Learning Exercise

• Education

• Grade School

As previously mentioned, teachers will need to be able to have reliable internet access or a broadband connection. Teachers may also need the latest adobe flash player installed in order to display the video. Teachers also need to go to the link “Monarch Life Cycle” icon, which is the third option (teacher resource) to display the video.

Students that have been provided with adequate opportunities to learn about the Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle will be able to successfully complete this assignment. Students that have investigated, analyzed, and studied concepts relating to the Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle (ie: the four stages, egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and adult butterfly) will be able to successfully complete this assignment. Since the video demonstrates the processes that occur during the Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle, it is imperative that students possess familiarity or had sufficient learning opportunities with the four stages of the Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle. Teachers will need to be able to have reliable access to the internet because this video is displayed online (www.nationalgeographic.com). Teachers will also need to have access to a projector or an ELMO machine so that all students will be able to see this particular video. Thus, this video will need to be displayed via an ELMO machine. Teachers will also need to have basic technological competency in order to successfully complete this activity (ie: browsing the internet, playing videos on the internet, etc.) Since this video demonstrates the processes that occur during the four stages of the Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle, teachers should show this video at the end of their respective butterfly life cycle units or life cycles of insects units.

Biology: Life Cycle (Butterfly)

• Student-centered
• Teacher-centered

Students will describe the life cycle of a Monarch Butterfly (ie: egg, caterpillar or larvae, chrysalis, and adult butterfly) through illustrations and labels. Students will participate in a class discussion sharing their respective observations, reactions, and thoughts in relation to the life cycle of a Monarch Butterfly. Students will apply concepts previously learned throughout the “insect life cycle unit or butterfly life cycle unit” when creating their illustrations and completing the worksheet. Students will reflect on their experience (watching the video) during the class discussion.

A class discussion will be utilized as an informal assessment of students’ progress towards the learning objectives. This informal assessment will also be utilized to provide clarification, assistance, feedback, etc. The discussion is designed to obtain students’ reactions, observations, and ideas pertaining to the video. Teachers can utilize the following questions: “What did you see?” “What did the egg stage look like?”, and “What stages of the butterfly cycle did you see?” Thus, teachers can provide clarification, assistance, or feedback to students based on students’ responses to these particular questions. Illustrations containing labels of a Monarch Butterfly’s life cycle will assess students’ progress (formal assessment) toward the learning objectives of this activity. Students’ responses will be used to determine whether they have satisfied the learning objectives of this activity. The worksheet students will use is found in the additional information URL section. The directions would include the following: Now that you have watched the life cycle of a butterfly, draw a picture of each stage of the butterfly’s life cycle in each box and include the labels egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and butterfly in each picture. Use your observations of the video to create your illustrations.