This book helps children learn about the wonders and cycles of birds as it moves through the seasons.    

Materials

•             Plastic Easter eggs, one per child
•            Bird identification book
•             Loaf of bread
•             Peanut Butter
•             Birdseed
•             Portable Chalkboard and chalk
•             5 parrots poem parrots
•             Variety of circles and triangles to make bird collage
•            Pictures of birds from nest to adult
•             A handful of plastic worms and/or plastic insects. 

Vocabulary

•             Bills (the beak or mouth of a bird)
•             Migrate (to go to another place for part of the year)
•             Feeding tray (a bird feeder)
•            Broods (the eggs in the nest that will hatch and baby birds will                come out)
•             Oviparous (animals that hatch from eggs)

Before Reading the Story

Pass out the plastic eggs.  Use them to play a placement game.  Can you put the egg under your chin, on top of your foot, behind your back, next to your shoulder,in front of your nose?  When you are finished, ask the children if they can name an animal that comes from an egg.  Let them name as many as they can.  Tell the children that all animals that hatch from eggs are called oviparous animals.   Hold up the book and show the frontcover.  Can you guess which oviparous our story is about today?  Let the children guess.    Can anyone name the kind of bird that is on the cover (robin red breast)?

Science/Science knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes.  AND Language Development/Listening  Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and multiple-step directions.

Reading the Story

While  reading, take time on each page to let the children make comments and to name the different kind of birds.

Science/Science knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes. 

After Reading the Story

Ask the children if they remember any of the names of the birds.  Explain that they are all birds but each has a special name.  Just like you are all children but you each have a special name. Put up a chalk board where all the children can see.  Begin writing a child’s name calling out the letters as you do.  Ask the children whose name is this?  Continue doing until you have written and called out all the children’s names.

Literacy/Alphabet Knowledge; identifies at least 10 letters of the alphabet, especially those in their own name.

Discovery

Remind the children that people can feed birds with bread and seeds.  Give each child a piece of bread and have them spread it with peanut butter.  After  they spread it with peanut butter they can sprinkle bird seed on top.  Put outside in a quiet location where the children can observe to see if the birds come to eat.  When birds do come, be sure to have a book available so you can look up the names. 

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; grows in hand-eye coordination in building with blocks, putting together puzzles, reproducing shapes and patterns, stringing beads and using scissors.   AND Approaches to Learning/Engagement & Persistence; grows in abilities to persist in and complete a variety of tasks, activities, projects, and experiences,

At toothbrushing time, go back to the book and look at several bird pictures.  Note the bills/beaks and ask the children if they see any teeth.  Tell the children that birds do not have teeth however we do and we need to take good care of  them so brush well.

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; shows growing independence in hygiene, nutrition, and personal care when eating, dressing, washing hands, brushing teeth, and toileting.

Music and Movement

Make a copy of the 5 parrots and teach your children the following flannel poem.

5 Pretty Parrots

5 pretty parrots sitting by the door,

1 flew away and then there were 4.

4 pretty parrots sitting in a tree,

1 flew away and then there were 3

3 pretty parrots didn’t know what to do,

1 flew away and then there were 2

2 pretty parrots having lots of fun,

1 flew away and then there was 1.

1 pretty parrot sitting all alone,

So he decided to fly on home.

Put up the 5 parrots on the flannel board and take them away one at a time while you say the poem.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways.

Blocks

Make two sets of same kind blocks with a child. The first set arrange in a row.  The second set arrange 5 blocks in a column   Ask the child which set they think has more?  Then have them count the sets. Now encourage the child to make their own set of 5 blocks.  How many ways can they make it? (stacking, 2+3, haphazardly, like dominos on end, etc).  Have the child count the sets to make sure that they all contain 5 blocks each and congratulate him/her for using their brain to make so many sets of 5.

Mathematics/Numbers & Operations; develops increased abilities to combine, separate, and name “how many” concrete objects.  AND Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.

Art

Make bird collages using several sizes of circles and triangles.  Put out markers to embellish the children’s bird collages.

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.

Sand and Water

Add mud, grass, and pieces of yarn or ribbon to the table.  Let the children build birds nests.  You can use bowls to help make the form.  Put these out into the sun until they dry.

Science/Scientific Skills & Knowledge; develops growing abilities to collect, describe, and record information through a variety of means, including discussion, drawings, maps, and charts.

Dramatic Play

Put out several boxes large enough for the children to get into.  Bring in rubber worms and plastic insects.  The children can pretend to be birds and feed their babies.

Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; shows growing creativity and imagination in using materials and in assuming different roles in dramatic play situations.

Math and Manipulatives

Put the bird cards in order from first to last. Ask the children to talk about the order, what happens first, second. last?  Ask the children questions about bird life cycles and see how much they really know.  Ask them to share any experiences they have watching birds from their home or on the playground.  (My cat ate a bird once, I sawed the bird on the fence by the playground, The Mommy feeds her baby worms, gross!).  Write their answers down and use to begin a ‘What we know, want to know’ chart.

Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes.

Outdoor Play

Look for natural objects the children can use to make a nest and eggs.  Our playground is loaded with pine trees.  The children like to rake the pine needles and use the pinecones for eggs.  Perhaps your playground has grass clippings or leaves that could be raked into a nest.  Or you could bring in a bale of straw and spread it about for the children to make into a nest.  Rocks, small balls, and acorns can all be used for eggs.  Let the children use their imaginations to figure out how to begin this play.

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.  AND Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; shows growing creativity and imagination in using materials and in assuming different roles in dramatic play situations.

Transitions

           Tell the children that the word bird begins with the letter B.   Challenge the children to switch out the first letter in their name and replace it with the letter B (Kerry = Berry, Roger = Boger, Tammie = Bammie)

Literacy/Alphabet Knowledge; shows progress in associating the names of letters with their shapes and sounds.

Dear Parent- Today we read about birds and some of their habits.  Take your child for a short walk and see if you can find any birds.  Identify the breed if possible and then let your child share any information they may have about this type of bird or birds in general.  Share any knowledge that you might also and encourage your child to bring this information back to school to share with the class.

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