Photo: Camilla Cerea
By Jessica Bigger
When schools closed due to the Coronavirus, my husband and I decided to homeschool our 10-year-old daughter. We wanted to come up with some interesting science projects to keep her engaged during these challenging times. We started off raising tadpoles, where our daughter would gather data to calculate their survival and growth rates. We thought about designing a vegetation habitat survey or an invertebrate creek survey. Can you tell we’re biologists?
Since bird migration is in full swing, we decided on developing a bird identification program where our daughter could learn how to identify local and migrating bird species by sight and by their song and call.
We then added a math and science component, where our daughter would record the number of birds she saw or heard that morning. She would then add up the total number of birds, and the total number of different species she recorded earlier. After a week she would graph this information, figure out the average number of species seen and which species were more prevalent in the area.
We started off with a handful of birds and then added a few more to her list every couple of days. To keep things interesting, we started visiting different habitats to introduce her to birds she had not seen or heard before.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a great resource and we referred to it often. They have lots of games to help test your child’s bird ID skills, and several educational ideas and projects that you can glean from. It’s also my go-to when I want more detail on a particular species. The photos are wonderful to look at and the song and call recordings have been extremely helpful.
Birding is a great activity, and getting your child involved can keep them busy and engaged. Kelly Preheim, a kindergarten teacher from South Dakota, started teaching her students how to identify birds. She was amazed that over time, her 5 and 6-year-old students could visually identify 100 birds, and be able to recognize the songs and calls of 25 bird species. She introduced photos of new birds to her students every day and created different games like “Name That Bird,” using bird ID flashcards. These activities improved each student’s ability to recognize those bird species out in the field.
So, if you are looking for a unique educational experience to do with your kids that combines science, math and nurtures their love of birds, here are a few tips to get started:
Bird Identification by Sight It might be good to begin with birds your child is familiar with and only pick a handful to start. Before heading out with your binoculars to look for those birds in the morning, review photos of each bird you and your child will be looking for and make sure to bring a bird book with you to refer to if needed.
Bird Identification by Sound Since many of us tend to identify birds by sound, because most of the birds we hear we can’t see, it’s not too far-fetched to teach your kids to learn a bird’s song and call. So, when your child hears “Peter, Peter, Peter, Peter,” she’ll know that a Tufted Titmouse is singing nearby. Starting with a few birds at a time will give your child time to absorb the information, and in time, be able to recognize those birds on the fly. You might want to download the free Audubon Bird Guide app. It’s easy to use with great photos, information and excellent sound recordings for 800 species of North American birds.
Mix it Up and Keep it Interesting It’s time to test those birding skills at different birding habitats. Before heading out the door with your kids, make sure to review some of the birds you are likely to see, grab your bird ID book and binoculars, and launch into your adventure.