Butterfly Life Cycle Craft

Discovering the butterfly life cycle is an enjoyable learning activity for children! They will have fun assembling this easy butterfly life cycle craft. Best of all, our free printable template makes it simple to create!

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This cheerful and uncomplicated butterfly life cycle craft requires only a handful of materials! If you are studying monarchs, it is also an ideal way to explore this butterfly. To represent the monarch species as accurately as possible, we included a monarch butterfly, a monarch caterpillar, and a vivid green chrysalis.

Monarch Butterfly Facts

Share these fascinating monarch butterfly facts with children while creating this craft!

• Monarchs place just one egg on a leaf rather than laying them in groups. However, a female monarch may produce as many as 400 eggs.
• Monarch eggs generally remain eggs for 3-4 days
• The caterpillar needs 10-14 days to develop into a chrysalis
• Butterflies form chrysalises, while moths create cocoons
• A butterfly typically takes 8-15 days to come out of the chrysalis
• Male monarchs have one spot on each wing, making it possible to distinguish them from females
• Monarch caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed

Try these steps to support the monarch population:

• Grow milkweed, or become familiar with its appearance so you do not accidentally remove it from your garden
• Grow flowers that attract butterflies – milkweed is essential during the caterpillar stage, while adult butterflies also rely on flower nectar for food

If you are interested in learning how to raise monarch butterflies, I suggest this book. It offers step-by-step instructions and is ideal for children.

Supplies Needed

• Cardboard
• A stick
• Green cardstock paper in 2 different shades – we used lighter green paper for the chrysalis template and darker green paper for the egg
• White cardstock – for the butterfly and caterpillar template sheet
• White paint (optional – we brushed a small amount onto the leaf to help the egg stand out)
• Colored markers
• Black marker or permanent black marker
• Free printable butterfly life cycle template – instructions for receiving the template can be found at the end of the post.

Watch the Video Tutorial Here!

How to Make a Butterfly Life Cycle Craft

1. Print the free printable template onto white cardstock.

You can have the template sent to your email below.

Print the leaf and chrysalis sheet on green paper as well. Alternatively, print them on white paper and add color yourself.

2. Begin coloring the butterfly and caterpillar.

We chose Crayola fine line markers for coloring, although any markers or pencil crayons are suitable. To give the butterfly a monarch appearance, we filled the larger sections with orange and used black for the veins and border. Be sure to leave a few spots along the outer edges white!

We alternated yellow and black on the caterpillar to resemble a monarch caterpillar. Afterward, cut out both pieces.

We printed the leaf and chrysalis onto colored cardstock. You may also use white paper and color them in yourself.

For the leaf, we applied a small amount of white paint to the egg so it would be more visible against the green paper.

3. Begin attaching your pieces to a large sheet of cardboard.

To create our circular shape, we traced around a large salad spinner bowl onto cardboard and then cut it out.

Fold the leaf and butterfly, then apply glue down the middle so they rise above the cardboard.

Attach the chrysalis to a stick, or glue it straight onto the cardboard instead.

4. Using a black permanent marker, draw arrows and write labels for every stage of the life cycle.

5. Your butterfly life cycle project is finished!

It would also be a wonderful addition to a classroom science center.

Kids will have a great time learning about the various phases of the butterfly life cycle with this entertaining educational activity!

Printable Butterfly Life Cycle Templates

Our book – Fun and Easy Crafting with Recycled Materials is filled with cardboard projects like this one. One entire chapter is dedicated to cardboard crafts. Plus, you’ll find plenty of other recycled crafts for kids as well, including projects made with egg cartons, paper rolls, newspapers, popsicle sticks, jars, and more!