Life Cycles of Animals — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. What is the correct order for a butterfly?
A) Egg, larva, pupa, adult
B) Larva, egg, adult, pupa
C) Pupa, egg, larva, adult
D) Adult, egg, larva, pupa
A butterfly begins as an egg, hatches into a larva (caterpillar), rests as a pupa inside a cocoon, then comes out as an adult butterfly.
2. What body part does a tadpole grow to walk on land?
A) Wings
B) Fins
C) Legs
D) Arms
Tadpoles swim with their tails, but to walk on land as a frog they must grow legs.
3. How does a chick get out of its egg?
A) It rolls out
B) It pecks the shell
C) It melts the shell
D) It waits for mom
When a chick is ready to hatch, it uses its small, hard beak to peck at and break the shell open.
4. Which stage does a caterpillar rest and change?
A) Egg
B) Larva
C) Adult
D) Pupa
The pupa is the quiet resting stage where the caterpillar's body slowly changes inside a cocoon into a butterfly.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. Frogs and butterflies both start as eggs.
Both frogs and butterflies begin their lives as tiny eggs before hatching into their young stages.
2. A cocoon protects the pupa inside.
The cocoon is a soft case that keeps the pupa safe while it changes into an adult.
3. A grown-up frog breathes with its lungs.
After a tadpole becomes a frog, it no longer breathes through gills in water; it uses its lungs to breathe air.
4. Baby animals grow and change as they get older.
Baby animals are small and weak when they are born, but they grow bigger and stronger and change shape over time.
5. A life cycle goes in a circle over and over.
A life cycle keeps repeating in a circle: adults have babies, the babies grow up, and then they have babies of their own.