Monarch Mayhem is a pollinator awareness initiative for elementary and high school students across Canada. It will take place on October 6th, 2020 in schools, homes and community centres across the country. We invite educators to register here.
There are four school programs within Monarch Mayhem, see below for more information. You can choose to run as many or as little of these events as you'd like but we recommend including the Pollinator Power lesson to help kids understand pollinators. It is free to register and you will receive detailed information on how run each event as well as a physical welcome package (if you register by September 15th, 2020) - while supplies last.
Please note: Pollinator Power, Monarch March and Schoolyard Bioblitz can all take place within one school day. Pollinator-Friendly Planting will require more planning and maintenance over the school year.
This program is currently only available in English due to our limited resources. If you would like to help translate this program into French, please contact us at: monarchmayhemcanada@gmail.com.
There are four school programs within Monarch Mayhem, see below for more information. You can choose to run as many or as little of these events as you'd like but we recommend including the Pollinator Power lesson to help kids understand pollinators. It is free to register and you will receive detailed information on how run each event as well as a physical welcome package (if you register by September 15th, 2020) - while supplies last.
Please note: Pollinator Power, Monarch March and Schoolyard Bioblitz can all take place within one school day. Pollinator-Friendly Planting will require more planning and maintenance over the school year.
This program is currently only available in English due to our limited resources. If you would like to help translate this program into French, please contact us at: monarchmayhemcanada@gmail.com.
1. Pollinator Power
This is an interactive lesson where students will learn about who, what and where pollinators are and how they are important to us, including the connection between pollination and our food. It will also get them thinking about how they can help pollinators. This lesson is available for Grades 1 to 12.
Lesson Topics
Grades 1 and 2: Needs and Characteristics of Living Things, Growth and Changes in Animals
Grades 3 and 4: Growth and Changes in Plants, Habitats and Communities
Grades 5 and 6: Pollination, Biodiversity
Grades 7 and 8: Interactions in the Environment, Human Impact
Grades 9 and 10: Sustainable Ecosystems and Human Activity, Climate Change
Grades 11 and 12: Diversity of Living Things, Human Impact on the Environment
Estimated time to complete: 45 minutes to 1 hour
This is an interactive lesson where students will learn about who, what and where pollinators are and how they are important to us, including the connection between pollination and our food. It will also get them thinking about how they can help pollinators. This lesson is available for Grades 1 to 12.
Lesson Topics
Grades 1 and 2: Needs and Characteristics of Living Things, Growth and Changes in Animals
Grades 3 and 4: Growth and Changes in Plants, Habitats and Communities
Grades 5 and 6: Pollination, Biodiversity
Grades 7 and 8: Interactions in the Environment, Human Impact
Grades 9 and 10: Sustainable Ecosystems and Human Activity, Climate Change
Grades 11 and 12: Diversity of Living Things, Human Impact on the Environment
Estimated time to complete: 45 minutes to 1 hour
Lessons are available for Grades 1 to 12.
2. Monarch March
The monarch migration is one of the longest insect migrations in the world. Monarchs travel between 4 000 km and 5 000 km from Canada to Mexico in the fall to escape the cold winter. The Monarch March is a school run or walk where the goal is for all students kilometres to add up to 4 000! Can Canada's youth do it? We hope to demonstrate to students how far these butterflies travel all while the students are being active and enjoying the outdoors. This run can be done right on school property. Learn more about the monarch migration on our Buzzworthy Facts page.
Estimated time to complete: 30 minutes
Estimated time to complete: 30 minutes
Monarch March Target
We're aiming to run 4 000 km. So far we've gone 0 km. Check back in October!
3. Schoolyard Bioblitz
Why not learn about biology and contribute to science at the same time? The Seek app by iNaturalist is getting kids involved by taking photos of biodiversity in the schoolyard. Teacher's can then upload the observations to iNaturalist where they will be identified by community members and used by scientists to monitor Canada's biodiversity. High school students will have the opportunity to use the iNaturalist app to upload and identify species.
Estimated time to complete: 45 minutes
Why not learn about biology and contribute to science at the same time? The Seek app by iNaturalist is getting kids involved by taking photos of biodiversity in the schoolyard. Teacher's can then upload the observations to iNaturalist where they will be identified by community members and used by scientists to monitor Canada's biodiversity. High school students will have the opportunity to use the iNaturalist app to upload and identify species.
Estimated time to complete: 45 minutes
Students can learn about biodiversity and contribute to science with our schoolyard bioblitz.
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4. Pollinator-Friendly Planting
Take an active role in conservation by creating a pollinator-friendly garden. This gives students hands-on experience and improved understanding of biodiversity and the needs of wildlife. It also highlights the human impact on the environment and climate change mitigation. A garden will provide food and shelter for pollinators in your area. We will supply a step-by-step guide on how to create your garden and even include a selection of native or naturalized seeds to your area - while supplies last. Estimated time: four hours in autumn followed by weeding and watering in spring. Alternatively, planting can be started in Spring 2021 (between March and May). Read our planting guide to prepare: 
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Planting a Pollinator Garden. © User: Chuck Lafferty/USFWS / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-2.0
Please note: Due to native seed shortages, we are currently unable to provide seed packages for Newfoundland and Labrador as well as the territories. Seeds for some provinces are in limited supply. We are trying our best to acquire native seeds for the event.
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