Objective:
The students will track the migration of the monarch butterfly on a map and identify the cardinal directions North and South.

Materials

• A book or a web site which discusses the migration of the monarch butterfly.  Monarch Butterfly is a good web site to use for reference and The Journey of a Butterfly by Carolyn Scrace is a good book.

• A Map of North America (Maps are included at the web site and in the book.)

• North and South Worksheet

Procedure

1. Read the book or share information from the web site.  Discuss the migration of monarch butterflies and why they do so.

2. Look at a map and discuss the direction the butterflies travel in the fall and again in the spring.  Name some of the locations the monarchs travel to, i.e. Mexico, Southern Canada, etc.

3. Locate your home state/country on the map.  Have the students name places that are North and South of their home.  For example, "I live in Ohio.  Michigan is north of Ohio and Kentucky is south of Ohio."

4. Pass out the North and South Worksheet.  Work together as a class to list places North of your school's home and places South.  Have the students record these places on their worksheets.

Other Lesson Ideas

1. Use The Butterfly Website and learn about different types of butterflies found in different states and in various parts of the world.  Use a map to locate these states and regions.