Http://butterflywebsite



Webliography of Butterflies

Reviewer: Kristi Colarusso

Web Resources:

Website #1

Name: “The Butterfly Website”

URL:

Summary:

This website has a vast amount of information on butterflies. From gardening, to migration, from articles and an extensive photo gallery to videos, there is a lot of information to be found on the website. The major audiences would be any butterfly lover. However, there is a specific link for kids and for educators. In the section for kids, there are also links to other reputable articles and sites, such as “Outside In”, the website “Missouri Conservationist for Kids”. There are links to videos of various butterfly species

Commentary:

Overall, I feel that this is a reputable and educational website for my students to visit. However, I couldn’t find an author (the website was powered by Mikula Web Solutions). There were several sponsors (advertisements), but all had to do with butterflies (dried specimens, butterfly release services, etc.).

Website #2

Name: All About Butterflies

URL:

Summary:

All About Butterflies is an on-line hypertext book about butterflies. It is designed for students of all ages (with the help of a teacher in the lower grades, or for independent reading/research in the older elementary grades). It has approximately 10 sections, including the life cycle of a butterfly, web links, anatomy of a butterfly and an extensive section of butterfly species. Being a part of enchanted learning, there are some links which lead to handouts/printouts that you need to be a member to see in full page. However, most of the information is free and available to any student. Major context and content of document or site, and purpose/scope/intended audiences/and major categories site covers

Commentary:

I find to be a very useful website for many topics. They provide printouts and pictures and maps that can be labeled. I am fortunate that my school district has a membership to enchanted learning. However, I like that even if a teacher/student is not a member, they can still use this hypertext resource. Readers are able to follow their interests because the table of contents remains on the screen. The author is Jeananda Col. While I do not know her credentials, the fact that this book was published by Enchanted Learning tells me that it is a reputable site.

Website #3

Name: Journey North: A Global Study of Wildlife Migration and Seasonal Change

URL:

Summary:

The Journey North is a free, online program for students and teachers. It provides activities about seasonal changes and how students can observe these changes through animal (monarchs, hummingbirds, cranes, bald eagles, and whales) and plant behaviors. The students observe research and report their findings. This website has wonderful links to reputable sites, provides very clear video clips of different animals being studied (in this case, butterflies), and also includes FREE printable nonfiction books, worksheets that go along with the program and a teacher’s guide! There are links to slide shows and articles written by zoologists and biologists. This website could be utilized for students K-6, and even higher. It is powered by Annenberg Media, and seems to be its own site (copyright is Journey North).

Commentary:

This is a highly recommended website for all grade-school teachers. It incorporates many science, technology, reading and writing standards through the project that the children are a part of. The website says that Journey North is, “widely considered a best-practices model for education. Journey North is the nation’s premiere ‘citizen science’ project for children”.

Website # 4

Name: Monarchs and Migration

URL:

Summary:

This is an interactive site which is for teachers, students and families interested in monarchs and tracking their migration. Included in the website are links to: 10 easy ways to investigate butterflies, more information about the website, butterfly-related activities to try, a butterfly gallery with pictures and stories that have been collected, and links to other reputable sites. There is a link to a map of the US with links to other classrooms who are also studying monarchs.

Commentary:

This site is a reputable resource for teachers or parents who are homeschooling. It is powered by the Science Museum of Minnesota and the Science Learning Network. The Science Learning Network (SLN) is an online community of educators, students, schools, science museums and other institutions demonstrating a new model for inquiry science education. I give this site a 10 out of 10!

Website # 5

Name: Grades 3-5 Themes--Butterflies

URL:

Summary:

This is a website that was created/maintained by a teacher (Jerrrie S. Cheek, Educational Technology Center) in Georgia for use by teachers/students. There is extensive information on the website (the butterflies section of links is quite lengthy). However, several of the links go to empty sites (last maintained in 05), and some of the links go to web quests that have expired. One web quest about butterflies that I clicked on had words misspelled and several empty links.

Commentary:

I might use this website if I had time to go through all the links to make sure they were active/reputable. It might provide a teacher with some helpful information or some good links, but overall this is not a professional and reliable website.



Website #6

Name: E-: Bringing Nature to Life

URL:

Summary:

This website is incredible! It is “the web’s premier destination for information about the wild animals and plants of the US”. It has won numerous awards and has been one of the webs most-visited sites for nature and wildlife information. It is a resource powered by the National Wildlife Federation out of Washington D.C., so the information comes from a reputable governmental source. The site’s major content about 6,000 individual species of wildlife is the same data/information used to create the Audubon Field Guides. All of the information is reviewed by leading biologists, zoologists, and other natural history specialists.

Commentary:

This is a reputable and reliable website. I would use this website without reservation if I were doing a unit on butterflies. I would rate this site a 10 out of 10.

Website # 7

Name: Monarch Watch

URL:

Summary:

This is also a reputable website whose intended audience is all interested citizens, including teachers and students who are studying monarch butterflies. The purpose is to engage those interested in the program in large-scale research projects regarding butterflies. There is a lot of information about the biology and conservation of the Monarch, provided by the Kansas Biological Survey, a part of the University of Kansas, including: the life cycle, different programs in which to become involved, a multimedia gallery (with drawings, essays and photos), how to grow milkweed, making a butterfly garden, and more.

Commentary:

This is a wonderful website for teachers and students! “Since its inception in 1992, Monarch Watch has evolved into an electronically-based program with an award-winning website, an active e-mail discussion list, and a growing online community forum. The program involves more than 2,000 schools, nature centers, and other organizations in the US and Canada”. Information about the website is readily available. This website is also a 10 out of 10!

Website #8

Name: North American Butterfly Association

URL:

Summary:

This website is a membership-based, non-profit organization whose purpose is to increase the public enjoyment and conservation of all types of butterflies. This site is not really meant as an educational tool, although if a membership was purchased, it might include some good information, such as tracking of certain types of butterflies.

Commentary:

This website is not meant for educational purposes for teachers and students. Therefore, I don’t feel that it would be appropriate for a K-6 unit on butterflies.

Website #9

Name: “Butterflies and Moths of North America”

URL:

Summary:

This website/database was created by scientists at the US Geological Survey Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (Montana State University—Big Sky Institute). Included in the information provided by this website are links to the following: taxonomic groups, map searches, species searches, and an image gallery. From this website, there is a link to the “Children’s Butterfly Site”, which is a great website with lots of information for both students and teachers ().

Commentary: The authors of the website are scientists, which makes the information reliable. Also, it is associated with a governmental agency (the US Geological Survey), which also makes it a highly reputable resource.

Website #10

Name: “Butterflies North and South”—virtual museum of Canada

URL:

Summary:

In addition to links to conservation, picture gallery, and questions and answers, this site also has a specific link for teachers and students. Included in that link are online, animated games about the butterfly life cycle, crossword puzzles and other resources for teachers, such as online lesson plans.

Commentary:

This is a reliable source. The site includes a bibliography where information is found. This is extremely helpful. It is also part of a national (Canadian) organization, which is reputable (Virtual Museum of Canada). Overall, I would rate this site an 8 out of 10.

Website #11

Name: American Museum of Natural History: The Butterfly Conservatory

URL:

Summary:

This is a fascinating website with a lot of reputable and reliable information. I was particularly interested in the web cam option from this site. There are also incredible pictures of various species of butterflies. However, I don’t believe the purpose of this website is solely for teaching purposes, because there is also much information on the exhibit itself, such as ticketing, and exhibition highlights.

Commentary:

The “butterfly cam” makes this site a good place to visit if a teacher would like to show a butterfly coming out of its chrysalis, or drinking sugar water. The information is reliable, since it comes from a highly recognized museum. I give this website a 9 out of 10.

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