Science Museum of Minnesota
Science Museum of Minnesota: Entomologist
Introduction to entomologists for young researchers. Site includes examples for more information about butterflies and entomologists.
![Scholastic: Butterfly Wings [Pdf] Activity](https://content.lessonplanet.com/knovation/original/34509-855a293790469d0123d26ec6a77b0f17.jpg?1661409422 "Scholastic: Butterfly Wings [Pdf] Activity")
Scholastic
Scholastic: Butterfly Wings [Pdf]
Two PDF formatted pages of butterfly teaching ideas. One page contains a reproducible poem, and the other has three teaching ideas.
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Introduction to the Milk Weed Ecosystem
Learners will be making observations and drawing insects they observe on milkweed plants. Then as a class, they will see if students can identify the insects they were able to observe by their description.
SMART Technologies
Smart: Butterfly Life Cycle
Learn and review the life cycle of a butterfly, with slides for taking notes. Includes a link to a great YouTube Video!
Ed Koday
Ivy Hall: Swallowtail Butterfly
Facts and images of the swallowtail butterfly are reference for young researchers.
Ed Koday
Web Archive: Red Admiral
The upperside of the red admiral butterfly is black with white spots near the wing tips. The forewing has a red band across the middle, and the hindwing has a red band along the edge. The red admirals that are born during the winter are...
Ed Koday
Web Archive: Mourningcloak
Mourningcloaks are a fairly large butterfly with a wing span of 6-10 cm, or 2 1/2 to 4 inches. Their upperside is purple-black, or brown-black, with a wide, bright yellow border on outer edges.There is a row of iridescent blue spots at...
Ed Koday
Web Archive: Painted Lady
The upperside of the wings is orange-brown with darker wing bases. The forewing has a black patch and white bar on leading edge, and the hindwing has a row of 5 small black spots and sometimes has blue scales. The underside has a black,...
Ed Koday
Web Archive: Buckeye Butterfly
The buckeye is a medium-sized butterfly with two large multicolored eyespots on hindwings and one large eyespot on forewings. The background color of the buckeye is mostly brown. Its forewing has 2 orange cell bars and 1 large eyespot...
Ed Koday
Web Archive: Viceroy Butterfly
The upperside of the viceroy is orange and black, and looks a lot like the monarch butterfly, except the viceroy has a black line across the hindwing and a single row of white dots in the black band on the edges of their wings. Where...
Other
Alphabet soup.com: Insects and Spiders
An extensive list of activities, songs, poems, and fingerplays are listed by alphabet-soup.com. Additional recipes, art projects, and literature connections are also included.
Other
North American Butterfly Association
Visit a butterfly center or start your own butterfly garden with information from the North American Butterfly Association.
University of Arizona
University of Arizona: Insect Mimicry
At this site from the University of Arizona, the two main types of mimicry, batesian and muelleries are discussed as they apply to butterflies. Discusses what each type is and how they are different.
PBS
Pbs Critter Guide: Butterfly
Can you name the four parts of the life cycle of the butterfly? This site features a brief but detailed description of the life cycle of a butterfly and some other fun facts about this interesting insect.
PBS
Pbs Kids: Plum Landing: Beautiful Butterfly
This PBS Kids activity is an extension of a Plum Landing episode featuring the canopy. Using the online tools, students will draw a picture of birdwing butterflies, living things that live in the canopy.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Hhmi: Cool Science for Kids: Butterflies Come From?
Hands-on activity for investigating the life stages of a butterfly.
Other
Billy Bear4 Kids: Butterflies and Bugs
BillyBear4Kids.com is a great butterfly resource with links to butterfly cut-outs, flashcards, bookmarks, crafts, online games, and more. Scroll down for reproducibles.
Other
Cocoon: Articles and Butterfly Life Cycle
A collection of cocoon and butterfly articles as well as stories, cartoons, coloring, and animations.
DOGO Media
Dogo News: Week of 6 2 14: Why Amazonian Butterflies Hover Over Turtles
Learn about the interesting and unusual relationship between butterflies and turtles in the Amazon rainforest.
A-Z Animals
A Z Animals: Animal Facts: Butterfly (Papilionoidea)
Illustrated entry describes the Butterfly with details about its habitat, physical characteristics, diet, life cycle, and other facts.
A-Z Animals
A Z Animals: Animal Facts: Purple Emperor (Apatura Iris )
Provides photographs and a fact card about the purple emperor butterfly. Discusses where they are found, physical characteristics, habitat, diet, reproduction, and threats to its population.
Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Tar Heel Reader: Where Do Butterflies Come From
A digital version of a butterfly life cycle picture book for young readers.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Journey North: Report Your Sightings
Observe various migratory species (hummingbirds, butterflies, etc.) and report their sightings online. Share and review the sightings with other students/classrooms to track hemispheric migratory patterns.
San Diego Zoo Global
San Diego Zoo: Kids: Animals: Butterfly: Winged Wonders
Provides basic facts about butterflies, with photographs and an explanation of metamorphosis.