Butterfly prompts by age
“Use this prompt” fills in the generator and sets the detail level. Every page is drawn fresh, so if one misses, change one detail and try again.
| For | Prompt | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Ages 2 to 5Simple | a butterfly with big symmetrical wings decorated with circles and dots, big simple shapes, no background Both wings match, so children can copy each color from one side to the other. |
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| Ages 4 to 7Simple | a striped caterpillar on a leaf, a chrysalis hanging from a twig and a butterfly, no words, big simple shapes, no background Three stages of the life cycle, to color in order. |
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| Ages 6 to 9Medium | a butterfly resting on a large flower with its wings open, each wing with a pattern of veins and spots, clean bold outlines Veins divide the wings into many small shapes. |
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| Ages 9 to 12Medium | a monarch butterfly with its wings open, black veins and white spots along the wing edges drawn as outlines, clean bold outlines Ready to color like a real monarch (see below). |
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| Teens and adultsMedium | butterflies arranged in a circle like a mandala, each with a different wing pattern, clean bold outlines A mandala made of butterflies, with every wing its own pattern. |
Color it like a real monarch
Monarch wings are deep orange with black borders and veins and white spots along the edges, and males have two black spots on the hind wings. The caterpillar is striped with yellow, black and white bands, and the chrysalis is seafoam green with tiny yellow spots (National Wildlife Federation).
The bright orange is a warning. Monarch caterpillars eat milkweed and store its toxins, which makes them taste bad to predators, and the protection lasts into the butterfly (NWF).
From egg to butterfly on milkweed
- Egg: laid on milkweed, the only plant monarch caterpillars eat. It hatches in three to five days.
- Caterpillar: eats milkweed and grows for about two weeks.
- Chrysalis: about two more weeks of change inside.
- Butterfly: most adults live only a few weeks, but the generation that hatches in late summer migrates and can live upward of eight months (NWF).
The caterpillar page above shows three of the four stages; children can add the egg themselves, a tiny dot on a leaf.