Butterfly Wings Tissue Art

Level 3 promotes scientific thinking and structured expression.

• Framework: IPC
• Unit: Summer Time
• Learning area: Nature
• Level: Level 3

Objectives

• Analyze metamorphosis stages
• write explanations
• create color wheel connections.

Instructions

Materials

- Coffee filters or white paper towels

- Washable liquid watercolors or diluted food coloring

- Pipettes or medicine droppers

- Black construction paper cut into butterfly body shapes

- Pipe cleaners for antennae

- Trays or plastic mats for drying

Learning Objectives

- Demonstrate fine motor control by using pipettes to apply precise droplets of color.

- Observe and describe the process of color blending and saturation.

- Explain the basic stages of butterfly metamorphosis using descriptive vocabulary.

- Construct a symmetrical representation of a butterfly wing.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Begin with a brief group discussion about the life cycle of a butterfly, emphasizing the transformation from caterpillar to chrysalis to adult.

2. Provide each student with two flat coffee filters and a plastic tray.

3. Demonstrate how to use a pipette to squeeze small drops of watercolor onto the paper, showing how colors bleed and overlap when they touch.

4. Encourage students to experiment with color placement, noting how primary colors mix to create secondary colors.

5. Allow the filters to dry completely on the trays.

6. Once dry, help students fold the filters slightly to create a wing shape.

7. Assist students in gluing their two wings to the sides of the black construction paper butterfly body.

8. Guide students to twist a pipe cleaner around the top of the body to create antennae.

9. Invite students to display their work and explain their color choices to a peer.

Educator Tip

To support students who struggle with fine motor precision, provide small sponges instead of pipettes for a different texture experience. If students finish early, encourage them to label the parts of their butterfly or draw a habitat on a separate sheet of paper to place their butterfly within.

Assessment

- Observe the student's ability to manipulate the pipette with a pincer grasp.

- Listen for the student's use of vocabulary related to metamorphosis during the discussion.

- Evaluate the student's understanding of symmetry by checking if the wing patterns reflect one another.

Assessment

Rubric: accuracy, reasoning, independence.

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