Unit Plan Template

Unit Author First and Last Name School District School Name School City, State Unit Overview Unit Title Caterpillars to Butterflies Unit Summary
This unit is intended to teach the life cycle of a butterfly. The students will role play and draw the various stages an insects goes through to become a butterfly. The students will observe and record stages in the life cycle. Tiffany Pogue Opelika City Schools Southview Primary Opelika, AL

Subject Area
Math, Language Arts, Science

Grade Level
Kindergarten

Approximate Time Needed

1 Day

Unit Foundation Targeted Content Standards and Benchmarks Math-Ordering of events, Modeling operations, Patterns Language Arts-Children label parts of butterfly with invented spelling Science-record observations

Student Objectives/Learning Outcomes

Learn stages an insect goes through to become a butterfly; record observations about caterpillar and butterfly parts Identify the body parts of an butterfly; difference in moths and butterflies

Curriculum-Framing Questions Essential Question Unit Questions Content Questions

How do living things change as they grow? What do you notice happening to the caterpillar as it goes through the stages of its life cycle? What are the stages of the butterflys life cycle?

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Assessment Plan Assessment Timeline

Before project work begins Students work on projects and complete tasks After project work is completed

I will start the unit with a little motivation. Boys and girls, I am going to do a magic trick and I want you to watch carefully what I am about to do. I will get an ordinary string and stretch it out (keeping one hand clutched in a ball with the paper butterfly inside) as the children watch, slowly stick the string inside the balled up hand from the top. When the string is all inside, I will tell the children something magically is happening to the string.

I will have them count slowly to three and pull the butterfly from the bottom. While I am flittering it around with the other hand, the one holding the string sticks the string in my pocket. I will then inform the students that we are going to see the different stages a caterpillar goes through to become a butterfly (like the string caterpillar did).

Read the story The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Stop periodically to ask questions to internalize story. Choose best listeners to act out the story (one child is caterpillar/differen t child is food item). The caterpillar begins in a ball position until it hatches. It crawls out and around as the story is reread and eats the food. It crawls under the sheet (chrysalis) and puts on wings (when the story is over it emerges as a butterfly). Demonstration given so that the butterfly doesnt become wild. Children will not be allowed to jump on the caterpillar in chrysalis state. Children not participating are sitting and watching quietly until it is their turn to participate.

As we go through the role playing, we will stop at various intervals and tell the scientific name for the stage of the caterpillar. Have children make the following movements of caterpillar with hands while I show with puppet: egg (hand in fist position), larva (index finger extended, scrunched, extended, etc.) pupa (index finger inside other hands fist {like hot dog}), and butterfly (two hands interlocking and doing flying motion).

Remind children of what we did and do magic trick again. This time it is slowed down and children see what I did. Give them a piece of string and butterfly to try it. They will be allowed to take the string home and demonstrate it to a family member. Reread the story The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Follow up questions for thought might include: Where did the little egg come from? Could this story really have happened or is it make believe? How do you know? Tell me what the caterpillar does that caterpillars really do. Then

tell what caterpillars do not do. Tell about the time you got a stomach ache from eating too much. What do you think a caterpillar does when he is inside the chrysalis? Would you rather be a caterpillar or a butterfly? Why?

Assessment Summary
I will have the students go to their seats and draw the various stages a butterfly goes through in journals. They may label using invented spelling.

Unit Details Prerequisite Skills

Know the stages a butterfly goes through: egg, larvae, pupa, and butterfly. Butterflies emerge from chrysalises, moths, emerge from cocoons. Some butterflies reflect in their wing color things they have eaten. There are some differences in moths and butterflies (butterflies have balls on the end of their antennae, many butterflies have smaller thorax than moths). Butterflies have three main body parts (head, thorax, and abdomen). Butterflies have three jointed legs. Butterflies have one pair of antennae.
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Instructional Procedures
The purpose and an overview will be giving before we start the unit. The materials will be available and we will go over the prerequisite skills also before the unit begins. I will begin the unit with a motivation activity. The children will role play to discover the concept. At the end of the unit, I will reinforce what has been taught and give the children an assessment.

Accommodations for Differentiated Instruction

I will assure special needs students are within close proximity to me or my assistant. I will never present instructions/directions orally alone. I would provide graphic organizers, written or graphical instructions also. Clarifications and reminders will be given regularly as needed. Extra assistance would be provided when needed through a peer or myself. Praise will be giving for catching them doing it right. I will never begin instructions/directions until I have my classs undivided attention. I will allow additional wait time for my special needs students. I will provide my special needs students with regular, ongoing feedback and always promote their self-esteem. Extra time would be given for completing assessments. I will seat ELLs near the front of the classroom to assure she/he can see and hear well. I will involve them in some manner in all classroom activities. I will include a variety of ways of participating my instruction (ex. cooperative group learning). Weekly content vocabulary/word banks in large letters/font on a poster or wall for easy visibility. Where possible, I will allow ELLs to independently and freely use a reference area of the classroom containing English dictionaries and a dictionary of their native-language. I will use clear, normal speech in communicating with ELL students. If necessary I will correct the content of what they say. I will use simple sentences and write down what I say. I will have the ELL students copy my oral instructions. I will use gestures and facial expressions to enhance the meaning of my words. Extra time would be given for completing assessments. I will ask high ability students open-ended questions. Such questions stimulate higher order thinking skills and give students opportunities to consider and express personal opinions. Such questions can also increase student awareness of current events. High ability students are often expected to complete assignments that they find boring or irrelevant because they represent no new learning for them. I would allow them to reduce or skip standard assignments in order to acquire time to pursue alternate assignments or independent projects, which is called curriculum compacting.

Special Needs Students

Nonnative Speakers

Gifted/Talented Students

Materials and Resources Required For Unit Technology Hardware (Click boxes of all equipment needed) Camera Computer(s) Digital Camera DVD Player Internet Connection Database/Spreadsheet Desktop Publishing E-mail Software Encyclopedia on CDROM Printed Materials Supplies Internet Resources Other Resources Laser Disk Printer Projection System Scanner Television Image Processing Internet Web Browser Multimedia Web Page Development Word Processing Other VCR Video Camera Video Conferencing Equip. Other

Technology Software (Click boxes of all software needed.)

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle White sheet, wings, caterpillar in a jar, journals, string and paper butterfly, and crayons www.eric-calre.com

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Copyright 2008 Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Intel, the Intel logo, the Intel Education Initiative, and the Intel Teach Program are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. *Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. Page 3 of 4

Copyright 2008 Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. Intel, the Intel logo, the Intel Education Initiative, and the Intel Teach Program are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. *Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. Page 4 of 4