Animal Life CyclesGrade 2 Science for Kids

From egg to butterfly, from tadpole to frog: how animals grow up.

Animal Life Cycles helps second graders follow the amazing changes of a butterfly and a frog, then compare animals that grow up fast with those that take many years. Clear, voiced lessons with ordering experiments.

  • Grade 2 · Ages 7–8
  • 3 lessons
  • 3 experiments
  • 12 practice questions
  • About 25 min
Start Learning Free Open the Course
  • The Butterfly
  • Butterfly Cycle
  • The Frog
  • Frog Cycle
  • Fast and Slow Growers
  • Growing Race

Science lab course · Grade 2

Animal Life Cycles · Learning goals

What Your Child Will Learn

Follow the amazing changes of a butterfly and a frog, then race animals to see which ones grow up fast and which take many years.

  • A butterfly goes egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly. This change is called metamorphosis.
  • A frog goes from egg to tadpole to frog. It changes from a water animal to a land animal.
  • All animals have a life cycle. Small animals often grow up fast and big animals grow slowly.

Why it matters

Why This Matters for Kids

  • Change over time

    Life cycles teach kids that living things grow and change in predictable stages.

  • Metamorphosis

    The caterpillar-to-butterfly change is one of the most exciting ideas in nature.

  • Comparing animals

    Comparing growth times builds data and comparison skills.

Inside Animal Life Cycles

How the Course Works

Each level has a short read-aloud lesson, an interactive experiment and a mini quiz.

  1. Step 1 · Lesson

    The Butterfly

    A butterfly starts as a tiny egg on a leaf.

  2. Step 2 · Experiment

    Butterfly Cycle

    A butterfly changes its whole body as it grows. Put its life cycle in order.

  3. Step 3 · Lesson

    The Frog

    A frog lays lots of jelly-like eggs in a pond.

  4. Step 4 · Experiment

    Frog Cycle

    A frog starts life in the water and ends up hopping on land. Put its life cycle in order.

  5. Step 5 · Lesson

    Fast and Slow Growers

    All animals have a life cycle: they are born, grow up, have babies and get old.

  6. Step 6 · Experiment

    Growing Race

    Let's race three baby animals to grown-up. Every second in our race is like many weeks!

Lesson preview

A Peek Inside the Lesson

This is the real lesson text your child hears, read aloud by a friendly voice.

The Butterfly

A butterfly starts as a tiny egg on a leaf.

A caterpillar hatches and eats and eats and grows!

It makes a chrysalis around itself. Inside, its body changes completely.

Out comes a butterfly! This big change is called metamorphosis.

The Frog

A frog lays lots of jelly-like eggs in a pond.

A tadpole hatches. It has a tail and lives in water like a fish.

Slowly it grows legs, and its tail gets shorter.

Now it's a frog! It can hop on land and breathe air.

Fast and Slow Growers

All animals have a life cycle: they are born, grow up, have babies and get old.

Some animals grow up very fast. A mouse is grown up in about 6 weeks!

Big animals often grow slowly. An elephant takes about 15 years!

For parents

Try It at Home

Learning sticks best when kids use it in real life. Here are simple ideas from this course.

Parent Tip

Draw the life cycle of a butterfly together as a circle with four pictures. Ask your child to tell the story of each stage.

Butterfly Cycle

  1. Look under leaves in a garden for tiny eggs or caterpillars.
  2. Don't touch! Just watch.
  3. Draw what you see in a nature journal.

A butterfly goes egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly. This change is called metamorphosis.

Frog Cycle

  1. Visit a pond in spring with a grown-up.
  2. Look for frog eggs or tadpoles near the edge.
  3. Visit again in a few weeks. Have they changed?

A frog goes from egg to tadpole to frog. It changes from a water animal to a land animal.

Growing Race

  1. Ask a grown-up how old your pet or a friend's pet is.
  2. Find out when it became a grown-up.
  3. Compare it with how long people take to grow up!

All animals have a life cycle. Small animals often grow up fast and big animals grow slowly.

Practice

Grade 2 Science Practice Questions

Real questions from Animal Life Cycles. Try them with your child, then tap to see the answer.

  1. Question 1

    What hatches from a butterfly egg?

    • A.A butterfly
    • B.A tadpole
    • C.A caterpillar
    Show answer

    A caterpillar

  2. Question 2

    Where do frogs lay their eggs?

    • A.In water
    • B.In a tree
    • C.In sand
    Show answer

    In water

  3. Question 3

    What is a life cycle?

    • A.A kind of bike
    • B.Being born, growing up and having babies
    • C.A game
    Show answer

    Being born, growing up and having babies

The full course has 12 questions with instant feedback, stars and rewards. Create a free account to play them all.

Animal Life Cycles · Questions from parents

Frequently Asked Questions

What age is this course for?

Animal Life Cycles is a grade 2 science course for kids ages 7–8. That is Year 3 science in the UK and Year 2 in Australia. It also works well for review in the next grade, or as a challenge for a confident younger learner.

What will my child learn?

Follow the amazing changes of a butterfly and a frog, then race animals to see which ones grow up fast and which take many years. Along the way they practice: A butterfly goes egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly. This change is called metamorphosis; A frog goes from egg to tadpole to frog. It changes from a water animal to a land animal; All animals have a life cycle. Small animals often grow up fast and big animals grow slowly.

How long does the course take?

About 25 minutes in total, split into 3 short levels. Most kids finish it over two or three sessions. Progress is saved, so they can stop any time and pick up where they left off.

Is this course free?

Animal Life Cycles is part of SkillBloom Premium, which unlocks every course in every subject. Each subject also has free courses, so your child can try SkillBloom before you decide.

Does my child need to read well to use it?

No. Every lesson has a friendly read-aloud voice, questions are read aloud too, and the pictures help kids follow along. Confident readers can turn the voice off.

Can we use it for homeschool?

Yes. SkillBloom is built for homeschooling families. Kids work through lessons, games and quizzes on their own, and the parent dashboard shows what they finished and which skills need more practice. It works on phones, tablets and laptops.

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