Our theme this week was caterpillars and butterflies!
Paper Towel Pictures
This is a fun activity we did last year during quarantine that was due for a repeat--magically appearing pictures. First I drew a caterpillar on the front of a folded paper towel.
Then Sweet E dropped it into a bucket of water.
And the caterpillar changed into a butterfly! I had secretly drawn wings on the second layer, so when the water seeped through, it could be seen as one picture.
She was so surprised to see it that first time!
Then she dropped in the other:
It was just like magic!
She loved it so much, she asked for more. So I quickly drew two more caterpillars (and secret wings).
And she dropped them into the bucket one at a time.
She had so much fun, she wanted to make her own next.
It was too cute!
She asked me to look away so I could be surprised by the wings too. Then it was ready to drop into the bucket of water!
Ta-da!
She actually made about four of them herself! What a great way to start the week!
Caterpillar Count Game
This free printable came from Learn with Math Games. We took turns rolling the die, and dotting that many circles, until we reached the end!
Very Hungry Caterpillar Do-A-Dot
These free printables came from Totschooling. First up, some one-to-one correspondence!
And then, a beginning sounds page! This was great practice!
Learning Notebook
Just a quick activity for her notebook. Figure out which path leads to the flower by using her finger to trace them.
Then, also in her notebook, she filled in the missing numbers up to 30, with circle stickers.
Butterfly Symmetry - Art
This is a classic craft! I folded a piece of cardstock in half, and invited Sweet E to paint half of the butterfly.
When she was happy with it, we folded it in half the other way, and rubbed around so the paint could transfer over to the other side.
It made such a beautiful, and symmetrical, butterfly! So we talked a little about what that means.
And then she made another one!
They came out adorable! Later we cut them out, and hung them up on the artwork wall!
Butterfly Symmetry - Pattern Blocks
Continuing with the idea of symmetry, I created these pattern block templates in Photoshop Elements.
She did such a great job, building symmetrical designs!
I left one page blank, so she could create her own symmetrical pattern too!
I loved how she started using two hands at once! It inspired a little drawing activity next...
Symmetrical Drawing - Left and Right Hand
While were talking about symmetry, I thought I'd have her give this drawing activity a try. Using her left and right hand at the same time, she started off with some circles.
And then I invited her to turn them into a butterfly, to stay in theme. So cute!
Pom Pom Transfer
Color matching and fine motor work! Free printable from Fairy Poppins!
The Life Cycle of a Butterfly
I printed a free template from Teachers Pay Teachers. I wanted our discussion on the life cycle to be very hands-on, so we used playdough to discuss each stage.
We read Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar as we went. So once I read the first page, we stopped and she sculpted eggs.
We kept reading, and proceeded to build a caterpillar and a cocoon.
Till finally, at the end of the story, he transforms into a butterfly. So she rolled out the dough, and cut out a butterfly shape.
It really helped her understand the whole process. I explained how the butterfly would lay eggs, which would hatch into caterpillars, who would build cocoons, and emerge as a butterflies, who would then lay eggs, etc. And showed her how the cycle went round and round.
She loves this book so much, and asked to do the whole life cycle again!
So we did. :)
Alphabet Review
As we near the end of our homeschool year I've decided to review a few letters each week. So we used our playdough to cut out a few butterflies, onto which I stamped the uppercase letters A-E. Then I invited Sweet E to stamp the lowercase letters onto the other wing of each.
She had no trouble, even in distinguishing b from d. I was so pleased; she's come so far this year!
We continued our review of each of these letters by writing them on her dry erase board.
Shape Scavenger Hunt
To end our fun week, I pulled out her shape puzzle and some costume wings from her dress-up bin. I placed the pieces throughout the backyard, then sent my little butterfly in search of shapes!
She looooves scavenger hunts, so this was a perfect end to our week. And the weather is getting so nice!
After completing her puzzle, she asked me to hide the pieces again, and she went out searching for them one more time. Such fun!
