Butterfly Life Cycle Activities (Playdough)

Looking for a few fun kindergarten butterfly life cycle activities to try?

How about one that includes a fine motor activity such as playdough?

Then keep reading to learn about our fun life cycle of the butterfly activity!

I wanted to create a fun way to introduce the amazing life cycle of a butterfly to my daughter but in a fun way.

I also wanted to ensure that I included all the major stages of adult butterflies :

• pupa stage
• larval stage
• adult stage

Today for #PlayfulPreschool I will be sharing with you our twist on this as well as a set of free cards and an entire pack with each stage of this life cycle.

Please note that affiliate links are used throughout this post for your convenience.

Okay, so I try to be as hands-on and creative as I can with my daughter’s learning and I figured… why not demonstrate the butterfly life cycle with playdough??

 Butterfly Life Cycle Science Resources

Below you will find a few resources such as books and games to help in your lesson.

Please note that affiliate links are used below for your convenience.

 Insect Lore Butterfly Growing Kit Toy – Includes Voucher Coupon for 5 Live Caterpillars to Butterflies From Caterpillar to Butterfly (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science 1) Creativity for Kids Sparkle N’ Grow Butterfly Terrarium 48 Plastic Prepared Microscope Slides Kit BONUS Butterfly Specimen for Kids Student Science STEM Education Caterpillar to Butterfly (Science for Toddlers) Creativity for Kids GROW Butterfly – Chia Seed Indoor Gardening Kit for Kids Jili Online 24Pcs Wild Animals Assorted Plastic Butterfly Insects Model Figures Toys Kids Educative Preschool Toys Montessori Butterfly Life Cycle Animal Match Cards and Figurines. Nomenclature Science Work Teaching

Butterfly Life Cycle Activities
(The Stages of A Butterfly)

The Female Adult Butterfly Lays A Lot of Eggs On a Host Plant

The first stage of a butterfly life cycle was made with green and orange playdough.

First,  I showed J the life cycle cards and explained each stage as best as I could.

I told her that the butterfly female lays her tiny eggs on leaves (I was going by the card).

These butterfly eggs are very small, maybe round or oval, and they actually stick to the leaves of plants. Imagine the tip of a pencil.

I also mentioned that butterflies love milkweed plants. This means the female butterfly will ay her eggs on the underside of milkweed leaves.

The Egg Hatches And its Food Time

In the second stage, the cylindrical egg or small oval egg hatches, a hungry caterpillar emerges.

This is the main reason why the mother butterfly lays her eggs on the type of leaf that she likes.

Different caterpillars like different types of leaves.

Remember that the caterpillars cannot travel anywhere so they eat where they are.

This tiny caterpillar then has his first meal.

The main goal of this stage is to eat as much as possible so that he has enough so that he can grow to his full length.

The caterpillar also outgrows his old skin several times. This is called molting.

The Third Stage- It’s Pupa Time

Once the caterpillar has outgrown its skin and reaches its full length, it creates a chrysalis or a pupa.

Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar is changing. This is called the pupal stage.

He is growing wings and his shape is changing.

He is working on the final growth stage of becoming a beautiful butterfly.

The Final Stage of A Butterfly- The Wonderful Winged Butterfly Emerges

Outside of the chrysalis, a beautiful butterfly emerges but his soft wings are pretty wet and fragile.

The butterfly then has to wait for about a four-hour period to allow its outer skin to harden.

Once its colorful wings are hardened, he then flies for the first time.

Eventually, the female butterfly will lay eggs and start the next generation of butterflies.

Science Info on the Amazing Transformation

My daughter wanted to know about the different species of butterflies and so I Googled “types of butterflies“

We researched (in our case looked at pictures and discussed):

• black swallowtails
• Monarch butterflies
• milkweed butterfly
• and other butterfly species

Once we were finished explaining the cards (which can be found at the end of this post) it was on to apply what we learned.

I grabbed her playdough and we decided to see how we can mold and create each stage.

Butterfly Life Cycle Extras

Inside the free download you will also find quite a few extras:

• alphabet puzzles
• short and long vowel puzzles
• addition activities
• other math activities
• reading games
• bonuses

Butterfly Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Life Cycle of the Butterfly in Art by Powerful Mothering
Playdough Butterfly Life Cycle by Learning 2 Walk
Butterfly Life Cycle Craft Necklace by Fun-A-Day

Ladybug Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Ladybug Life Cycle Song by Capri +3
Ladybug Life Cycle Activities and Sensory Play by Natural Beach Living

Frog Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Life Cycle of a Frog Sensory Bin by Mom Inspired Life
Fine-Motor Frog Life Cycle Craft by Live Over C’s
Frog Life Cycle Craft by Still Playing School

Mealworms Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Studying Mealworms with Kids by Raising Lifelong Learners

Sea Turtle Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Sea Turtle Life Cycle – Ordering by Rainy Day Mum

Praying Mantis Life Cycle Activities for Kids

Raise a Praying Mantis | Activities for Kids to Explore Life Cycles by The Educators’ Spin On It