Fun Bird Project Ideas for Tweens
These bird project ideas are perfect for your middle school science lesson plans.
There are so many reasons to love birds! They’re beautiful, they can fly, and they’re interesting creatures. Learning about birds can be a great way to get kids interested in science, and there are lots of fun projects that homeschool families can do together.
Hands-on activities like these are the perfect way to study birds without spending all your time reading a textbook.
What We Learn From Birds
Birds are amazing creatures that are a part of our everyday lives, so it’s important that we take the time to study them. They actually teach us a lot about the natural world. Here are just a few of the things we can learn from our feathered friends:
- Birds help us understand migration patterns and the impacts of climate change.
- By studying bird anatomy, we can learn about creatures with wings.
- Since they’re important pollinators, they teach us about pollination and ecosystems.
- Their behavior helps us learn a lot about animal communication and social interactions.
- Finally, birdwatching is a great way to get outside and appreciate nature.
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Teaching Kids About Birds
There isn’t one perfect way to teach kids about birds. It’s really about what works best for your family and how in-depth you want to go in your studies.
For many homeschoolers, a study on birds begins with their science curriculum. This is a great place to start, but I would highly encourage you to branch out if possible.
One of the best ways for kids to learn about birds is to head outside and look at them. Take a nature walk and point out the different birds that you see. Or set up a bird feeder and see what birds visit. Make sure you have a bird identification book on hand, so tweens can look through it to pick out the birds they’ve found.
My favorite way to study flying creatures is adding fun bird activities and engaging hands-on projects to our lesson plans. They give kids the opportunity to interact with the material in a different way and usually bring about some excellent insights.
I’ve gathered some cool projects for you to try during your next homeschool bird study.
Bird Project Ideas
These bird projects take minimal supplies and/or resources, so they’re super simple to add to your lesson plans.
Bird Watching Pages
Bird watching worksheets are perfect for your upcoming science lesson on birds or while you’re out bird watching with your kids. Tweens can use them as a way to record their findings, to build up their science notebooks, or to put together a bigger bird study.
Assign a Bird Show-and-tell Project
Give each of your kids a name of a particular bird and have them do some research to discover fascinating facts about it and then sit around the table and have everyone share their findings. Have them consider questions like, Where do they live? What foods do they eat? How do they raise their young? etc.
This can be a written or oral assignment, or your tween could even put together a short multimedia presentation.
Easy-to-Make Bird Feeders
Adding a bird feeder to your yard is a great way to attract birds so kids can witness them up close. Instead of purchasing one, you can make a bird feeder together, using simple and cheap items that can be found around the house.
You can also make a pumpkin or gourd bird feeder.
Birds Nest STEAM Project
Using all natural materials, have your kids build a birds nest and see whose is the strongest. During this project, tweens will have to use their knowledge of nests and critical thinking skills to put together a home that will suit the birds in your area.
Discover a Hummingbird’s Food Color Preference
This experiment is for those of you with hummingbirds that regularly show up in your area. All you need to do is to add different colors of food coloring to each of your hummingbird feeders and then set them out and watch from a distance. Have your children or students decide if it’s a particular color that they prefer most or if it’s the sweetest food that they’re drawn to.
How Strong are Bird Bones?
Although birds have tiny hollow bones to help them fly, they’re still very strong. This experiment on bird bone strength will help you and your students discover just how strong their bones really are.
Bird Friendly Yard
As you go through your study on birds, have your family work together to make your yard bird friendly. This will not only help your lessons, it will help the birds and our environment! Here are some tips for how to attract more birds to your yard.
Bird Crafts
Add some fun arts and crafts to your lesson plans with these adorable bird crafts. It’s a fun way to take a break from your formal lessons, but still stay connected to your bird study.
Whatever project you choose, studying birds with your older kids is a great way to teach them about the natural world.
Bird Resources
Here are some things you should have on hand for your bird study.
- A bird identification guide is essential for identifying the various birds you’re seeing and studying.
- Attract birds to your yard by building your own birdhouse with this easy-to-use kit.
- Carve a bird with this woodworking project.
More Birding Ideas
Looking for more ideas for your study on birds?
- You can study birds in any season. Here are some fun winter bird activities.
What is your favorite project for studying birds?
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