In this post: Learn about the fascinating monarch migration through a new story in our Level 2 curriculum, “La Mariposa Monarca.”
Depending on where you live, you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of a unique phenomenon that happens each year—the monarch migration!
This is one of the most incredible natural wonders and is truly fascinating for kids and adults alike. As millions of these butterflies make their way south to Mexico, clusters of them can be spotted taking a much-needed rest in trees along the way.
At Llamitas Spanish, we teach Spanish through cross-curricula, thematic units that explore intriguing topics like the monarch migration! Kids learn about Spanish in the context of a range of subjects, including science, geography, cultural studies, and more.
Our Level 2 curriculum includes an anthology of 6 new stories, including “La Mariposa Monarca.” Keep reading to learn all about the monarchs’ journey and our new Level 2 curriculum!
Table of Contents
What is the Monarch Migration?
Monarch butterflies (called mariposa monarca in Spanish) make an amazing multi-generation journey two ways, between Canada and the northern US and Michoacán, Mexico. They’re the only butterfly known to do this!
Because these monarchs can’t survive the cold winters up north like other butterflies, they travel south for the winter, all the way down to the Sierra Madre mountains in Mexico. Between the mild temperature and humidity level, the forest here provides the perfect climate for monarchs to overwinter.
The monarchs’ long journey begins in the fall, in September and October, and spans weeks. They fly as much as 3,000 miles—sometimes traveling 100 miles in a single day—to reach their destination, using cues from nature such as the position of the sun to find their way!
However, scientists are still unsure of how exactly these monarchs know where to go. It’s truly extraordinary!
The monarchs who migrate south for the winter won’t make the trip back north. Instead, their offspring will begin the journey north sometime in March, with each subsequent generation traveling a little further north than the last. The entire cycle from north to south and back again typically involves four generations of monarchs over the span of one year.
Monarchs are important pollinators. Because of this amazing migration, they visit wildflowers all across North America, carrying pollen with them and helping these ecosystems thrive.
Related post: Las Mariposas: Easy Bilingual Butterfly Crafts
Monarch Migration Spanish Children’s Story
At Llamitas Spanish, we believe in the power of storytelling, which is why our lessons often incorporate beautifully-illustrated bilingual children’s stories.
Weaving in Spanish grammar and language learning, kids will learn about a variety of topics including the monarch migration in our Level 2 curriculum!
The story “La Mariposa Monarca” teaches children about the monarchs’ incredible journey by following along as a migrating monarch makes its way through forests, mountains, and deserts before arriving in Michoacán to rest for the winter. They’ll also see how they can help the monarchs by planting wildflowers such as milkweed.
Kids will learn about the monarch migration and also practice the following concepts in this unit:
- Common vs. proper nouns
- Narration and sequencing
- Demonstrative pronouns
- Adjectival endings
- Telling time on the hour
Monarch Migration Song
Just like stories, music is another essential component of Llamitas Spanish lessons. Nursery rhymes and songs keep our lessons engaging for young learners while reinforcing newly learned vocabulary and grammar!
Accompanying our new monarch butterfly story in Level 2 is our original song “La Mariposa Monarca.” This simple and catchy song tells the story of the monarch’s journey to Michoacán.
Here we’ve included the Spanish lyrics along with an English translation. Give it a listen and sing along!
| Spanish | English Translation |
| La mariposa Monarca Lista ya está El otoño ya llegó Ella se va a Michoacán. Va a volar sobre montañas Sobre bosques y el desierto Frío no quiere tener Mira lo hermosa que se ve. |
The Monarch Butterfly Is ready now Fall has arrived She flies away to Michoacán. She’s going to fly over mountains Over forests and deserts She doesn’t want to be cold Look how beautiful she looks. |
Homeschool Spanish Curriculum Levels
Raising bilingual and biliterate children is so easy and fun with Llamitas Spanish! Our academically robust open & go curriculum series is full of engaging cross-curricular lessons that cover topics kids love.
Our Level 1 curriculum is perfect for beginners. If your kids love butterflies, they’ll definitely enjoy our unit on ‘los insectos,’ in which they will learn about the lifecycle of a butterfly. They’ll also build skills in phonics and spelling, early math, and emergent literacy, while developing their fine and gross motor skills too!
Level 2 is for lower intermediate learners and those who have completed Level 1, or have at least one year of Spanish immersion/ dual language education.
It’s the perfect transition for younger learners who are not quite ready to move on to our Level 3 curriculum.
This is where you’ll find our monarch migration story within our unit on hibernation, plus so much more! Kids will further develop phonics, math, and literacy and enjoy music and cultural studies through six fun thematic units.
Related post: Dual Language Homeschool Education
Lydia is a freelance parenting and education writer. She previously taught English as a second language and enjoys sharing her love of language learning with her children.