The Wonderful World of Kindergarten

Welcome to our Reggio Emilia inspired classroom at Dr. David Suzuki School.
JoAnne Pizzuto, OCT & Jocelyne Brent, RECE, BASc (Hons)
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts

Friday, 29 May 2015

The Reason Our Birds Are So Happy!

When the bird houses we created fell apart our wonderful Greg made a plan with the children to build stronger bird feeders for our little friends.

He began at home using a very powerful saw to cut pieces of wood.
He made sure to wear safety goggles.
Greg matched all the pieces he cut to each of the bird feeders the children would build.
Then he brought the home made bird feeder kits to the wonderful world of kindergarten!
 
Greg worked with the children as they built their bird feeders.
They looked at pictures and instructions of what the bird feeders would look like 
and the steps to follow to make them.
  
        
  
Greg helped the children and the children helped each other.
 
So many hungry birds,
So many children helping...
 
One bus driver extraordinaire!
 
Children signed the bottom of the birdhouses they had worked on.
The looks on their faces told us everything about how they felt 
about the work they had accomplished.
It was time to make the birds very happy!
Greg helped to put the bird feeders in the trees.
 
He used strong wire to make sure they wouldn't fall in stormy weather.
The bird feeders are filled with bird seed for our local bird population.
We watch them as they come and go.
Click here for a link to Windsor Essex Nature Sightings
What birds do you see in your yard?
In your park?
In your neighbourhood?
In your city?
When you travel?
Enjoy this video of Windsor Essex Pelee birds from Point Pelee National Park.
Do you recognize some of these birds?


A big chirpy THANK YOU is sent to Greg, our bus driver extraordinaire
for helping us to make our birds so happy that they sing their song of thanks!

Tuesday, 6 January 2015

A Natural Feast

A tree had appeared right outside our window. 
What was the tree doing there?!
It was the tree that had been in the classroom before the holiday break. Now the decorations had been removed and it was ready to be returned to the natural environment. 
Mrs. St. Onge had a plan. With a little help from the kindergarten friends, the tree was going to become a feeder for the winter animals. She prepared cups of lard and had a bag of birdseed.
Everyone needed to dress very warmly before they headed outside to make a natural feast for the birds and squirrels and other winter animals.
Children took turns spreading lard on the branches. Once the lard was spread, birdseed was sprinkled on. Later, the tree stand was removed and the tree was moved to a natural area in the play yard. The trees there have long since lost their leaves. But the pine tree was still green. 
It is in the evergreen family of trees. 
All the children had a chance to take turns and make this giant feeder!
We will watch each day to see which animals come to visit the tree.
What winter animals do you think will come?

Friday, 9 May 2014

A Few Visitors In Our Backyard

What was all the excitement outside our windows last week?  We had a few visitors checking out our outdoor space. We made our way outdoors so we could get a better look at them.
Goose on the loose!



Pitter patter skitter scatter!


And there they go...into the wild blue (or grey) yonder!

Tuesday, 15 April 2014

A Home for Birds

The birds are rich with song and busy with our dried grasses as they build their Springtime homes. Moving the nests from the science table to their own table has sparked great conversation and fun activities.
We are learning about the many types of nests and how the birds are building a home for their families. Willow decided to record a nest by observation and drawing.
This brought attention to the nests and the clipboards soon were all busy with children observing, drawing and recording their findings.

But why stop there?! The rainy weather provided us with some wonderful mud. We talked about the materials the birds used to make their homes. These materials were all around us. We decided to fill a sensory table with the materials and make our own nests.
Some children dug right into the mud... others watched. Soon, many children were gathered around the table, filling the molds (bowls) with a mixture and layers of mud, dried grass, string, hay and other natural materials we had gathered.
Taking a good look at one of the bird's nests that we had been observing let us see how the grasses went around in a circular way. The inside of the nest felt soft and had been made very smooth. The walls were high. "That's so the baby's will be safe." "The wind can stay out."


We showed the children how we might flatten the materials and build the walls by pushing the mud and materials flat against the sides of the molds.




Back inside the room, many children continued to investigate the nests and wood with evidence of a woodpecker. 

The Smartboard showed videos of our busy Springtime singers.

Here's an idea for some fun dinnertime conversation. 
What's the same between a home for birds and a home for people?
What's different between a home for birds and a home for people?

Check out these great bird websites and opportunities to investigate, explore and chat about birds with your children!