Native Birds of Central Texas – Bird Feeders (2-5 Grade)

by | Sep 23, 2021 | All-Seasons, Class Ideas

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Tags: anytime, birds, Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer, craft, bird feeders, stem, birds of central Texas, Hispanic Heritage Month, birding

Time : 45-60 minutes

Author: Vicki DeBusk

Outline

Greeting and Review
  • Meet in your regular meeting place in the garden
  • Discussion: Ask, “What are some animals that we see in the garden? Do we see a lot of birds?  Can you name some of the birds we see in Central Texas and in our garden? Why don’t we see many birds in our garden? What are some things we can do in the garden to attract more birds?

Main Lesson 

Bird Feeders

Activity 1
  • Design and make bird feeders 
  • Materials Needed: paper and pencils for designing, various recycled containers – milk cartoons, old tennis ball containers, plastic containers from take out, string or yarn, wooden skewers, scissors, bird seed, duct tape, strong tape, glue guns (outdoor glue)

Activity 2 

Cleanup 

Put all materials away 

ACTIVITY 1: Design and make a bird feeder

  1. (This activity could be done over 2 class lessons if needed.)  Have the students first design their bird feeders.  Show or tell them which materials they will have available to us when building their feeder. Things to keep in mind when designing their feeders. 
    • Which birds are you trying to attract?
    • It must be able to hold bird seed and is refillable.
    • Birds should be able to perch on it in order to get the seed.
    • It must be able to hang on something
    • It must be weather resistant
  2. Construction – students will use their design to build their bird feeder. Have all the materials available for the students to build and test their bird feeder.

ACTIVITY 2 : Bird Watching

  1. Identify which birds can be found in our garden using Guia de Campo Kaufman: a las Aves Norte Americanas. 
  2. Translate the names of the birds from Spanish to English and match them to the laminated pictures.
  3. Find a quiet place and sit very still and quiet and see if any birds can be seen.  During this time students could be writing in their journal (if they have one) and tallying the birds that they see, drawing pictures of the birds and their surroundings, or just listening to the sounds they make.
  4. Instruct students to use this time to notice the environment and where birds go and what they do within the space around them.
  5. Have the students reflect on whether they were able to stay quiet and had the patience to wait for a bird. 

Background Info/Research

NPR Article about bird population in North America

Identifying Birds Information

Bird Cards

Birds found in Austin

  • Chickadees
  • Lesser goldfinches
  • Bluejays
  • Hummingbirds (migration)
  • Carolina Wren
  • Grackles
  • Red bellied woodpecker
  • Cardinal
  • Purple martins
  • Buntings (painted buntings)
  • Titmouse
  • white winged doves
  • sparrows

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