CARING FOR BIRDS IN WINTER
As part of the Erasmus+ project “Let’s go green”, the children of the group “Butterflies” in kindergarten Mak started with action as soon as the snow fell. Various activities about birds were realized , such as taking care of them during the cold winter in January.
The children get certain knowledge and ideas about birds from ecyclopedia. They find out of migratory and resident birds, different types of birds (which birds fly and which do not , which swim, which are large and which are small).
The picture book “Robber with a yellow spot” encouraged children to think about the life of birds, their nests and the threats the might have.
Children could listen to the birds’ voices every day, as well as the song “Sparrow in Winter”, which describes the life of a bird during the winter.
We offered various picture books to children, educational movies for children named “All about birds for children” (Animal learning for kids) in which children could hear and see what birds eat and how we can prepare food for them.The idea was to make simple feeders that children can make themselves, put them in the garden and follow the arrival of birds and if it is necessary replenish the feeders.
The parents are helping us to collect the necessary seeds. We offered to children tools and materials such as cardboard tubes, cones, orange peel (floats), pork fat.
The feeders were made by the children themselves, and then they were placed on the lower branches of the trees in the kindergarten yard. The next day they noticed birds – sparrows – which was of particular interest to them.
The images were helping to identify and name the bird’s body parts in Croatian and English language. We practice pre-reading skills in the game of pictures with letters.
In science area the children enjoyed observing different types of feathers and they were most impressed by the peacock feather. In art area the children drew feathers with a pencil.
They made large colorful birds of cardboard and they painted them with tempera. Some children have chosen to make a nest by using natural materials such as feathers, twigs, twine.
We hope that these activities would help birds to overwinter easier, and we have certainly enriched our knowledge and experience.