Day 1: The day I picked them up, they were so tiny. At the bottom of the container is their food supply, consisting of mostly soy and wheat. There are also added vitamins and minerals to help them to grow.

Day 4: They’re a little bigger and they are very active.

Day 6: They’re growing so fast! They’re also starting to shed some of their skin.

Day 7: You can start to see some webbing at the bottom of the container.

Day 8: Some of them are starting to make their way to the top of the container.

Day 9: Five of the six caterpillars have made their way to the top of the container. Three of them have begun hanging from the paper at the top in a J-shape. This means that each caterpillar will be transforming into a chrysalis soon.

Day 11: All but one caterpillar is in its cocoon. The last one has climbed to the top and should form into a chrysalis soon.

Day 12: All the caterpillars are in their cocoons now so I’ve transferred them into a netted cage. Now we wait for them to emerge.

Day 17: Our first butterflies emerged from their cocoons today! We have 4 butterflies now!

Day 18: One more butterfly emerged from its cocoon overnight!

BUTTERFLY MATH: If we had 4 butterflies yesterday but now we have one more, how many butterflies do we have in total?

BUTTERFLY MATH: Look at the pictures below. If we have 3 butterflies at the top of our cage and 2 butterflies on the bottom, how many butterflies do we have altogether?

Day 19: One more butterfly emerged from its cocoon overnight BUT… one butterfly flew out as I opened the cage to put an orange slice inside. (Oh no!) Fortunately, it simply flew out my open window. (Phew!)

BUTTERFLY MATH: If we have 5 butterflies and one more cocoon hatches, how many butterflies do we have in total?

BUTTERFLY MATH: If we have 6 butterflies but one flies out Mrs. Lukose’s window, how many butterflies do we have in total?

Day 20: Guess what! The remaining 5 cocoons have opened and 5 more butterflies have emerged.

BUTTERFLY MATH: If we have 5 butterflies and 5 more emerge from their cocoons, how many butterflies do we have in total?

It looks like some of the butterflies have become friends.

They’re so pretty when they open up their wings.