Monday highlight: Caterpillar and Butterfly Hunting

Monday was a little busier than normal but in a good way. I began by introducing the letter “Cc” with the Train Wall Display Printable, you can find that here. Also available are two other themes featuring an acorn and caterpillar. Mick colored his new letter and then hung it on the wall. We sang the alphabet song and then the boys and I came together in the living room to read our themed books. These children’s classics and beautiful illustrations helped Mick visualize a caterpillar.

After we finished reading and reciting our memory poem, Autumn Fires, by Robert Louis Stevenson from A Child’s Garden of Verses we were ready to go caterpillar and butterfly hunting. Where we live you can find butterflies most months out of the year so September was a good month for this. The boys mostly chased butterflies while I hunted for caterpillars among the leaves. The boys are not adept enough to catch the butterflies with their nets, and I didn’t have much luck either but the boys were able to observe a caterpillar. I had given up and we were walking back in the woods when Mick spotted one! I was impressed and so happy for him.

If the time of year you’re doing Cc is for Caterpillar, is not a good time for caterpillars or butterflies, have no worries. You can enjoy the rest of the activities, which is what I did with my eldest because at that time we lived in Ohio and it was too cold. Another option is to buy a butterfly growing kit and guarantee seeing not only the individual stages but the entire process of a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly. Go here to buy that kit: Butterfly Garden.

Tuesday highlight: Play Act the Life Cycle of a Butterfly

You must review to help your child recognize their letters. We reviewed the alphabet puzzle by singing through the alphabet and pointing at each letter. I then dumped it out and I helped him put the letters back. Stressing the letters he already knows, A,B, and C. Be sure to subscribe to the newsletter for future posts because the next letter, “Dd” is when I switch up how we review using the puzzle. 

More read aloud on the couch with themed books and the poem by Christina Rossetti. After we finished this, I had the boys color the first coloring page at the kitchen table while I assembled the materials for acting out a butterfly’s life cycle. See How to Play Act the Life Cycle of a Butterfly in your home.

Marty and Mick absolutely loved hiding in their blankets (chrysalis) and flapping about the living room with their wings to find flowers and drink nectar. Mo, my 2 year old, even participated in running around the living room giggling happily. 

Wednesday highlight: Caterpillar Life Cycle Toy and Printable

Marty, my 5 year old is very hands-on and learns best when he’s touching, feeling, and moving so yesterday’s activity was spot on for him. Mick, my 3 year old is much more of a visual learner. Today’s activity was exactly what he needed. 

Before we began we reviewed using Mick’s train wall display and then read on the couch. After this is when I brought out the manipulative and gave him the printable. You can find the butterfly life cycle toys here. Mick had first dibs on it because it’s his letter of the week but after five minutes or so, Mick let Marty play with it. Then they played with it together for at least 20 minutes at the table. 

Thursday highlight: Butterfly Coffee Filter Art

I switched the order of our day up because the butterfly coffee filters need time to dry before you can finish them. We began by coloring the coffee filters and watering them. For complete instructions on this be sure to check out this post, How to make coffee filter butterflies. I go into detail on how to make these with your child.

Allowing the coffee filters to dry takes time. We started early in the morning and finished it late in the afternoon. But while they dried in the morning, we read our themed books on the couch, reviewed using the alphabet puzzle, and Mick colored his last coloring page. Also, I spent a little time with him on the activity Apple Math.

Once the coffee filters were dry I helped Mick scrunch the filter and helped hold the pipe cleaner as he twisted it. I secured it with a twist of my own and he was all set. He and Marty ran around having their butterflies fly. They even pretended to have them drink nectar from flowers.

Friday

The last day of our week is reserved for our homeschool co-op nature group. No formal Letter of the Week lessons -just the great outdoors and curious minds.

Our week at a glance:

Kinesthetic and Visual Learners Approved

Letter of the Week activities are designed to adapt to your family.  This is just a sample of how I used Cc is for Caterpillar. It looked different when my eldest went through it and will look different in a couple years when my youngest completes it.

Overall, my boys loved the activities. Acting out the life cycle was probably the activity my boys enjoyed the most because the boys did not want to stop! Matching the life cycle toys to the printable stages really helped my three year old to tie it all together because he is a very visual learner whereas my eldest is a kinesthetic learner. The winner for him was acting out the life cycle.

If you haven’t downloaded Cc is for Caterpillar, I encourage you to explore it and see how it might enrich your home. And don’t forget to check out the entire Letter of the Week curriculum if these activities inspire you. You’ll find activity ideas, printables, coloring pages, and book suggestions for each letter for free.