The Monarch Butterfly
by Douglas Florian
He is a monarch.
He is a king.
He flies great migrations.
Past nations he wings.
He is a monarch.
He is a prince.
When blackbirds attack him,
From poison they wince.
He is a monarch.
He is a duke.
Swallows that swallow him
Frequently puke.
Florian, Douglas. 1998. Inslectlopedia: poems and paintings. San Diego: Harcourt Brace
& Company. ISBN 0152013067.
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Extension
Pair this poem with the Orbis Pictus award winning book An Extraordinary Life: the story
of a monarch butterfly by Laurence Pringle. Since butterflies themselves are such a work of art, after your
discussion of monarchs and butterflies in general, make a list of words to describle butterflies. Then, extending to
art as well, have the children make butterfly paintings including the words they picked to describe butterflies in and around
the painting.
Pringle, Laurence. 1997. An extraordinary life: the story of a monarch butterfly. New York: Orchard
Books. ISBN 0531300021.
