Ladybug Life Cycle Wheel Craft

Worms, butterflies, and bugs… my kids are fascinated with anything that creeps, crawls or flies!  Are your kids, too?!  This cute ladybug life cycle craft is a great way to teach children about the life cycle of a lady bug. From egg to ladybug, all four steps are included.

Scroll down to grab your free ladybug life cycle wheels!  Then, ready for more science fun? Check out our awesome 30 Science Experiments (complete with a no prep journal to record results) in our shop!

Getting Ready

To prep, I printed off a life cycle sheet and cover for each child. To add a fun pop of color, I decided to make the cover blue, but you could choose any color under the sun.

Then, I grabbed enough brads and large paper plates for every student to have one.

Tip: Make sure that the paper plate is at least 8 inches (20cm) wide.

Ladybug Life Cycle

Before jumping into the craftivity, the kids and I learned about the ladybugs’ life cycle. There was so much to discover!

Female ladybugs lay 10-15 yellow eggs on the underside of leaves to keep them safe from predators and weather.

When the eggs hatch, the larvae look for tiny mites or aphids they can find near them to eat.

After just a few days, they grow large enough that they need to molt (shed their skin).

Several weeks of growing later, the larvae changes into a shrimp-like shape called a pupa. The pupa attaches to a leaf and begins going through metamorphosis, changing into a ladybug.

As the ladybug emerges, the skin of the pupa splits and the adult appears looking soft and pink (not red) for several hours until its shell becomes hard and darkens to a bright red.

Life Cycle Wheels

After our chat, I handed out the life cycle wheels and the kids colored each step of the ladybug’s life: egg – larvae – pupa – adult.

Carefully, each child cut around the outside of their wheel and glued it to the middle of their paper plate.

Little Sister (4) is working on her scissors skills, so it was great practice.

We worked together to place the covers on top and secured it with a brad in the middle of the circle to hold it in place.

Viola! The kids were eager to try the wheel for themselves as they spun through each stage of their ladybug’s life from egg…

…to ladybug!

Download Your Free Copy

Click the blue download button below to snag your free life cycle wheel!  Then, check out more science fun with our 30 Science Experiments!