Mom, I Really Did Spot That Bird !!

I think I got a bit carried away for the bird lab. In fact, I know I did. I was having too much fun and couldn't stop...On top of making birdhouses and feeders we also studied nine common birds of South Carolina by using the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Guide.

I presented each student with a sticker book filled with information about each bird and corresponding labels to place on the page when they find the bird. I used the Avery round labels and just copied a picture of the bird onto the template.We went outside with binoculars and found several of them. The rest of the birds had to be found by the students at home. I gave the bird stickers to the mom's to dole out to their children when they truly found the bird.

I know better than to give a child nine stickers and not expect them to peel them off and put them into their book. All the while they will testify that they really REALLY DID spot that bird. Anyway... Moms are pretty good at monitoring those stickers. And dads too!



Students who find all nine birds get to make a trip to this...
The revered treasure chest!! So far, I have had about nine students who found all nine birds. Last year I only had two students who found all the birds. Never underestimate the power of the treasure chest :)

Bluebird Lab 2010

I wish I could say I took this photo but I didn't.
I found it on someone's blog. It gave me hope. I really wanted to focus on bluebirds this year and making a gourd birdhouse is an easy "kid friendly" project. Making the traditional wooden bluebird house would have been too expensive and difficult with young children. I was ecstatic when I found out that it can be done! Last year we made gourd nests for the Carolina Wren and I know where to find the gourds for a good price.

First, we painted the gourds white and drilled a hole in them for the bird to get inside.Bluebirds are picky. The holes have to be 1.5 inches wide and at least 4-5 inches from the bottom of the gourd. White is a good color for bluebirds. It keeps the nest cooler. We dug out the seeds from inside the gourds and drilled small holes in the bottom to let the rain out. We have a lot of bluebirds on our farm and hopefully one will use the nest soon. I hung the nests at least 4 feet from the ground on the edge of a tree in a wide open space. Bluebirds like wide open fields. You won't find them flying in the woods. They are heavy feeders and need the open fields to catch bugs.