Two years ago a blog friend shared about the annual Backyard Bird Count and my kids had fun trying to identify the few birds that we spotted.
Have you heard of it? The Great Backyard Bird Count website has activities and information for all ages. We entered our zipcode and printed the checklist designed for our area. We chose the option to include rare species. This afternoon we will look through my Granny's bird book and read about some of the birds on the list. The event lasts for four days from February 16- February 20, and I'm hoping for some pretty weather and planning a few hikes with the children. One of my favorite birds to watch is the blue heron that I see early on rare mornings, on the edge of the pond bank.
This Audubon website also has additional information which may be helpful for those of you wanting to turn this into a lesson. Deep Space Sparkle has a how-to draw a bird lesson using bright oil pastels on black. My Louisiana friends may find this LSU website interesting, too. There is even a photo contest! If you sign up, come back and tell me about the birds that you see.
Have you heard of it? The Great Backyard Bird Count website has activities and information for all ages. We entered our zipcode and printed the checklist designed for our area. We chose the option to include rare species. This afternoon we will look through my Granny's bird book and read about some of the birds on the list. The event lasts for four days from February 16- February 20, and I'm hoping for some pretty weather and planning a few hikes with the children. One of my favorite birds to watch is the blue heron that I see early on rare mornings, on the edge of the pond bank.
This Audubon website also has additional information which may be helpful for those of you wanting to turn this into a lesson. Deep Space Sparkle has a how-to draw a bird lesson using bright oil pastels on black. My Louisiana friends may find this LSU website interesting, too. There is even a photo contest! If you sign up, come back and tell me about the birds that you see.
Thank you so much for this post, Jennifer! My oldest son is a bird enthusiast!! My dad had sent me a newspaper article on this, but I really appreciate all the links you made available.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I love bird watching! This sounds like such a fun activity! :)
ReplyDeleteYou'll want to check out the FREE Notebooking pages for birds at Currclick . . . and the other 9 freebies, plus over 200 pages of items discounted at least 50% !
ReplyDeletehttp://www.benandme.com/2012/02/20-freebies-at-currclick-winter-whisper.html
Thank you so much, Marcy, this ties in perfectly! I'm printing coloring pages and information sheets right now for the birds that we might see.
ReplyDeleteJennifer, you always somehow manage to find the best projects and activities! This sounds like fun. :)
ReplyDeletewow..this is fun for everyone! We had 4 bird feeders and hoards of colored birds..it was so fun to watch
ReplyDeleteand then came the squirrels...