COPPERAS COVE, TX (May 9, 2023)— With Texas wildflowers dotting the horizons in every direction, orange and black wings of Monarch butterflies can be seen flitting from flower to flower pollinating the landscape. Butterflies start returning to Texas in late Spring as they return north from Mexico to breed.
House Creek Elementary kindergarten students study the life cycle of the butterfly by reading books, watching videos, and observing the changes as caterpillars formed chrysalis and transform into magical beings in front of the young scholars’ own eyes.
“Students are excited to see how the caterpillars transform through the different stages and even more excited when we are able to release them,” teacher Vanessa Mondy said. “Students are able to see the life cycle of a butterfly in a relatively short time frame. They observe how the caterpillars grow bigger, form chrysalis, and change into butterflies.”
Mondy adds that students are excited to see the changes on a daily basis. However, waiting for the butterflies to emerge from their chrysalis is challenging for the youngsters who develop patience during the process.
“I love butterflies,” kindergartener Kayleigh Burchett said. “They look like the ones we saw in our book.”
Students were excited to create their very own butterfly life cycles and write about them in their lessons. During their shared writing lesson, Mondy and the students talked about the different stages and wrote sentences for each. Students helped sound out words and helped form each sentence. Students were able to make connections from the research they did through books and videos, with the real-life transformations that happened in front of them.
“Students thought that as soon as we released the butterflies, we would see them laying eggs immediately to start the cycle of life which was not the case,” Mondy said.
The arrival of these iconic butterflies is celebrated across the Lone Star State with various festivals and activities. San Antonio hosts its own Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Festival held by The Texas Butterfly Ranch. This event features educational as well as artistic exhibits and is free for the public.
In Fredericksburg. Wildseed Farms is the largest wildflower farm in the United States. It celebrates the monarch season with special events and butterfly releases.
The annual Butterfly Flutterby in Grapevine features butterfly releases, art and educational exhibits, and a costume contest.
Visitors to the Native Texas Butterfly Garden in The Heard National Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney can encounter many free-flying native butterflies.
In the south, the National Butterfly Center in Mission offers guided walks, a native plant sale, kids’ crafts, and other events during the monarch season.
“Watching the caterpillar turn into a butterfly was so much fun,” kindergartner Jackson Palmer said. “When are the next set of caterpillars coming in so we can watch the life cycle all over again?”
About half a million monarch butterflies pass through Texas every year building not only tourism and educational opportunities but also beauty in the Lone Star State.
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