Birdfeeders

As the temperatures drop and my students learn language for describing the weather, I wanted to do an activity that builds cultural knowledge and interest of the changing seasons. Growing up, my father always had the bird-feeder full and birds visited all winter long. Now that I have my own house, I have also taken up this seasonal activity with my own family. We love watching the birds and squirrels and trying to identify what species they are. 

Inspired by this link, I opted for 500 mL milk cartons, colourful paper, popsicle sticks, and non-toxic paint. To water-proof the bird-feeders somewhat we covered them in packing tape. We used popsicle sticks for the perch as well. They have held up quite well over the past few weeks.

Before we started making this project, I explained to my students that the snow is coming and covers up food available to the birds to eat. It is good to provide the birds with healthy food to help them through the snowy winter. We looked at pictures of local birds and discussed the ones that the students had already seen in our area. I am planning on printing pictures of the birds and labelling them once birds actually show up to eat! This will continue developing their vocabulary. 

Outcomes: listen to and follow instructions, review and talk about colours, develop fine motor skills used in cutting, taping and gluing. 

After we constructed these feeders, we walked along-side our building and hung them on the chain-link fence outside our classroom window. This was quite a funny experience as we stopped at all the windows and waved at all the students in their classes along the way.

My students really enjoyed the process of making these bird-feeders. For some students, it was the first time they had used the tools required (i.e. scissors, glue, tape). Unfortunately, we have not had any visitors yet! However, the snow is coming and we are ready for them!