Feed the birds – tuppence a bag
31st January 2020
We’ve looked at their anatomy, identified two types of feathers and had a go at staying quiet and spotting them! This week we’ve been feeding the birds. Most people recognise that we need to provide extra food for the birds, but did you know that they also need clean water? Not only to drink and keep hydrated, but also to bathe. When bathing, or preening, birds spread oils from a small gland, near to the tail feathers onto their contour feathers to waterproof them. Nature is amazing!
Lard and bird seed were squished and squashed together to make the sticky mixture. Years 1 & 2, using bare hands, then forced the mixture into the gaps between the scales of pine cones that had been dried and hung them together in a garland. Year 1 were watched over by a couple of robins, who waited patiently for us to leave, so they could sample our wares!
Reception made individual giant bird feeders, using huge sugar pine cones, which were hung separately on our bird feeding station. We washed our sticky, seed covered hands using the hot water provided at the hand washing station, built by Year 2 last term, and removed any excess seeds by wiping our hands down a bumpy tree trunk!
Kindy and Nursery threaded Cheerios (other brands are available!), to create edible decorations for the trees.
And to continue with the bird themed week, we have started to build a giant nest for the little ones to play in!
