Getting Ready for Butterflies

So next week we will be diving into learning about other insects. One of my favorite art projects are these stained glass butterflies. An adult traces the outline of the butterfly on 2 12x18 inch pieces of black paper, then cuts out the inside shapes. The students use starch to adhere strips of tissue onto wax paper, then glue the butterfly pieces onto the outside of it. An adult cuts the completed butterflies out when they are dry. I know it is heavy on the adult work, but they look beautiful in the windows!

Bees

In May we enjoy a funfilled insct unit. My favorite week of the unit is when we study bees. GEMS has a FABULOUS unit on bees called "Buzzing a Hive." It is really hands on and interactive, and makes a nice change for us in spring when we are all feeling a little wiggly. The first lesson is to make a paper bee with all the correct parts. We look at real, dead bees and a poster of a bee and then set out to make our bees together. Another day we make paper flowers with stamen that have pollen on them after we have used cotton balls to find pollen in real flowers. Later in the week we make cells for our big hive with things in them you would find in a real bee hive. I use soybeans for an egg, a white pipe cleaner for larvae, waxed paper for wax, yellow powdered tempura for pollen and yellow paint for honey. More in the writing and art area coming soon!