Bird Watching

Every region has a wealth of wildlife—including its own local birds. By learning about these birds, your kids can foster an understanding and appreciation of their hometown. While bird watching can be as simple as breaking out a pair of binoculars in your back yard, a bird watching expedition will get your kids excited about the activity while adding another dimension to the information they acquire. Discovering local wildlife is a fun and informative activity that 10 to 14 year olds will love!

Activity Instructions

This activity can be broken into two phases—both of which will encourage your children to learn more about the world around them.

Phase 1: Planning

Guide your children in the collection of information about local parks, wildlife, and bird species. Visit the local library to teach your kids how to use its resources while searching for specific information. If you prefer to stay home, help your children learn to use the Internet to find the data they need. After learning about the area, help your children pick a local park in which to hold the expedition. Then prepare packs with binoculars, notepads, pencils, snacks, and water bottles.

Phase 2: The Expedition

After preparations are complete, visit your kids' chosen park. Encourage them to keep their eyes on the sky in an effort to observe local birds. Help them take notes about what they observe. If the skies are a bit quiet, talk about the local fauna.

Keep an observation log of where you went an what you saw and save it in a notebook to compare notes for the next adventure.

Materials

• Notebooks
• Pencils
• Snacks
• Water
• Sunscreen (to wear during the expedition)
• Log

Outcome

During this activity, your children will learn about local bird species. Additionally, this activity can teach children to respect nature, sharpen their observation skills, and enhance their note taking ability.