butterflies.
Where are their eyes? 
How do they turn into butterflies?
Can you tell them apart, boys from girls?
Can poisonous caterpillars become poisonous butterflies?
What is the front and what is the back?
How do they sleep?

 Each day they continue to make observational drawings and write about what they see. Teachers help first graders use scientific observations and guide them to record what they see with kid writing, copying words they generated in the monarch word bank and encourage them to add colorfully detailed illustrations. Below is their list of words they generated in our brainstorm:

As we continue to notice the changes and rapid growth, first graders research the life cycle, drawing the stages with non-fiction books and videos.  As they learn about each stage they are excited to act them out.

They begin as tiny eggs, and then, POP, out of the egg they come!

Next they acted out the caterpillar shedding their skin. They were fascinated to learn they molt, or shed, 4 to 5 times before they stop growing as a caterpillar.

We look forward to witnessing the amazing transformation of our caterpillars in the weeks to come! At the same time, first graders demonstrate their new knowledge and understanding while they continue to transform and grow as naturalists and scientists, authors and artists, and awesome community members in First Grade! 

               Next, all about Milkweed!