OHC More Nature Study Book 2 - Winter Bird - Chickadee

More Nature Study Book 2
Winter Bird - Chickadee

Inside Preparation Work:

1. Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 68-69 (Lesson 14).
2. Highlight a few of the questions in the lesson to use during your outdoor time. 
3. Check your bird field guide, using the index to look for chickadees in your area. Share the images with your children. 
4. Younger Children: Read Burgess Bird Book Ch. 37 online or listen to an MP3 recording to hear the chickadee story. 
5. Refer to previous bird challenges: Black and White Birds and Winter Bird Study. 
6. YouTube: Chickadee Documentary and What Do Chickadees Eat? 

Outdoor Hour Time: 

1. Use some of your outdoor time this week to look for backyard birds. Chickadees should be present during the winter season and are often found at backyard feeders. Remember the questions from the Handbook of Nature Study lesson and gently guide your children to observe the chickadee to find the answers. Chickadees are often seen with nuthatches and downy woodpeckers and are attracted to feeders that offer suet and black oil sunflower seeds. 
2. In areas that do not have chickadees, observe another feeder bird and their habits. Do they sit on the feeder or under the feeder? Which kinds of food do they like? What do they sound like? How big are they? How many of them are at the feeder? 

Follow-Up Activity:

1. Follow-up your outdoor time by pulling out your bird field guide to identify and/or confirm any bird observations. If you saw a chickadee, have your child describe the bird with as much detail as possible. If they have trouble remembering, bring up an image on the computer to help them along. 
2. If desired, allow time for a nature journal entry. Ebook users: Complete a Chickadee notebook page (regular or advanced) or a Winter Feeder Bird notebook page entry to capture the memory of your time outdoors. There is an optional coloring page included in the ebook. 
3. Advanced follow-up: Read Distinguishing Chickadees. Read about Tricky Chickadees (Black-capped and Carolina). Compare two chickadees (notebook page included in the ebook). 

You can read how our family completed this study: Winter Feeder Birds.

Make sure to share your January blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. 

You may wish to click over and read: Birdfeeders in Winter on my Squidoo page.