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Journey North's Symbolic Migration Newsletter 2002-2003 |
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Dear Students,
Congratulations! Through your participation in Journey North's Symbolic Monarch Migration, your class helped celebrate one the world's most spectacular migrations. Your Symbolic Butterflies served as a symbol of international cooperation, the kind that is necessary for the survival of migratory species.
And now the Symbolic Monarch Butterflies have returned! But before you greet them, close your eyes and imagine yourself in Mexico. You're standing in a monarch sanctuary in the midst of millions of butterflies. The flurry of their wings sounds like rain. As you move carefully and quietly toward an oyamel branch, you see individual butterflies clustered together so tightly that a branch can break under their weight. Each butterfly flew hundreds and hundreds of miles to this small spot on the planet. They came last fall from points across eastern North America, including your hometown.
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Your clusters of Symbolic
Monarchs arriving from Mexico |
As if plucked from a branch, your class now has a cluster of Symbolic Monarchs. Each butterfly was made last fall by a student somewhere in the U.S. or Canada. A Mexican student cared for these butterflies until spring arrived. Then, in parallel with the real monarch migration, the child sent them on their journey north.
When the monarchs cross the border from Mexico in the spring, with them comes our responsibility to preserve habitat on the monarchs' summer breeding grounds. This seasonal passage across our borders symbolizes the role each country must play to preserve the monarch's annual migration.
Please continue the cycle of friendship and stewardship that these butterflies have begun by following the suggestions in this booklet.
Thank you for taking part in this celebration!
- Click to see photos and video clips of the Mexican students.
Your Friends at Journey North
How to Continue the Cycle of Friendship and Stewardship
- Meet Your New Mexican Friend
- Release Your Symbolic Monarchs
- Watch for Tagged Butterflies
- Share Your Stories
- Sample E-mail Message
- Find Your Own Butterflies
- Thank You!
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Get to Know Your New Mexican Friend
Find the hand-colored tag on your monarch cluster bag. It's written in Spanish by a Mexican student so you may need a translator.
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This student is hoping to hear from you! As a class, write a letter to
the student to say that the butterflies have landed safely in your hands...Don't
forget to thank the Mexican student for protecting the butterflies during
the long, cold northern winter. Be sure to write in Spanish to the address
included in your packet.
Release the Symbolic Monarch
Butterflies!
The butterflies' wings are tired after
their long journey. Remember,
just like the real monarchs, the Symbolic Monarchs began their journey
last fall in the north. They have traveled all the way to Mexico and back,
so don't be surprised if they appear worn from the trip. They're lucky
to have survived!
Now it's time to discover where your butterflies came from--and who made
them.
Find the locations on a map of North America. Make a class display to
show where each butterfly originated. Use a push-pin to mark the spot.
Display the butterfly on the wall, and connect it with yarn to the push-pin
that shows where it's from.
Your map will reflect the various people and places who are connected
by monarch migration.
If you receive butterflies from places outside the monarch's migration
route (such as Alaska, British Columbia or California) discuss how these
people are connected to the monarch in spirit. As a global treasure, monarchs
are part of the world's heritage, along with India's tigers, Africa's
elephants, etc.
You May Want to…
Send letters to the children who made the monarchs you received. Tell
them that their butterfly survived the long migration to and from Mexico,
and is now with you.
Be sure to send the name and address of the Mexican student who watched
over the cluster. List the locations of the other butterflies that spent
the winter clustered together.
Everybody loves to receive mail. Maybe you'll receive your own butterflies
back from a faraway place, too.
Page 3
Watch for Tagged Butterflies!
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Hand-made tag |
In addition you may find one of two "special" butterflies. They have orange or green colored tags on their wings so you'll recognize them. These butterflies come from special places. Here are their stories:
Orange
Tag Translation of Text: I visited the "El Rosario" or “Sierra Cincua” sanctuary on ___________ (date) where I saw millions of real monarch butterflies in their winter home. I also visited the "Symbolic Monarch Migration" exhibit where I tagged this butterfly. Members of the ______ ejido, who own land in these sanctuaries, are protecting Symbolic Monarchs at this exhibit. Here visitors can learn about the importance of monarchs to the children of North America. Through this project, members of the ejido community can also earn income for their service in educating tourists. Please write to me and continue the cycle of friendship! |
Green Tag Text: This butterfly was made by a student who lives in northern Mexico, on the monarch's migration pathway. Every fall, rivers of monarchs funnel overhead on their way to the sanctuaries in Central Mexico. In spring, they again pass overhead on their way to breed in the north and continue the cycle. About 20 years ago, when her children were young, Señora Rocio Trevino's family moved to Coahuila. Every fall, when the thousands of butterflies swarmed through, people thought they were invading insects. The children made a game to see how many they could kill. As Señora Trevino remembers, her children held contests to see who could make the biggest pile! Much later, she came to realize that these butterflies were the famous monarch butterflies that spend the winter in the mountains of Michoacan, over 400 miles to the south. Señora Trevino has dedicated herself to educating the people who live along the migration route about the importance of the monarch. This butterfly was made by one of the thousands of students who have learned about the monarchs because of Señora Trevino. |
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Share Your Stories With Journey North Students!
We've set up a meeting place on the Web so you can:
- Tell the stories of the butterflies you have received.
- Find out where your own butterflies landed.
Step 1 Get Oriented
You will send an e-mail message to the Journey North Web site.
- First, inspect the sample E-mail Message carefully so you'll know what to include. (Do NOT include names of students who made the butterflies you received!)
- Then go to the Web so you'll understand where your message will be
posted. This is where all messages will go:
Classroom Messages Posted
Step 2 Write and Send Your E-mail Message
a) Write the Subject Line:
SAMPLE SUBJECT LINE: Butterflies landed at Sample School
in MN from MD, NJ, SC, PA, PQ, LA, IL, MS, OH, MN, TX, MI, GA, CO
Be sure to list all of the states and provinces in the subject line. This
is how people will find their own butterflies simply. The sample subject
line above corresponds with the sample email message.
b) Write Your Message:
You're free to write whatever you like. Try to include the list of schools
as shown in the example.
c) Send Your Message:
Address your message to: jn-symbolic@learner.org
Step 3 Come to the Web to Look for Your Butterflies!
Here is the address where all messages will be displayed:
If everyone participates, you may find your own butterflies! Look for
your own state on the list, then open the message to see if your butterflies
were found. Come back to the Web and visit often.
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Sample E-mail Message
| Dear Friends, Our class received Symbolic Butterflies that were cared for this winter by a Mexican student named Alberto Diaz Sanchez of Angangueo, Michoacan. They spent the winter in Mexico clustered with butterflies from 14 different states and provinces. Here are the schools where the butterflies we received came from: Green Acres School in Rockville, MD Please send us e-mail so we can give you Alberto Diaz Sanchez’s mailing address. We know you'll want to thank him! Sincerely, |
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Thank You!
The Symbolic Migration project would not be possible without:
- Ruthan Gagnier and Jim Hillegass of J.River, Inc. for their invaluable assistance in preparing the butterflies for a safe journey to Mexico and through customs.
- Señora Rocio Treviño, of Correo Real, who dedicates her time to monarch conservation and education all along the monarch's migration path through northern Mexico. Señora Treviño found homes for 2,000 butterflies this winter, and had another 2,000 new butterflies made.
- German Medina for his tireless dedication to delivering both the Symbolic Butterflies and news of conservation to the many schools in the sanctuary area. Sierra Cincua and El Rosario Sanctuaries for hosting the displays, Ejido Cerro Prieto, the Ejido Los Remedios, the Romero family, and many other friends in the Angangueo community who have embraced the Symbolic Monarch Migration and are working to involve local students in the international community that's united by the monarch.
- United Parcel Service (UPS), for letting the butterflies fly freely across our borders once again this year.
Funding for Journey North is provided by Annenberg Media
Don’t Forget!
Watch the Web For Our New Mailing Address for the Fall 2003 Symbolic Migration!
| Journey North Phone: (802) 425-2252 Fax: (802) 425-2323 E-Mail: our feedback form |
Copyright 2003 Journey North. All Rights Reserved.
Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form
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