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Monarch Heroes Program
The National Wildlife Federation is proud to offer a bilingual Monarch Mission curriculum that is aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) in Science and Math as well as the English Language Proficiency Skills (ELPS) for grades PreK-5.
National Wildlife Federation’s Monarch Heroes program is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year! Join us by reading more about the program below.
Monarch Heroes is a two-year, project-based learning program in Texas that engages and empowers students and community members to create Schoolyard Habitats in support of both the monarch butterfly and outdoor learning. Since 2015, there have been over 260 Monarch Heroes campuses across six cities in Texas. Their combined efforts have amounted to nearly 2.5 acres of native wildlife habitat (as of 2025) for the monarch butterfly and other pollinators and wildlife.
Below is a walk-through of what it is like to be a Monarch Heroes campus:
YEAR ONE
In the first year of the program, your students learn about the epic migration of the monarch butterfly and how its population has declined by as much as 90% in the past 20 years. This leads to discussion about what they can do to help. By completing the Schoolyard Habitats Site Assessment and Host A Monarch Butterfly Town Hall action cards through EcoSchools U.S., they will be empowered to make a list of goals they would like to accomplish by the end of the school year to help the monarch butterfly and other pollinators through building a native habitat garden with your school community.
Monarch Heroes has helped our students make connections with how they impact nature and how they can provide for nature… They are beginning to realize they have such a large role to play – to keep things clean and make it a welcoming place for all creatures. - Julie Meacham, Winn Elementary, Austin, TX
Using the National Wildlife Federation bilingual Monarch Mission curriculum and other resources, your campus team creates and maintains your Monarch Heroes habitat garden and encourages interdisciplinary use of the space. These gardens serve as critical sources of both native milkweed and nectar plants for monarch butterflies migrating through Texas. After creating the habitat garden, your school is eligible to certify as a National Wildlife Federation Schoolyard Habitat and receive a sign to display in your garden area.
YEAR TWO
In the second year, your students improve the biodiversity of the Monarch Heroes habitat through enhancing and expanding the square footage of the garden space. They begin the school year by completing the EcoSchools U.S. Species Diversity action card and creating new goals to increase the resilience of their outdoor learning space. This may lead them to projects like planting trees and new varieties of plants, establishing irrigation, or creating new informational learning tools.
They also collect valuable citizen science data through , , and other programs to understand how the changes they are making to their habitat garden changes your school campus biodiversity over time.
I really like being with my friends and learning about plants… We put the tag on the wing and let the monarch go. I learned that there are many kinds...all the butterflies are beautiful! - Neela, First Grade student at Mathews Elementary, Austin, TX
Your students also learn to grow milkweed and nectar plants from seed to sustain the native habitat on campus and to help spread its impact further into your school community.
My students loved seeing the monarchs in the garden. When we started tagging monarchs, they wouldn't leave our room unless we had our net and tags with us - just in case we saw one that needed tagging. It was heartwarming to see the joy on their faces when they would spot a monarch. Their smiles said it all! Seeing the monarchs in our garden made them want to learn more about what they could do to create monarch gardens at their home too, "so my little brother could also see them". - Isabel Anaya, Kuentz Elementary, San Antonio, TX
COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS
Finally, your campus team shares its successes through an annual monarch showcase on their school grounds or through a larger community event such as the annual Monarch Heroes and EcoSchools U.S. Showcases in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. Teams that cannot participate in person create videos to showcase their project work through the eyes and voices of their students.
They see the beauty of animals and plants and they not only appreciate it but want to share it with everyone!... They couldn't believe the butterflies could actually find the flowers we planted. - Romie Tafoya, Bailey Middle School, Austin, TX
HOW TO BECOME A MONARCH HERO
To learn more or get notified of upcoming grant opportunities, workshops or volunteer opportunities, check out our regional education website or contact one of the program contacts below:
- Karen Bishop, Sr. Manager of Education and Engagement, [email protected] (512) 610-7761, Austin, TX
- Kate Unger, Coordinator, Climate Resilient Habitat, [email protected] (512) 610-7784, Houston, TX
- Marya Fowler, Climate Resilient Habitat Director, [email protected] (512) 610-7767, Austin, TX
