Last spring my kids came running inside, screen door slamming behind them, to tell me that they could hear chirping from the bird house in the backyard.  We went outside together to discover there was a nest with new baby birds!

The best activities are born of such wonderful moments of curiosity.

The entire process of the mama and papa bird building the nest, sitting watch over their eggs, and feeding their newly born baby birds was been observed with great interest by our twins. When I came across this book at the bookstore it was too delightful and on topic not to share with them.

affiliate links are included in this post. 

Read: Have You Heard the Nesting Bird? by Rita Gray

The soft muted illustrations are what first attracted my attention to this wonderfully playful book about birds. Unlike your typical bright Spring books, I feel these color choices accurately mirror the muddy browns with bursts of color that I see out the window. Have You Heard the Nesting Bird? asks the interesting question of why nesting Robins are so quiet. Creative onomatopoeia mimicks the many different bird calls all around the silent nesting bird. A wide array of colorful birds dart and flutter across the pages. At the end, an interesting mock interview with a Robin answers many remaining questions in a child friendly way. A fascinating amount can be learned through this gentle, simple book. 3+

Find Online

Activity : Looking and Listening for Birds

Just outside our backdoor there was a wealth of bird life.

Cardinals and Blue Jays regularly fly through the trees. Woodpeckers make themselves heard from our tallest tree. Sparrows have occupied our birdhouse. I realize this isn’t true everywhere. Hopefully if you don’t have a lot of birds in your neighborhood you can find a Nature Center or trail to search for birds.

Once we were done reading, my kids were on the edge of their seats excited to go outside and listen to the birds.

Set Up : Prepare a Chart

Usually I am more planful and likely would have created a chart in advance. Knowing my subpar drawing skills I also would have printed photos of the birds from online. It was not one of those prepared days however and what you see above was drawn on the spot.

My kids helped me by picking out colors for me to use and offering “helpful” comments about my drawing. I used markers and paper. Nothing fancy. I wrote both the bird names and their calls.

Activity : Look and Listen

* Bring your chart outside or on your hike with a marker or pen to cross off the birds you hear.

* Look. Find somewhere to sit or stand and look around. Encourage your child to look up towards the trees and look for movement.

* Listen. We spent some time covering our eyes to focus on listening.

* Discuss. Encourage them to describe what they are seeing and explain their conclusions. For example: “Why does that look like a Cardinal to you?”

* Mark off the birds you see and hear on your chart.

Skills Practiced :

* Pre-Literacy skills: listening, using writing implements, and reading a chart
* Cognitive: learned to differentiate between types of birds and life cycle of birds
* Science: inquiry skills of observation and collecting data

Placing birdhouses or birdfeeders in your backyard are a wonderful way to attract birdlife to your space.  We had two birdhouses in our backyard. One was higher up and was where our little family of birds was located. We kept our distance from their nest, despite our great curiosity.

In our corner garden there was another birdhouse that was occupied at one point, but has since been abandoned. It is likely this has something to do with two energetic, noisy three year olds.

Our kids were however fascinated by this birdhouse and went over to investigate it again as part of our activity.

Extensions :

* Look for birds in other places. Talk a neighborhood walk or hike through the forest.

* Look for bird nests up in the trees.

* Make your own bird nests with clay and loose natural materials.

* Find a guidebook to give you more information about the birds you discover.

Subscribe Below to Get Weekly Learning Thru Adventure Ideas