CHDV 150 I ntroduction to Curriculum

Small Group Activity Form

Name of Activity: I am a Butterfly not a Moth.


Curriculum Area: Art


Length of Activity: 15-20 minutes.


Learning Objectives (specify at least three):
The child will be able to discuss varying degrees of color value of different species of butterflies and
moths with others. (SSD: 12)
The child will be able to speak about the different color contrasts between butterflies and moths. (LLD:
4)
The child will be able to use the available materials to create varying degrees of balance in their art
pieces. (COG: 4)

Material/Equipment Needed:
Acrylic paints (non toxic primary paints: Red, Blue, Yellow, and White), Watercolors, Tempera paints
and Finger-paints.
Papier mache (teacher made using flour and water)
Sugar and salt packets, soap flakes (for creating textures in artwork)
Paper plates (for mixing paint)
Paper cups (for holding water)
Different brushes in a variety of sizes (brushes like: toothbrushes, makeup brushes)
Pictures of different moths, moth larvae and moth cocoons (written in developmentally appropriate
language)
Fact cards about the different types of moths (written in developmentally appropriate language)
Pictures of different caterpillars, cocoons and butterflies (written in developmentally appropriate
language)
Fact cards about the different types of butterflies and caterpillars (written in developmentally
appropriate languages).
Toilet paper rolls (16-30)
Black construction paper (enough to fill two baskets)
Colored and white chalk.
Crayons (enough for each child to get two)
Pencil sharpeners, small enough for children to use (3)
Sketch paper (enough to fill two baskets).
Charcoal pencils (enough for each student to have two)
Modeling clay (non toxic and multi colored)
Pipe cleaners (enough for each student to have eight)
Different cuts of multi colored cloth.
Popsicle sticks (enough for two classes)
Cotton balls (enough for two classes)
Different food colors (enough for two classes)
Clothespins (enough for two classes)
Tape (3)
Glue (4 or more)
Scissors (child safe and for both left and right handed students)
Live Caterpillars (2)
Multi colored pom poms. (Enough for two classes)
Googly eyes and buttons, for eyes. (enough for two classes)
Different cuts of construction paper made into butterfly wing shapes Enough to fill two baskets
Small rulers (6). For measurement and comparisons.
Butterfly stencils (teacher made and available from a different activity before hand)
Art smocks, so the children do not have to worry about getting dirty.
Butterfly/moth sponges about 5-6 (normal sponges cut to look like butterflies and moths).
Paintbrushes (detailed mixing and paint brushes) enough for the whole class about 13.
Printed cultural interpretations of butterflies and moths in art (specifically: China, the US, Africa,
Mexico and Japan).
Cardboard (enough for two classes)
Yarn
Leaves, twigs, rocks, grass and dried flowers (from outside or donations)
Staplers and hole punchers
Tracing paper, wax paper, and foil
Bits and pieces of different cut up paper (variety of colors and shapes)
Plastic beads and gems to make collages

Preparation (What do you need to do beforehand?):
The first thing I will need to do is to set all the materials on the tables in the art area for the children to
examine at their own leisure. Each of the materials will be placed in different containers that are clear
glass or plastic to draw the childrens attention.
I will also need to print out all the art pieces I plan on showing the children.
I need to also find sponges which can be purchased or donated to cut into butterflies, moths, caterpillars
and cocoons to allow the children who may not be developmentally ready to hold onto a paintbrush can
paint as well.
I will also need to obtain foam blocks and trim them into the shapes of cocoons so the children can cover
them in papier mache to make their creations.
I will need to cut up different sections of construction paper so the children can create collages.
I will need to obtain nature items from outside for the children to use in their artwork.
I will need to obtain different brushes for the children to use for their artwork.
I will also need to find sugar, salt and soap flakes to add to containers for the children to use to create
textures in their works.
I will also need to gather previously used materials like yarn, butterfly stencils, googly eyes, buttons,
pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, multi colored pom poms, clothes pins and white chalk for the children to
use in the center.
I will also need to print out different pictures of butterflies, moths, cocoons, caterpillars and moth larvae
for the children to have as inspiration. I will also need to write facts about the butterflies in
developmentally appropriate language so the children can examine the qualities for themselves.
I will also need to make the papier mache that they will be using the morning before hand so the
children can have fresh paper mache to use.
I will also need to move the caterpillars (two of them) to the art center to provide a model for the
children to draw inspiration from as well as examine using the magnifying glasses.

Procedures (step by step) Be Specific

*Beginning (How will I introduce activity?)

I will introduce the activity after the children return from playing outside and have washed their hands. I
will gather the children during a circle time and guide the children to the circle time area to instruct them
on what we are going to do.
I will start first with an introduction into the subject by asking for two volunteers to help me introduce
our next topic of discussion (this will be a great way to get the slow to warm up children or those who
are not developmentally ready for complicated conversation a chance to participate as well).
I will have one child hold up a picture of a moth while another child holds up a picture of a butterfly. I
will then ask the class if they can describe what they see.
The children will probably list things like color, size, and appearances. I will ask the children to come
closer to examine the photographs themselves and I will also ask my volunteers to look at the photos as
well.
I will then make a Venn diagram to encourage the children to list visible qualities so we can determine
what we are seeing.
I will make sure to list a variety of visible qualities like contrasts and values of different color hues
within each of the pictures. As well as ask the children scaffolding questions to encourage the children
to discuss the differences that they can see.
Look at the colors of this Atlas moth; do its orange wings look the same as the Peacock Butterflys
orange wings? If not, why do you think this color of orange isnt the same as that color of orange?
Look at how bright that Blue Morpho butterfly is compared to the Feathered thorn moth, doesnt it look
so bright and vivid? How about the Feathered thorn, is it just as bright or does it look different?
With the data that we collect, I will then ask the children to explain which of the photos are butterflies
and which ones are moths?
I will scaffold the children by asking them questions to encourage discussions like
What do we know about butterflies already?
What can you see in a butterfly that you do not see in a moth?
What are some of the ways they are similar and what are some of the ways they look different?
I will hand the children magnifying glasses and ask them to say what they see. Once I have a list of
qualities I will ask the children to look at the Venn diagram.
I will then explain that today we are going to explore what separates a butterfly from a moth since moths
are not butterflies just like butterflies are not moths.

*Middle: (How will I support/enhance/scaffold?) The person reading your lesson plan should be able to
identify what you are saying or doing to support your stated learning objectives. THIS IS VERY
IMPORTANT.

The children will then proceed over to the art area where we will be performing an in-depth study of
the differences between a moth and a butterfly.
I will introduce the children to the different materials available on the table for them to examine and
will show them the models that I created as well as the pictures available to encourage the children
to examine the colors, textures and traits of the butterfly and moth models.
I will then give the children free reign to explore the visible and textural differences in butterflies,
caterpillar, larvae and the moths to encourage them to think critically about what differences they
can spot in the models as well as the pictures of caterpillars, providing scaffolding throughout the
entire process with questions like:
This butterfly caterpillar looks just like this moth caterpillar, but they are not the same. What makes
them look different, what are some of the ways they look similar?
It says here that the Black Witch caterpillar is 7cm long. Do the caterpillars in our classroom look
that big? I will provide rulers and magnifying glasses to aid in their investigation. For the children
who are having difficulty reading a ruler. I will explain the common uses of the ruler. For example:
Lets compare some measurements of different objects on the table, is this pencil the same size as
the caterpillar on the table?
I will also encourage the children to explore the different values and intensities of different patterns
as well as the different characteristics they can see. For example:
What are some of the differences in color, shape, or their patterns that you can see that separate one
moth from the other moth?
Look at how bright that blue is compared to this blue, how do you think we can create this color
using paint?
Wow, look at how dark your blue is, I bet you mustve used a lot of dark colors to get the paint that
color didnt you?
For the children who are creating models using other mediums like clay, I would scaffold the
children by helping them explore different ways to create textures, shapes and patterns within their
clay using materials like the toothbrush, pencils or rocks.
I can see you are trying to give your moth some fur so he can separate himself from the butterfly.
How do you think you can create different types of textures in your clay so he can have some fur?
Look at how smooth your models wings are, how did you get them to look and feel like this?
For the children who are using the paper bits, or crayons and chalk on black paper I will provide
scaffolding to encourage them to explore the differences in color and gradients like:
I can see you are using a lot of different shapes to make your caterpillar, how many do you think
you have used so far?
Look at how the black paper interacts with the white chalk. Do you think if you intensified the
white colors that it would become even brighter or would it stay the same?
For the children having trouble using the papier mache to the foam models and cardboard, I would
provide scaffolding techniques to reinforce their progress such as:
The papier mache sure is messy; why not try this to see if it works out better?
I can see you are really concentrating on laying out your papier mache evenly on your sculpture.
You are really trying to create a really smooth surface to paint on arent you?
I will also encourage children to explore art concepts like mixing paints to obtain different intensities
of color and the different ways to create texture in their work.
I can see you are using a lot of red and orange in your artwork. What sort of colors do you think
you can make out of blending red and orange together? How do you think you could use the colors
to create your different butterflies and moths?
I will also encourage the children to give balance to their work by scaffolding them to create
symmetric and asymmetrical art pieces. For example:
Look at how both your moths wings are the same size, all the legs are the same length, isnt that
interesting?
I will then encourage the children to think critically about some of the visual characteristics of the
moths and butterflies: such as
Do you see any differences in the wings of a butterfly when you look at the wings of a moth?
Does this butterfly have bigger wings than the moth, what makes you say that it is bigger/smaller
than the butterflies?
As the project goes on I will gauge the interests of the children who are working on with the paper
mache as well as the children who are working with clay to gain a better understanding of what they
think of the project.
Do you see any differences between the caterpillars you are making and the caterpillars in the
class? What makes them different?

*End: (How will I bring this activity to a conclusion and transition to the next activity? Be very specific
in how you will transition the children.)
After the children have had a chance to explore every activity. I will then tell the children five
minutes before the activity ends that we will be ending the activity soon and that I need them to
get ready to clean up.
I will begin by dismissing the children who have been using the paper mache to walk like a
caterpillar over to the sink to clean up.
I will then have the children who were working with the charcoal pencils then repeat the same
process to clean up as well by having them flutter like butterflies over to the sink to clean up.
Finally, I will dismiss the children who worked on the butterfly/moth diorama to go to the sink
using the song Caterpillar/butterfly which involves following a specific body movements that
involve crawling around which will help them proceed calmly over to the sink.
I will then ask the first group of children cleaned up first to crawl back to me so we can set their
paper mache cocoons outside so they can dry.
After all the children have had a chance to set aside their projects and clean up, I will then call all
the children back to the circle time to proceed onto the next activity.

Throughout the day/week, what opportunities will the children have to reflect back on this activity?

The children will have a chance to reflect on this activity when they are talking with other children as
well as with their families about some of the differences that they noticed during this exercise.
The children will learn an important lesson that they will carry over to other projects throughout the unit
that just because two items might look the same as doesnt mean they are the same.
This art project will touch upon many of the other areas they are learning about throughout the week as
well, which will really provide context for some of the skills that they learning like names of colors,
specific shapes, as well as enhance their observation skills to aid the children in becoming more aware
of what qualities to look for when comparing different characteristics of objects, people and things.
The children will also have a chance to become more familiar with a variety of different species of
butterflies as well as different caterpillars. They will have the chance to use this new found knowledge
on the field trip as well when we examine many different types of caterpillars.
Their newfound information will also come in handy in separating caterpillars and butterflies based on
observable characteristics and will teach children the skills they need to sort as well as classify things
based on observable or measurable qualities, which is an important math quality.
The children will also have a chance to compare theories and propose different ideas about the
differences between caterpillars and butterflies that may spark deeper investigation as well as curiosity.
These deeper thoughts about a subject will foster their creativity, prosocial skills, as well as their critical
thinking skills all of which will come in handy as the children continue their journey to make sense of
the world around them.