This lesson plan outlines teaching students about the life cycle of a butterfly over 45-60 minutes. Students will learn vocabulary words related to the butterfly's stages, watch a video on the life cycle, color and assemble pages showing each stage, and take a quiz. Formative assessment includes observing students' work, and a summative quiz will test their understanding of the order of the life cycle stages. The lesson aims to meet a state standard for students investigating animal life cycles.

1. Molly Groome
Lesson Plan Outline 1
University of Richmond
Lesson Plan Outline
Introduction
• Learning the life cycle of a butterfly
• Length of Lesson (estimated)- 45 minutes-1 hour
• VA Standards of Learning 2.4: The student will investigate and understand that plants and
animals undergo a series of orderly changes as they mature and grow. Key concepts include a)
animal life cycles.
•
Learning Objectives
Students will:
• be able to identify and explain the life cycle of a butterfly.
Teaching and Learning Sequence
Introduction/Anticipatory Set
• Introduce a butterfly’s life cycle by reading the book Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert aloud to
the entire class.
• Introduce or re-introduce the vocabulary words egg, caterpillar, pupa, chrysalis, and larva..
• As a whole class students will complete vocabulary index cards. Students will be given a list
of the words printed out. They will copy the words onto the front of an index card (one word
per card.) As a class, we will come up with definitions to the words. (Students will bring in
vocabulary index cards from home)
• Students will write the definition on the back of the index card and then draw a picture of the
word.
Lesson Development
• Students will watch “The Amazing Butterfly Life Cycle” video.
• Teacher will hand out the life cycle of a butterfly booklet.
• Students will color each page with crayons or colored pencils.
• Students will then cut out each page.
• Students will put the pages in the right order of the life cycle of a butterfly, remembering back
to the video for help.
• Teacher will come around and staple the pages together when the student is done.
Closure
• Students will review the butterfly life cycle as a class.
• Teacher will ask if students have any more questions regarding the life cycle of a butterfly.
• Teacher will remind students to review their butterfly life cycle booklet for a quiz tomorrow.
Homework
• Students will review the butterfly life cycle booklet and study for quiz.
Assessment
Formative
• Teacher will observe students completing vocabulary cards, and the butterfly life cycle
booklet.
Summative –
• Students will be given a short quiz to fill-in-the-blank the parts of the life cycle of a butterfly.
References
Commonwealth of Virginia Board of Education (2003). Science Standards of Learning Curriculum
Framework, 2nd Grade. Retrieved from http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/frameworks/science_
framewks/framework_science2.pdf.
Enchanted Learning (2009). Life Cycle of a Butterfly. Retrieved from http://www.enchantedlearning.com/

2. Molly Groome
Lesson Plan Outline 2
University of Richmond
subjects/butterfly/books/butterflylifecycle/.