You are invited to download the picture sorting cards with ten types of butterflies and ten types of lady beetles – learning printables for preschool and kindergarten children. Use this resource with photographs to create hands-on spring and summer activities for your students. This resource will come in handy if you are planning to explore insects in your Montessori and early childhood classroom.

About ladybugs and butterflies
Ladybugs are small, brightly colored insects that children love to admire. They have red or orange shells with black spots and six legs. Ladybugs are not only cute, but they’re also helpful to gardeners because they eat aphids, which are little insects that can harm plants. During the winter, ladybugs will hibernate in groups. When they emerge in the spring, they lay eggs on the undersides of leaves. These eggs will hatch into larvae that look like tiny alligators before eventually becoming adult ladybugs. Ladybugs are fascinating creatures that can teach kids about nature and the importance of protecting the environment.
Butterflies are colorful insects that fly around during the daytime. They have a special life cycle that begins as an egg, then hatches into a caterpillar. The caterpillar then spins a cocoon and transforms into a beautiful butterfly. Butterflies have four wings, which are covered in scales that create the bright colors and patterns we see. They use their sense of smell to find flowers to drink nectar from. Butterflies are important pollinators and help spread the pollen that flowers need to grow. There are many different species of butterflies around the world, each with their own unique characteristics.
Ladybugs and butterflies are both insects but belong to different orders. Ladybugs belong to the order Coleoptera and have prominent antennae, hard forewings, and brightly colored bodies with black spots. They are important for controlling pest insects and are generally considered beneficial. Butterflies belong to the order Lepidoptera and have slender bodies, delicate wings with scales, and long antennae. They are known for their vibrant colors and intricate wing patterns, and are important for pollination. Unlike ladybugs, some butterfly species can be considered pests when their caterpillars damage crops.
Learning about ladybugs and butterflies helps kids understand the importance of biodiversity and the role these insects play in the ecosystem. Kids will also learn about the different stages of their life cycle, which encourages observation skills and patience. Additionally, learning about ladybugs and butterflies can help spark an interest in science and nature, leading to further exploration and curiosity. It can also foster a sense of appreciation and respect for the environment, as well as instill a sense of responsibility to protect it. Overall, studying ladybugs and butterflies can provide educational and environmental benefits for kids.
ladybug hands-on activities
- Ladybug Life Cycle: Create a hands-on activity to teach children about the life cycle of a ladybug. Use felt or paper cut-outs to represent the different stages of the life cycle, including eggs, larvae, pupa, and adult ladybug.
- Ladybug Counting: Use wooden ladybugs or ladybug buttons to help children practice counting and basic math skills.
- Ladybug Sensory Bin: Create a sensory bin filled with red and black rice, plastic ladybugs, and magnifying glasses to encourage children to observe and explore the textures and colors of the ladybugs.
- Ladybug Habitat: Provide children with a small container, soil, and fresh leaves to create a ladybug habitat. Teach them about the ladybug’s diet and how to care for their new pet.
- Ladybug Art: Use ladybug stampers or finger painting to create ladybug artwork. Children can also make their own ladybug costumes or masks using paper plates and construction paper.
- Ladybug Math and Language: Use ladybug cut-outs to teach children basic math and language skills. For example, you can have them create ladybug patterns, match upper and lowercase letters on ladybugs, or practice spelling with ladybug letter cards.
- Ladybug Music and Movement: Incorporate ladybug-themed songs and movements into your classroom. Teach children various ladybug dances or songs to reinforce ladybug concepts.
- Ladybug Cooking: Teach children about ladybug-themed snacks such as ladybug crackers or cupcakes. Allow children to help measure and mix ingredients while learning about nutrition and following recipes.
- Ladybug Field Trip: Take children on a field trip to a local park or garden to observe ladybugs in their natural habitat. Encourage children to collect and observe ladybugs with magnifying glasses and journals.
- Ladybug Storytelling: Read various ladybug-themed books and encourage children to create their own ladybug stories or graphic novels. Have them practice storytelling aloud or even create puppet shows with ladybug puppets.
butterfly hands-on activities
- Butterfly Life Cycle Sequencing: Use pictures or materials to illustrate each stage of a butterfly’s life cycle and have children put them in order from egg to adult.
- Butterfly Garden: Plant a butterfly-friendly garden with plants like milkweed, butterfly bush, and sunflowers to attract butterflies and observe them up close.
- Butterfly Wing Symmetry: Use symmetry mirrors or drawing materials to have children explore the beautiful and intricate patterns on butterfly wings.
- Butterfly Anatomy: Use diagrams and 3D models to introduce children to the various parts of a butterfly’s body and their functions.
- Butterfly Migration Map: Introduce children to the concept of butterfly migration and have them create a map of the routes that different butterfly species take.
- Butterfly Camouflage: Use pictures and materials to illustrate how some butterfly species have adapted to their environments through camouflage and have children try to match up the butterflies to their habitats.
- Butterfly Habitat Puzzle: Create a puzzle of a butterfly’s natural habitat and have children put it together while learning about each featured plant and animal.
- Butterfly Food Chain: Use pictures and descriptions to illustrate the different organisms in a butterfly’s food chain and have children create a visual representation of this system.
- Butterfly Art: Allow children to express their creativity by making butterfly art using various materials like paint, tissue paper, or construction paper.
- Butterfly Field Trip: Take children on a field trip to a local butterfly sanctuary or park where they can observe and interact with live butterflies.
Sorting printable
Print on card stock and laminate for longer use. After cutting cards, draw with marker or stick dot stickers to the back of each set – one color for each set. Place the label cards in a row. Explain the difference between the two types of insects. Invite the child to sort cards into two categories.
After the child completed the task, invite him or her to flip the cards and self-check. Each card has to be under the correct category based on the dot color.

Young children can be encouraged to match butterfly and lady beetle cards when printed twice, and draw butterflies and ladybugs they like the most using their choice of art medium.
Older children might be inspired to research and create their own books about butterflies and lady beetle that dwell in your region.
When exploring crawling creatures with your children you might like to give some of these hands-on activities a go:
- Make different types of insects using playdough.
- Gather a bug catcher, net, and a magnifying glass next time you go outdoors and invite the children to explore insects they find in the grass and catch.
- Turn on classical or lyrical music, give children silky scarves and invite them to improvise dancing to music flattering like butterflies.
- Invite the children to play charades with insect life cycles.
- Explore the most common insects found in your area – make a poster together with your students.
- Discuss in a small group all the different ways children can protect crawling creatures in their natural habitat.

Bugs and Crawling Creatures - Children's Books and Learning Resources
Butterfly Unit Printable Hands-on Activities for the Montessori Classroom
Collection of butterfly themed printable hands-on activities. This resource would be a helpful addition to learning activities in the Montessori classroom. The pack contains cards, posters, student booklets, coloring pages and features real photos and true-to-life images. Some cards were made to match figurine toys. Pre-reading, reading, fine-motor, writing, sequencing, vocabulary.
Color Cards for Sorting with Insects Montessori Nature
Six sets of insect color cards (green, yellow, black, blue, red, and brown)
Animals Pollinators 3 Part and Information Cards Montessori Nature
Animal pollination is such a crucial part of learning about the plant life cycle and the importance of tiny creatures that inhabit the planet. You can incorporate this resource into your Insect, Pollination, or Plant Life Cycle Units.
Dragonfly hands-on activities. Montessori Nature
Dragonflies have such a unique life cycle from a nymph, molt transforming into a gorgeous dragonfly! This set of resources is a wonderful addition to the Insect and Life Cycle Units.
Dragonfly hands-on activities for preschool and lower elementary students.
Parts of a Honey Bee 3 Part Cards and B&W Student Booklet
Montessori cards with 12 parts of a honey bee and b&w student booklet for tracing and independent writing.
Spider Life Cycle 3 Part Cards and B&W Student Booklet
This resource is a very accurate presentation of the spider life cycle as it contains real-life photographs of every stage. The students can also practice handwriting and independent writing with the b&w student booklet for coloring and labeling.
Insects Minibeasts Bugs Toddler Picture Cards Matching Activities Editable
Twenty picture cards for toddlers containing animal photographs of bugs, insects and minibeasts.
These gorgeous picture cards are specially designed for little toddlers with rounded corners and clear and visually appealing photographs
Insects and Crawling Creatures - Fine Motor, Cutting, Pin Poking, Coloring
Insects and Crawling Creatures fine motor learning activities are a perfect addition to Spring and Summer Units. Children often get fascinated with little bugs and insects they can spot every day outdoors during the warm spring and summer seasons. This brings a perfect opportunity to engage their little fingers to develop fine motor and exercise finger muscles.
Types of Butterflies - Color Identification Clip Cards Montessori Printable
Clip cards with sixteen different types of butterflies.
Insects and Crawling Creatures Preschool Pack
Insects and Crawling Creatures learning activity pack for preschool children aged 3-6. The invertebrate animals-themed activity pack contains printables to create a wide range of hands-on experiences for young children.
Insects and Crawling Creatures - 3 Part Cards - Information Cards
Three-part cards and information cards with 27 different types of Insects and Crawling Creatures – invertebrate animals that young children often find fascinating.
Beetles Bingo Activity - 20 Different Bingo Cards Montessori Printable
Have your students learn to identify 19 different kinds of beetles with this fun Beetle Bingo activity. With 20 bingo cards, this game can be done with large and small groups of students.
Honey Bee Life Cycle - Nature Curriculum in Cards
Two sets of Honey Bee Life Cycle activities with student worksheets and Honey Bee 3-part Cards
Insects and Crawling Creatures Printable to go along with Safari Toob Animals
Animals included in the printable – caterpillar, dragonfly, centipede, grasshopper, housefly, ladybug, spider, honey bee, cockroach, scorpion, praying mantis, ant, and butterflies.
Insects and Arachnids Vocabulary 3 Part Cards Editable Montessori
Three-part cards are an excellent tool to help interactively learn new vocabulary and spelling. Classified cards can be used to enrich the child’s vocabulary, to develop reading, writing, and classification skills while broadening the child’s knowledge of the world. Create bilingual/multilingual cards for the students in your minority language with ease.

Big Book of Bugs
Big Book of Bugs—the up-close and personal book for young entomologists and all curious kids who are fascinated with bugs. Look right into a spider's eye and get tangled in its web! Marvel at the stunning pictures of teeny tiny creepy crawlies blown up to extraordinary sizes. Engaging annotations provide buggy facts and figures. Larger than life photographs of these bugs include locusts, caterpillars, beetles, flies, grasshoppers, ants, praying mantises, and more!

Are You A Ladybug? (Avenues) (Backyard Books)
Beginning with its title question, "Are you a ladybug?", this accessible book is perfect for reading aloud and tells young readers how they would experience life if they were a ladybug.

The Backyard Bug Book for Kids: Storybook, Insect Facts, and Activities (Let's Learn About Bugs and Animals)
Crawl into the wonderful world of bugs—a fun photographic adventure for kids ages 3 to 5
Take your child on an educational adventure bursting with the kinds of colorful photographs you need in bug books for kids.
The Backyard Bug Book for Kids has everything you’d want in bug books for kids: a story, pictures, and activities combined. Introduce your little one to the types of bugs they’re likely to see during their day, then help them remember what they’ve learned with fun, on-the-page challenges.

Everything You Need to Know About Bugs
Everything You Need to Know about Bugs is an interactive read that any child interested in insects will love! This interactive read is full of fun insect facts, an insect identification guide, and key information about recognizing bugs and creepy crawlies all around. Identify bugs you might see in the backyard or camping, and find out about bugs you've never heard about before — it's all in Everything You Need to Know about Bugs, your complete bug and insect resource.

ABC Bug Book for Kids
From ants to zebra spiders, there’s a bug for every letter of the alphabet! Meet a huge variety of our many-legged friends with this colorful book made just for toddlers. They’ll dive into awesome trivia about bugs—like what they eat and where they live—all while learning their letters.

Ultimate Explorer Field Guide: Insects: Find Adventure! Go Outside! Have Fun! Be a Backyard Insect Inspector!
This fun, photo-filled, and fact-packed guide to insects will make kids stop and look for all kinds of these crawling and flying creatures right in their own backyards. From bees to beetles, walking sticks to inchworms, kids will learn how, where, and when to spot these animals all over the United States (and how to keep a safe distance when necessary).

The Bug Book
This fun rhyming story lists all the bugs you can imagine—creep bugs, climb bugs, sticky-slime bugs! Discover the vast world of insects in this photo-filled book.

The Fascinating Bug Book for Kids: 500 Startling Facts! (Fascinating Facts)
Have you ever wondered how many bugs there are on Earth? Or which ones can fly the highest? The Fascinating Bug Book for Kids is packed with 500 incredible facts about insects, arachnids, crustaceans and other creepy crawlies for hours of exploration. Find full-color pictures that uncover life as a bug, alongside trivia about termite towers, beautiful butterflies, cool cocoons, and more.

The Buzzy Bee Book for Kids: Storybook, Bee Facts, and Activities! (Let's Learn About Bugs and Animals)
Buzzy Bee, reporting for duty! With this book on bees, kids can follow along with a honeybee and explore everything that happens inside a beehive and beyond. They’ll see amazing photos, learn what makes bees so unique, and learn all about the jobs bees do to keep the hive happy and healthy.

Big Book of Bugs (The Big Book Series)
A beautifully illustrated, informative book for children introducing them to bugs that creep, crawl, bite, fly, and more
From moths and beetles to worms and spiders, the world is crawling with fascinating bugs. The Big Book of Bugs is the first fact-filled book for children to explore the vast array of creepy-crawlies that share our Earth.

Learning About Insects (The Natural World)
This beautiful and simple label book introduces young readers to the names of different insects and their body parts.

Bugs A to Z
An essential A to Z bug book for young readers.
The perfect book for all kids who are fascinated with bugs. Simple text from A to Z provides buggy facts and figures. Larger than life full-color photographs of creepy crawlies include locusts, caterpillars, beetles, flies, grasshoppers, ants, praying mantis, and more!

The Weird and Wonderful World of Bugs: A Book About Beetles, Butterflies, and Other Fascinating Insects
Fascinating facts and up-close photos to delight bug fans ages 5 to 7
Calling all young bug enthusiasts! Come along on a journey into The Weird and Wonderful World of Bugs. Kids from ages 5 to 7 will learn all about the insects and other arthropods we call “bugs.” They’ll meet moths, bees, fireflies, spiders, and mosquitos in detailed, full-color photos that bring the bugs to life from antennae to abdomen. Entomologist Rea Manderino, PhD, offers scientific facts on every page, inspiring budding bug scientists to explore their backyards with new eyes.

National Geographic Readers: Ants
Ants are everywhere. They creep, they crawl, they climb, and they fall. But they get up and they keep on working. Ants come in all different shapes, different sizes, and different colors. And they do a lot of different jobs. These hard-working little creatures thrive wherever they go, making whatever adaptations necessary in their ever-changing world.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Little Kids First Board Book: Insects
Bursting with vivid photos, each spread in this sturdy book features a fascinating insect or spider, along with supersimple facts and lively, age-appropriate language to keep babies and toddlers―and their grown-ups―engaged.
Designed to be the stepping-stone to the best-selling National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book series, the Little Kids First Board Book series takes similar subjects and distills them down to the simplest nonfiction concepts for the youngest audience.

About Insects: A Guide for Children
This beginner's guide to insects is a must-have for bug-obsessed young learners as well as for those who are simply curious about these creatures. In this addition to the acclaimed About... series, author and educator Cathryn Sill uses simple, easy-to-understand language to teach children what insects are, how they look, how they move, what they eat, and where they live.

Mrs. Peanuckle's Bug Alphabet (Mrs. Peanuckle's Alphabet)
Mrs. Peanuckle’s Bug Alphabet introduces babies and toddlers to all sorts of interesting bugs. Perfect to read aloud, this creepy, crawly adventure will engage children and parents alike with its vibrant illustrations and fascinating facts about bugs. Learning the ABCs has never been so bitingly fun!
Mrs. Peanuckle’s Bug Alphabet is the fourth title in a series of board books celebrating the joy of nature at home and in the backyard, from fresh fruits and vegetables to birds, flowers, and trees.
Free Printables Designed by Montessori Nature
- Free Resource Library
- Singular And Plural Nouns: Montessori Free Sorting Printable For Teaching Kids The Difference
- Boost Your Students Literacy Skills With Fun And Creative Cards Featuring Compound Words
- Animals and Their Homes Free Printable
- Geoboard Task Cards Free Math Summer Printable
- Signs Of Summer In Nature Free Printables Posters Student Booklets
- Get Sorting With These Free Fall-Themed Printable Activities For Kids – Made By Humans And Made By Nature Sort
- All About Me Printable Freebie
- Signs of Spring in Nature
- Parts of a Plant Sorting
- Birthday Timeline Printable
- Animals of Continents Sort Editable Labels
- Fall Into Learning Fun With Autumn-Themed Geoboard Cards Free Printable For Kids
- Letter A Student Activity Page Phonics Free Language Printable
- Letter D Student Activity Page Phonics Free Language Printable
- Letter E Student Activity Page Phonics Free Language Printable
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- Double Letters CH Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Free Language Printable
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- Double Letters Th Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Language Printable
- Double Letters ‘OO’ Vowel Digraph
- ‘ER’ Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Language Printable
- ‘OR’ Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Language Printable
- Double Letters ‘EE’ Vowel Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Language Printable
- Double Letters ‘NG’ Digraph Student Activity Page Phonics Free Language Printable
- Made By Nature Made By Humans Sorting
- My Word Of The Year New Year Free Printable
- Physical And Chemical Changes Pairing Fine Motor With Pegs
- Christmas Playdough Mats
- Christmas 3 Part Cards
- Christmas Matching Fine Motor With Pegs
- 10 Deciduous Trees And 10 Coniferous Trees Sorting Cards
- Fall Playdough Mats
- Christmas in Australia
- Free DIY Art Puzzles Coloring Pages Printables – Silent Night by Viggo Johansen
- Signs of Winter
- Matching Fine Motor With Pegs The Nutcracker Free Christmas printable
- Free DIY Puzzles And Coloring Pages – Raphael The Sistine Madonna
- Fall Leaf Shapes Match Up With Pegs
- Animal Hibernation & Torpor Cards
- 10 Farm Cards And 10 Forest Sorting Cards
- Pairing Fine Motor With Pegs – Thankful Animals
- Types Of Apples
- Fall Prewriting Practice – Free Fine Motor Printable
- Free DIY Puzzles And Coloring Pages – Paul Cezanne Still Life Painting Curtain, Jug And Fruit Bowl
- Fall Pin Punching And Tracing Cards
- Fall Match Up Initial Sounds With Pegs
- Fall Match Up Rhyming Words With Pegs
- Fall Leaves And Fall Flowers
- Fall Match Up Opposites With Pegs
- 10 Types Of Vertebrates And 10 Types Of Invertebrates Fall Printable
- 10 Types of Insects and 10 Types of Flowers Sort
- Fall Match Up With Pegs
- Types Of Exotic Apples 3-Part Cards, Posters, Student Booklet
- 10 Types Of Edible And 10 Types Of Poisonous Mushrooms
- Signs Of Fall – Free Printables, Posters, Cards, Student Booklets
- Woodland Animals Poster Match Up Cards
- 10 Types Of Mammals And 10 Types Of Birds In Autumn
- Color, Cut Out, Build, And Label The Ant
- Color, Cut Out, Build, And Label The Fish
- Gemstones 3 Part Cards
- Wild Animal Families Puzzles And Cards
- Forest Matching Cards – Free Nature Printable
- Beach Poster, Match Up Cards – Free Printables
- Whale Size Comparison Poster, Match Up Cards
- DIY Puzzles And Coloring Pages – Vincent Van Gogh Vase With Twelve Sunflowers
- 10 Types Of Vertebrates And 10 Types Of Invertebrates
- Coral Reef Animals Poster, Match Up Cards
- 10 Types Of Terrestrial Mammals And 10 Types Of Marine Mammals – Free Summer Printable
- 10 Types Of Butterflies And 10 Types Of Ladybugs – Free Sorting Printable
- Skip Counting Student Helper Posters And Worksheets s
- Number Tracing And Formation Activity
- Sums With Bead Bars – Clip Cards And Worksheets With Teen Numbers
- Addition Clip Cards
- Number Bonds – Addition With Bead Bars Sums Of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, And 10
- Place Value Mats, Task Cards, And Tracing Worksheets
- Gemstones – Posters And Matching Cards
- Nature Journal
- Valentine’s Day Coloring
- Geoboard Task Cards
- Free One Week Planner For Preschool Children With Low Prep Hands-On Activities
- Free Montessori Baby And Toddler Printable Materials
- DIY Winter Puzzles And Art Activities – Painting “The Starry Night” By Vincent Van Gogh
- Winter Animals
- Arctic Animals
- DIY Winter Puzzles And Art Activities – Painting “Maslenitsa” By Boris Kustodiev
- Butterflies And Moths Sort
- Types Of Flowers Match Up
- Silent E Learning To Read Cards
- Addition And Subtraction Cards – Single Digits
- Animals In Spring – Activities, Resources, And Free Printables
- Multiplication Charts
- Lined Writing Paper Handwriting Practice
- Nocturnal And Diurnal Animals Sort
- Viviparous And Oviparous Animals Sort
- Mothers And Their Young Animals Sort
- Constellations And Planets Sort
- Farm Animal Families Puzzles
- The Earth Goes Around The Sun – Free Geography Printable
- Tulip Life Cycle And Parts Of A Tulip
- Doing Montessori At Home With Your Baby ( 7 – 9 Mo ) Free Printable Checklist