Easy Butterfly Origami

My new book, Easy Butterfly Origami features 30 bold full-color patterns designed to accurately portray the dorsal and ventral sides of some of the most beautiful butterflies from around the world!

Origami Folding Tips

Origami, from the Japanese ori (to fold) and kami (paper), began in the 6th century when Buddhist monks introduced paper to Japan. The print-and-fold crafts and easy diagrams are designed to help children with fine motor skills, directions and hand eye coordination. Some basic origami folding tips:
  • Print and cut out patterns carefully.
  • Fold with clean, dry hands.
  • Follow the instructions. Study the diagrams and be patient.
  • Be precise: fold each crease well, flattening the creases by running your fingertip over the fold.
  • Folding the paper away from you is easier than folding towards you.
  • Be creative...use your origami on greeting cards, holiday decorations, table place cards and bookmarks.

Animals: Pacific Green Sea Turtle



Did you know that all the hatchlings in the nest of the Pacific green sea turtle are either male or female? The sex of the turtles is determined by the temperature of the nest. Cooler nests produce a clutch of males, while warmer nests produce females.



These young turtles, raised at Sea Life Park
on the island of Oahu, are waiting to be released.

Go, turtle, go!


Green sea turtles are agile swimmers, but on land they are cumbersome. Between May and August, female turtles clamber ashore in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands to lay their eggs. The eggs incubate for 50 to 60 days. On a clear, moonlit night, the hatchlings dig themselves out of their nests and scramble to the water. Only 2 inches long, the tiny turtles must avoid ghost crabs, sea birds, and fish on their way to the open sea.


Sea turtles make distinctive tracks in the sand
as they drag their heavy bodies ashore.
See the long tail on this turtle? This is a male.


Turtle or tortoise?
Turtles live in the water. Tortoises live on land.

Have turtles been around forever?
Well, maybe not forever, but turtles are very successful creatures that have been swimming around for the past 200 million years. Fossils of the giant prehistoric turtle, Archelon, have been found in North America. Archelon was 12 feet long, with massive flippers! Today there are about 230 living species of turtles and tortoises.

What is the Hawaiian name for turtle?
Hawaiians are astute observers of nature. They recognized many species of plants and animals. The Pacific green sea turtle is called honu, while the Pacific hawksbill sea turtle is called ea or honu'ea.

Resources: Plants and Animals of Hawaii by Susan Scott and The Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals by Dougal Dixon, et al. (Ed.).

For more information about green sea turtles and Hawaiian marine life, visit Earthtrust

For information about marine turtles and neat kid's activities, visit Turtle Trax (click on their Table of Contents).

©2009 Tammy Yee. All rights reserved.



Copyright ©2009 Tammy Yee
All rights reserved. No portion of this web site may be reproduced without prior written consent.