Change is a never-ending cycle. As soon as we become familiar with a set routine or a comfortable time in our life, something always changes. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, “Change is the only constant.” Whether it’s good or bad, change is inevitable. It is great to start teaching children how to accept and embrace change early in their life. We thought of a great activity to aid in your child’s learning process.
Caterpillar Change
This experiment is a great way to teach kids how something that looks so foreign and strange, like a caterpillar, can transform into a beautiful butterfly. This would be an example of how change can positively affect our lives. What you need:
- A plastic container with a top
- Moist soil or sand of any kind
- A stick
- Leaves for food
- A small container to keep the food fresh
- Cotton balls
- Tape
- A paper towel
- Sponge
- Go out for a hunt! Grab a net, put on your hiking shoes, and take your child outside to search for caterpillars. Put them in a plastic cup for now. It is very important to take cues from the caterpillar’s surroundings. Look at where you found the creature to determine what the little guy eats. If you find the caterpillar on a leaf, pick a few of those leaves and test to see if that’s what it truly likes to eat!
- Once you have returned from the outdoors, it is now time to create a home for your new pet. A small, clear plastic container is the perfect pad. Start by filling the bottom of the container with about an inch of moist soil or sand. Secure the stick into the sand and lean it up against the wall.
- Make sure to monitor the caterpillar’s eating habits. If one food isn’t right, test the creature’s leaf preferences with different leaves from different trees. Once you find a match, get a hearty supply because these little guys were made to eat and grow, just like your children! Find a small cup or container and fill it with water. Place the stems of the caterpillar’s food into the water to keep them fresh. Fill the spaces in between the water and the stems with cotton balls or a paper towel to keep the caterpillar from falling in.
- Next, place two pieces of tape onto a paper and let them drape from the container top to the bottom of the habitat. This will give the caterpillar somewhere to build when it’s ready to make a cocoon.
- Poke holes in the cover for the container, if there aren’t any already, to make sure your pet can breathe. Place the little guy in his new house, secure the top, and observe!
- Check the food supply every day. If it seems to be dry, running low, or dirty, add some more leaves, but be very careful not to disturb the caterpillar. After a few days, it should start to create a web-like substance on the paper towel or the stick. Have your child make daily observations to see any change that may have occurred when you weren’t watching.
- Every day, you will also need to clean up the black caterpillar droppings that will appear on the cotton balls. If any fungus forms on the soil, make sure to clean out the soil right away and give your pet a new, fresh layer.
- If you keep this caterpillar happy for about a week, it will grow and grow and finally pupate. This is the stage where the caterpillar creates its own cocoon. Take the food out of the container when this happens. Carefully observe the conditions of the habitat during this time. If the soil appears to be drying out, spray it a few times with water. If condensation forms on the sides of the container, carefully wipe it down. The pupa can dry out or become waterlogged if its house is not in the perfect conditions.
- After a few days, if you believe the butterfly should be emerging soon, place a small sponge soaked with sugar-water in the corner of the container. Wait for it…Wait for it… BAM!! That slimy caterpillar has transformed into a beautiful butterfly. Keep the butterfly in the container until its wings have time to dry out fully. This may take a couple of days. The butterfly will start to flap and move its wings as soon as it is ready to fly.
- Have a “Good-Bye Butterfly” party in honor of releasing your pet into freedom! Take the beautiful butterfly outside and release it into the wild.
Change is beautiful, and embracing it makes our lives much better. Teaching your child the importance and responsibility involved in dealing with changes is great! Observing and solving any problems that may come up while working on this experiment will give your child the ability to be able to apply these new skills in the real world. They will be more willing to track and react positively to change.
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Filed under: Just for Fun! Tagged: | family activities, learning, science
