School-Age: Birds

This week we talked about bird behavior!

1. Activity:
I tested their knowledge of the names of different flocks. I showed them pictures of a variety of flocks and they guessed the name. Some were easy, like a gaggle of geese, but then others, like a parliament of owls, were more difficult. It was fun to hear what they thought of the different flock names.

2. Reading:
We read the book "Nerdy Birdy" by Aaron Reynolds. It is hilarious and sweet at the same time. The kids (and parents) loved it!

3. Discussion:

We talked about solitary versus group birds. We also talked about what the benefits of being a solitary bird would be and what the benefits of being in a flock would be. 

Solitary birds: 

*Might not attract as much attention because they are by themselves

*They do not have to share food sources with a flock 

*They can find mates easier

*They may stay healthier because they are not sharing diseases among a flock 

Flocking birds:

*Might be safer because there are many eyes to look for danger and warn the others

*Share food sources 

*They can defend against predators as a mob together

*Look after (and protect) each other's young

Then we named some flocking birds versus solitary birds, pointing out some of the ones that were in "Nerdy Birdy".

Craft:

All of the kids got to make their own bird to be a part of our flock at the end of the program. I used an awesome raven template I found at Danielle's Place. I printed the bird body out on grey cardstock and the legs/beak out on yellow cardstock, so it's slightly different than her version. We also wanted our nerdy birdy's to be 'cool', so the kids got to decorate their birds with markers and put the finishing touch - a pair of sunglasses :)!

Below is a picture of some 'cool birdies' my teen helpers and I made:

Notes:

The craft was super easy to put together with glue dots. I was hesitant to use them because they can be difficult for the little one's to master using. But it worked great and, most importantly, it was NOT messy! The only thing we did before the program began was put the cone-shaped body together. The bird body parts we left to the kids to add.