Pre-Registration is required for classrooms and groups.  Individual students who are not part of registered classroom or group may also participate by creating a paper butterfly and delivering it to Bullington Gardens. 

Cost: Free, thanks to funding from local sponsors.

The annual international Symbolic Monarch Migration education program mimics the monarchs’ journey by engaging more than 10,000 children from across the United States and Canada in creating paper butterflies to send to students in Mexico. As the real-life monarchs arrive in Mexico for the winter, the symbolic paper butterflies will also be delivered to schools surrounding the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve. Sometime in spring after the living monarchs’ departure from Mexico, groups of paper butterflies will also return north, carrying special messages from the students in Mexico. United by the monarch butterfly, children across North America learn authentic lessons of conservation and cooperation.

As funding allows, Henderson County youth are invited to participate in the 30th annual Symbolic Monarch Migration education program at no charge thanks to Bullington Gardens, local volunteers, and sponsors. Any group (up to 30 participants) of youth located within Henderson County may take part in the program. Students who are not part of a registered classroom or group may also participate by creating a paper butterfly and delivering it to Bullington Gardens. 

The deadline to request a free registration code for your group is Friday, October 10, 2025. The deadline to mail your group’s symbolic/paper butterflies is Friday, October 17, 2025. Please see complete details at https://www.bullingtongardens.org/symbolic-monarch-migration.