Bird beaks and pinecone birdfeeders

The Outdoor Classroom Society at Central Montessori started off the school year with a celebration of birds.

I was able to give a lesson to the primary class about bird beaks, how they differ, and what kind of food different shaped beaks are for. I also brought in a vary of kitchen implements such as chop sticks, tongs, a ladle, soup strainer, a straw and scissors for kids to "try" the variety of bird beaks in retrieving things such as "nectar," floating raisins in water, plastic bugs, and nuts. They really enjoyed it but also really appreciated the King of the Birds storytelling.

Next we made up a mixture of cornmeal, flour, and sunflower butter to smush onto some pine cones that we then rolled in birdseed. We hung these up around the outdoor classroom in front of the large windows to watch the birds eat.

The kids were each given a bird identification sheet and asked to record which birds they see (with the help of an older child or teacher).

Looking forward to seeing what the results are!

Kinder and gentler revision of the King of the Birds:

A long time ago, all the birds in the world lived together in the same place.  They tried to get along but it was hard, especially for the smaller birds.  Sometimes the little birds couldn't find a place to nest or food for dinner.  

One day the wisest and oldest owl decided something needed to change and that the birds needed a leader to make decisions for the birds.  He decided to call a flying contest.  The bird that could fly closest to the sun would be the king of the birds.  

All of the birds figured that the hawk would win, for hawks are large and strong and they can fly very high into the sky.  Well, the small wren thought that the hawk should not be king becasue he may not make good decisions for the small birds.  So the wren came up with a plan.  When the owl called for all of the birds to begin the race, the wren quietly hopped on top of the hawk's back without him knowing.  The hawk flew high into the sky, higher than any other bird.  As he looked down and realized that he was the winner, he began to fly back down.  Just then the wren flew off of his back and up into the sky.  She flew a little closer to the sun than the hawk and she won the contest.  The wren became the king of the birds.  

The wren thought and thought very hard and finally made a decision for all of the birds.  Since birds have different types of beaks and feet and different preferences for what to eat and where to nest, all of the birds should spread out and move to different parts of the world.  The birds agreed and they flew away to find the best place for them for nesting and finding food.  Now, the birds no longer have to argue over finding a place to build a nest or finding something to eat.