Butterflies

By: Karen Shapiro

See the butterfly up in the sky.

Watch it as it flutters by!

Butterflies start as tiny eggs.

Out come caterpillars with many legs.

Little caterpillars growing long,

crawling,

feeding,

getting strong.

They love to nibble and to chew.

They eat small leaves

and big ones, too.

Four weeks pass.  They grow more.

They shed their skin.

One time, two times, three times, four.

Once again a change comes around.

Now it is hanging upside down.

Soon, it spins a silky pad

to hold on tight,                  

and a halter, too,

to keep it upright.

Now it sheds its skin

one time more,

to reveal a chrysalis,

not at all like the skin before.

Inside this shell it is changing,

growing.

Eyes, legs, wings,

are now almost showing.

What can it be?

Wait and see.

It's a butterfly!

Its wings are wet.

It has to rest.

It can't fly yet.

Soon, it tries hard with all its might,

spreads its four wings--

and takes a flight.

Like a flower in the sky,

what a sight --

a butterfly!

Wings of black, orange,

yellow, and blue,

red, green, gold,

and purple, too.

Colors bright as in a rainbow.

What makes these colors?

Do you know?

It's layers of little scales that we see.

They make the colors as bright as can be!

Butterflies drink nectar from

pretty flowers.

It tastes so sweet, they sip for hours.

They use their long, thin tongues

to drink.

That's kind of odd, don't you think?

From caterpillar to butterfly

takes eight weeks in all.

All sizes of butterflies--

big and small.

See the butterfly up in the sky.

Watch it as it flutters by!

O Butterfly

Author: Unknown

O Butterfly, O Butterfly

Flying through the sky

Where are you going

This fine morning?

Are you going to see the

elves dancing?

Or the flying horses

prancing?

I can see them when I

dream at night

What a wonderful sight!

The Life of a Butterfly
(Tune:  Skip to My Lou)

I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
I'm a caterpillar, wiggle with me,
What'll I be my darlin'?

A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
A chrysalis, now sleep like me,
What'll I be my darlin'?

A butterfly, come fly with me,
A butterfly, come fly with me,
A butterfly, come fly with me,
What'll I be my darlin'?

Now all together, let's do all three!
A caterpillar, a chrysalis, a butterfly, three!
Move your body like this with me,
The life of a butterfly, darlin'!

The Fuzzy Caterpillar
(Tune:  Itsy Bitsy Spider)

The fuzzy caterpillar
Curled up on a leaf,
Spun her little chrysalis
And then fell fast asleep.
While

she was sleeping
She dreamed that she could fly,
And later when she woke up
She was a butterfly!
 

The Caterpillar

Fuzzy little caterpillar
Crawling, crawling, on the ground.
Fuzzy little caterpillar
Nowhere, nowhere to be found.
Though we've looked and looked
And hunted everywhere around!

When the little caterpillar
Found his furry coat too tight,
Then a snug cocoon he made him
Spun of silk so soft and light.
Rolled himself away within it --
Slept there day and night.

Caterpillar
by Mary Dawson
(Tune:  Itsy Bitsy Spider)

Creepy crawly caterpillar
Looping up and down,
Furry tufts of hair along
Your back of golden brown.

You will soon be wrapped in silk,
Asleep for many a day;
And then, a handsome butterfly,
You'll stretch and fly away.

The Caterpillar
by Christina Georgina Rosetti

Brown and furry
Caterpillar in a hurry;
Take your walk
To the shady leaf or stalk.

May no toad spy you,
May the little birds pass by you;
Spin and die,
To live again a butterfly.

The Butterfly Song
(Tune:  Up on the Housetop)

First comes a butterfly and lays an egg.
Out comes a caterpillar with many legs.
Oh see the caterpillar spin and spin,
A little chrysalis to sleep in.

Oh, oh ,oh wait and see!
Oh, oh, oh wait and see!
Out of the chrysalis, my oh my,
Out comes a beautiful butterfly!