Jasmine Hughes

ELED 3221
edTPA Indirect Instruction Lesson Plan Template
A Butterflies Life Through the Cycles
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Central Focus/Big Idea: Summarize and understand the life cycle of a butterfly.
Subject of this lesson: The different cycles a butterfly goes through during its life span.
Grade Level: Grade 2
NC Essential Standard(s): Science 2.L.1.1 Summarize the life cycle of animals: Birth;
Developing into an adult; Reproducing; Aging and death.
Next Generation Science Standard(s): 3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms
have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and
death.
21st Century Skills: Collaboration- Outcome for 4th grade addresses the importance of students
being able to work collaboratively together in small and large groups. Creativity and Innovation
Outcome for 8th grade addresses the importance of making observations and applying those
observations.
Academic Language Demand
Language Function: Students will be able to describe each life cycle stage of a butterfly
and the order of the stages correctly.
Analyze
Interpret

Argue
Predict

Categorize
Question

Compare/contrast
Retell

Describe
Summarize

Explain

Scientific Vocabulary: Life Cycle, Cocoon, Butterfly, Caterpillar, Egg, Flow Map, Larva,
Pupa, Chrysalis, Stages, Hatch, Nectar, Antenna

Instructional Objective: Following instruction, students will fill out a butterfly life cycle plate
craft with the four stages completed and described, with 100% accuracy.
Prior Knowledge (student): Students should already know Essential Standard 1.L.1: Understand
characteristics of various environments and behaviors of humans that enable plants and animals
to survive, via first grade. Students should already know about the broad aspect of life cycles
with any living thing. Students should already know what a butterfly is.

Content Knowledge (teacher): The teacher needs to already know the four stages of a
butterflys life cycle. The teacher needs to have already the book prior to introducing the lesson
and have all the craft pieces ready for the final assessment of the butterfly life cycle plate craft.
Accommodations for special needs: EC Students: Ready to accommodate/ modify butterfly life
cycle plate craft if they need. This could done by verbally telling me the stages, pointing to
pictures in the order of the stages, writing sentences describing the stages, or drawing out the
stages instead of using the craft pieces. ELL Students: Could allow the students to complete the
butterfly life cycle plate craft in mainly Spanish and the English words that they know (or
whatever their native language is). Students could verbally say the steps of a butterflys life cycle
instead of writing them. Student could show the steps using pictures or objects.
Materials and Technology requirements:

From Caterpillar to Butterfly Youtube Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1S8WzwLPlM

Paper plates per student
Construction paper per student
Markers per student
Pasta noodles: 1 farfalle (butterfly) per student, 1 rotini (caterpillar) per student, 1 conchiglie
(chrysalis) per student, and 1 radiatori (egg) per student.
Glue per student
Life cycle stages cutout with descriptions (practice) per group

Total Estimated Time: 1 class period

Source of lesson:

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/butterfly-life-cycle-plate-craft
From Caterpillar to Butterfly Youtube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1S8WzwLPlM

Safety considerations: I will monitor the classroom when the students are working on
completing their butterfly life cycle plate craft so to make sure no student eats the noodles or
inappropriately uses the glue. Scissors will be monitored closely to make sure no one injuries
themselves or their peers.

Jasmine Hughes
ELED 3221
02/02/16
Content and Strategies (Procedure)
Engage: Activate the students prior knowledge by asking them what they know about life
cycles and what they know about butterflies. Then show them the Youtube Video and then ask
the following questions: What is the first life cycle stage? (Egg) How long are they in this stage?
(~20 days) What is the second life cycle stage? (caterpillar) How long are they in this stage? (~3
weeks) What is the third life cycle stage? (Chrysalis) How long are they in this stage? (~3 weeks)
What is a chrysalis? (The caterpillar turns into a chrysalis that will be protected by a cocoon)
What is the last stage? (Butterfly)
Explore: The students will be broken up into small groups to complete an activity based on
what they just learned about the life cycle of a butterfly. They will be given precut pictures that
are of a butterflys life cycle in each stage as well as pictures of life cycle stages that are
incorrect, such as a baby or other mammals. They will also be given precut descriptions of each
stage as well as incorrect descriptions. The incorrect options arent to trick the students, but to
make sure they were paying attention and to gauge their understanding. They will work
collaboratively together to decide the correct order of the pictures and descriptions. This will be
an insight as to what they will need to complete individually. While the students are completing
this activity, walk around the room and monitor the students. Ask them questions such as, what
do you think the first stage of the cycle is? What is the last cycle? Why do you think that
description goes with that life cycle stage?
Explanation: I will bring the students back together as a large group. We will discuss what each
group got, at this point I wont say who was right and who was wrong because I want the
students to facilitate the discussion. Each group would share how they put the pictures in order as
well as the descriptions. Other students will comment to say whether the group presenting is
correct or incorrect using the vocabulary we went over in the book with explanations to their
reasoning. After each group has presented, I will sort the pictures on the whiteboard in the
correct order and read, out loud, the descriptions and say where they go and why. I will ask
questions such as: Why does the egg cycle come before the butterfly cycle? And why does the
caterpillar cycle come before the chrysalis cycle? This way I can hopefully get the students to
think conceptually and logically of the orders of the butterflys life cycle and to make sense of
them.
Elaborate: Independently, the students will work at their desks or any hard surface around the
room. They will collect the materials they will need to complete their butterfly life cycle plate
craft. The materials they will need are a paper plate, green construction paper, noodles for each
stage, scissors, and a marker. The students will be told what is expected of them, that they will
need to use their materials to create each cycle of a butterflys life. They will need to show me
which way their life cycle goes. I will ask the students, does everyone understand the instructions
given? Does anyone have any questions/comments about the activity? I wont show them an

example because I dont want them to see the correct order but I also dont want the students to
think there is only one way in completing this project. Although separating the plate into four
quadrants, with each quadrant being a different cycle and arrows pointing to each cycle in
sequential order is the ideal. The student will work independently and are not allowed to talk to
one another because this is how I will assess what they have learned individually. I will monitor
the students work as I walk around the room. I will ask the students to explain to me their
thinking and reasoning of how they are completing their project.
Evaluate:
Summative Evaluation: The butterfly life cycle plate craft will be the summative evaluation of
this lesson. The students will have to show me the order that they have decided on using the
materials given to them, before gluing down anything. If students are getting the order incorrect,
I will see what is confusing them and try to clear up any misunderstandings. Because this project
will be completed individually, each child is to be expected to work independently using the new
content they have learned to complete the project.
Formative Evaluation: The questions that I asked throughout this lesson were used to assess the
students to see where they were in their understanding of the content. Also the whole group
discussion the students led on their own was used to evaluate as well as my observations while
walking around the classroom.
To be completed after the lesson is taught as appropriate
Assessment Results of all objectives/skills: For the guided practice group work, every group
correctly put the cut out pictures and descriptions in the right order, receiving 100%. In the
butterfly life cycle craft plate, 19/20 students received a 100. That one student that didnt receive
a 100, put two stages out of order, giving him a 50.
Reflection on lesson: Attached to Weebly Page
CT signature/confirmation: _________________________________ Date: ________________