Symmetrical Butterfly Birthday Card

There is nothing quite as pleasing to the eye as the sight of symmetry. Make bilateral symmetry even more engaging to your child by incorporating it into this beautiful butterfly birthday card! Your child will be enchanted with her ability to paint a brilliant butterfly made up of perfectly even shapes, and the recipient of this card will be just as delighted! This fantastic introduction to symmetry will also stimulate her creativity and fine motor skills.

What You Need:

• White cardstock paper (8 1/2" x 11")
• Colored construction paper (preferably slightly bigger than the white paper)
• Tempera or poster paints
• Felt-tip pens
• Glue

What You Do:

1. Fold the white paper in half and ask your child to paint two large blobs, one on top of the other on one side of the fold, so that it looks like one half of a flying butterfly. The paint must be applied quite thickly so that it transfers successfully to the other half of the paper.
2. Encourage her to quickly put some drips of contrasting paint on the blobs.
3. Have her carefully fold the paper along the fold, whilst the paint is still wet, pressing down on it from the outside edge of the paper to the fold.
4. Ask her to carefully unfold the paper; the image should now look like a butterfly!
5. Whilst the paint is drying, fold the construction paper in half.
6. Get your child to write a birthday message on the front of the construction paper card (with the fold on the left).
7. Once the painting has dried, ask your child to use more paint and felt tip pens to add details such as antennae and a body. Encourage her to try and keep the image symmetrical.
8. Glue the folded butterfly painting inside the construction paper card.
9. The recipient will be greeted with a surprise butterfly when she opens the card!

Variations: