- The document is a lesson plan for teaching 4th grade students about how butterflies flap their wings. - It includes standards addressed, learning objectives, activities comparing bird and butterfly flight, explanations of how butterflies contract their bodies to flap wings without muscles in the wings, diagrams, videos, readings, and a craft project to build a model of a butterfly flapping its wings using a squishy ball. - The lesson incorporates hands-on learning, research, art, and writing to teach students about butterfly anatomy and flight in an engaging way aligned to state standards.

1. How Do
Butterflies Flap
Their Wings?
Amy Zschaber / azschaber@stancoe.org
A STEAM Lesson
Aligned to 4th grade CCSS, NGSS, and
California Visual Arts Standards

2. 4th Grade Standards Addressed
• Common Core Math Standard
– CCSS.Math.Content.4.G.A.3
• Next Generation Science Standard
– NGSS 4-LSI-I
• California Visual Arts Standard
– Grade Four 1.5, 2.3, 5.2
• Common Core Writing Standard
– CCSS.Writing.Content.4.2

3. How is the
flight of
these
animals
the same?
How is
their flight
different?

4. How do
you think
moths and
butterflies
fly?

5. Let’s compare bird flight with butterfly
flight

6. Birds Butterflies
Type of skin
Type of skeleton
Fur, skin, scales, chiton,
feathers
Muscles
Size
Food
Young
Life Span

7. Birds Butterflies
Type of skin Skin na
Type of skeleton Bones exoskeleton
Fur, skin, scales, chiton,
feathers
Skin and feathers chiton / scales
Muscles Yes ?
Size Small Very small
Food
Varies; mostly plants some
meat
Nectar from flowers, leaves
when caterpillars
Young Eggs Eggs
Life Span Years months

8. Bird bones are hollow. This helps them
to be light enough for flight. Bird wings
are made up of bones, muscles, skin,
and feathers.
Butterfly wings are solid. They have
veins. Butterfly wings are made up of
veins and chiton (the butterfly
“scales”).

9. Bird bones are hollow. This helps them
to be light enough for flight. Bird wings
are made up of bones, muscles, skin,
and feathers.
Butterfly wings are solid. They have
veins. Butterfly wings are made up of
veins and chiton (the butterfly
“scales”).
If butterflies do not have muscles in their wings,
how do they move their wings?

10. They contract their bodies!
- Bees, butterflies, moths, flies, and
wasps contract their bodies in order
to fly.
- Squeeze your body as tight as you
can. Then, release! Can you feel that
movement? That is you contracting
your body.
- When insects contract their bodies
(using muscles), the movement on
their exoskeltons makes their wings
flap.
- Flapping wings = flight!
Check out this super slo-mo video of a bee
contracting its body to fly: https://goo.gl/enjdiU

11. Read the text, Great Migrations: Butterflies
by Laura Marsh
• https://goo.gl/iDQwU8

12. Watch the video, Monarch Butterflies
Migration to Mexico
• https://goo.gl/GPdhFR

13. Read, Just the Right Size: Why Big Animals
are Big and Little Animals are Little
by Nicola Davies
https://goo.gl/Kd0NTd

14. Fill out
“Monarch
Butterfly
Information
Table” with
students
Copy of table here:
https://goo.gl/LgWjO0

15. In the “notes”
section,
hypothesize
what you can
infer about
Monarchs from
what you
learned in Just
the Right Size

16. Butterflies are symmetrical. You can see
their symmetry in the shapes of their
bodies and in the patterns on their bodies.
What is symmetry?

17. Line Symmetry
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

18. The most common type of symmetry is
line or mirror symmetry. A picture
that can be folded in such a way that
one-half of it is an exact reflection is
said to have line symmetry.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

19. Our color blot pictures have line symmetry.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

20. Where is the line of symmetry here?
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

21. The two parts of the original pictures
are mirror images of each other and are
said to be congruent. Congruent means
that
both parts have the
same shape and the
same size.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

22. Line symmetry is found in nature in
all kinds of creatures and plants.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

23. Where are the lines of symmetry here?
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

24. Human
faces have
line
symmetry.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

25. Masks can be symmetrical.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

26. Human bodies are symmetrical
as well.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

27. Line
symmetry
can be found in
human-made
objects.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

28. Any picture can be flipped
to create line symmetry.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

29. Many artworks have lines of symmetry.
Symmetry ppt from: https://goo.gl/RcqiAl

30. This artwork by Joel Penkman has symmetry

31. This artwork by Wan Luyan has symmetry

32. This artwork by Sara Soderholm has symmetry

33. This artwork has symmetry

34. This artwork by Georgia O’Keefe has
symmetry

35. Use what you
know about
symmetry and
butterflies to
create a
model
demonstrating
how a
butterfly flaps
its wings

36. Materials Needed (Non-Digital Version)
• 1 squishy ball
• Markers
• 2 copies of butterfly
template
– https://goo.gl/YIWC8N
• X-Acto blade
• Scissors
• 1 Pipe cleaner
• School glue
• Sharpie

37. Materials Needed (Digital Version)
• 1 squishy ball
• Digital copy of butterfly
template
– https://goo.gl/YIWC8N
• Access to
https://paintz.zmyaro.com
• Access to a color printer
• X-Acto blade
• Scissors
• 1 Pipe cleaner
• School glue
• Sharpie

38. Make sure you
have a solid,
squishy, ball

39. Teacher
Pre-Planning:
Pretend the
ball is a
clock. Cut a
vertical slit at
10 and 2

40. Students and
Teacher:
Practice
inserting the
popsicle
sticks into
the ball. Do
the sticks
move when
the ball
moves?

41. Non-Digital:
Give 2
printed
copies of
the Butterfly
Template to
each
student

42. Digital:
Students go to
https://paintz.zmyaro.com/
and follow the
“Designing Butterfly
Wings Online”
directions
https://goo.gl/rAvYLz

43. Non-Digital
Color both
butterfly
templates.
The designs
should be
symmetrical

44. Digital:
Students save colored
design and print 2
copies.
“Designing Butterfly
Wings Online”
directions
https://goo.gl/rAvYLz

45. Everyone
should now
have 2
copies of
their
colored,
symmetrical
butterflies

46. Cut-out the
butterfly
wings.

47. Put the
sticks in the
squishy ball
Get glue
ready

48. Coat both
sides of one
of the sticks
with school
glue

49. Stick on one
of the wings

50. Cover the
back of the
wing with
school glue

51. Find the
matching
wing, and
stick it to
the back of
the wing on
the stick.
You now
have one
completed
wing.

52. Repeat
previous
steps and
finish the
second wing

53. If you have
any “extra”
white
showing on
your wings;
trim it with
the scissors.

54. You now have
2 totally
finished
wings!
Your work
should look
something like
this

55. Poke two
holes in-
between
your wings
with either
a sharp
pencil
(student) or
X-Acto blade
(teacher)

56. Stick a pipe
cleaner in
each hole to
make
antennae
for your
butterfly

57. Using your
scrap paper,
cut two
small circles.

58. Use the
black
sharpie to
turn the
circles into
eyes

59. Glue the
eyes to the
squishy ball

60. Use the
sharpie to
draw a smile
(optional)
on your
butterfly

62. Write about what you’ve learned
• You have learned that
– Butterflies are migratory animals
– Butterflies are symmetrical
– Butterflies flap their wings by contracting their
bodies
– Deforestation is hurting the Monarch migration
• What can people do to protect the migration
of the Monarch butterfly?

63. What can people do to protect the
migration of the Monarch butterfly?
• Introduce the main idea
– Support and develop the main idea with facts,
definitions, details, and/or quotes
– Link idea with words and phrases like, another, for
example, also, because
– Use strong vocabulary words
– Provide a closing statement related to your
information

64. What grade
would you
give
yourself?