The monarch butterfly is a very special little creature. Not only does it migrate up to 3,000 miles to the same trees as it’s ancestors each winter- it’s migration takes it right through our very own island garden! It has become a beloved and welcome sighting at our house. We plant milkweed and flowers each year, in hope of continuing to support this powerful pollinator.
Not only do we plan our garden around the monarch butterfly, we also use their presence as an opportunity to study biology and life science with hands-on experience! We occasionally will bring in large caterpillars before they form their chrysalis in order to watch them through their metamophosis process. Once the butterfly emerges, we release them back into our garden. We also like to search through the leaves to find any eggs, or newly hatched larva.
I’ve created a collection of photos of the monarch butterflies who have blessed our home over the years on our garden’s instagram. This collection of photography has been the basis for a newly released study unit: Monarch Butterfly Notebooking Study. In this study, you will find 25 student pages dedicated to note-taking, sketching, diagramming, and more. Full color original images from my family’s own garden are on each page, following a monarch’s journey from egg to adult butterfly, with topics covering life cycle, metamorphosis, migration, and conservation.
Happy homeschooling, friends.
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My Island Homeschool 
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