My DD's Kindergarten class...

[Beanie]

at the beginning of the year, they went out and found caterpillars to keep in their classroom. The caterpillars made cocoons on the leaves in the netting and yesterday they hatched into Monarch Butterflies! That afternoon, they released the Butterflies into the trees! Here are a few pictures of them doing that...

<b>This is one of the Monarch Butterflies they hatched</b>
<img src="http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/pd5461255609ee66e52bcb9ad0ee0ae91/f6faf7b2.jpg">

<b>Getting ready to release them...</b>
<img src="http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p75dbfc657eee24365e815bc2cd63fc75/f6faf7bb.jpg">

<b>After they released one, they watched it fly away</b>
<img src="http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p3c61a39e604c32161a30c87d44a70f84/f6faf709.jpg">

<b>Waving Goodbye to their butterflies...</b>
<img src="http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p0cde39fc7b61aa52dde791bb2ed81bc7/f6faf7a8.jpg">

...and just in case anyone was wondering, I did ask all the parents permission to post this on the internet beforehand.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Cool!

 

[MosMom]

Mo's class did this last year. It was so neat! She could come home talking about the stages the butterflies were going through and we had to go out and hunt down special leaves for them. So cute!

 

[HollyJoy]

OH how fun!!!

 

[JESW]

Isn't that a GREAT thing to do?

We did it as a family and the two hatched in our dining room! I do have pictures of DS releasing them outside.

Jill

 

[JetMom]

I do this with my pre-schoolers every spring. It is always a highlight!

 

[shortbun]

Fun!
On the other hand-DS's class is raising mealy worms. Ugh!
They love it.

 

[pumba]

I am always amazed at how the teachers find these caterpillas and then know that they are monarchs........the kids know the names of it all too.........thanks for showing us beanie

 

[Boo'sMom]

Pumba:
Keep your eye out for a caterpillar that looks like this:

Monarch caterpillars are usually pretty easy to spot....if you're lucky enough to have them around.

 

[Kteacher]

Our caterpillars are almost ready to go into "J" formation This is one of my favorite units of the year

 

[jjskribs]

They know they are Monarchs because they find them on milkweed plants. It's the only thing that the caterpillars eat. They are very distinctive looking caterpillars.

We do Painted Lady butterflies every spring and the kids always love it.

Just a little "science" lesson. Butterflies emerge from a chrysalis while moths spin a cocoon.

 

[Dan Murphy]

What a neat idea and what nice pictures, Bean!! Wish they did that when I was a kid in school. Very nice!!!!!

 

[tiggerlover]

Oh what fun!!! Thanks so much for sharing your pictures. I love when kids get to do things like this, they get so much out of the hands-on experience. DS's class last year had eggs that they watched until they hatched into baby ducklings....it was so much fun. I bet the kids just loved doing this.

 

[Beanie]

Originally posted by tiggerlover
DS's class last year had eggs that they watched until they hatched into baby ducklings....it was so much fun. I bet the kids just loved doing this.

The Kindergarten classes here do that in the Spring! It is so much fun to watch them hatch!! My sons class last year hatched three ducklings.