It’s Day 5 of DIY Summer Camp at home. We’re doing bird-things on this first week of Summer Camp at Home. And today, we’re going to explore flying birds and learn how birds fly. Let’s talk wings, strings and flying things!
Do all birds fly?
Activity: Move like a bird
This is a variation on Simon Says, only it’s Birdy Says! How creative can you be with bird movements?
To play:
One person stands in front of the others. If they say “Birdy says” before calling out an action, everyone needs to do that action. If they don’t say “Birdy says”, then no one does the action.
Try movements like:
- Flap like a chicken.
- Waddle like a penguin
- Walk like a pigeon
- Soar like an eagle
- Hop like a robin
Activity: How do birds fly?
First, watch this educational video with your kids:
Now make your own flying devices!
Grab different kinds of paper, tape and glue, and maybe some small coins or paper clips. Experiment with different folds, shapes and weights to create the perfect paper airplane.
Now go outside and test them. Which one flies the farthest? Which one can you make loop around? Can you make one come back to you like a boomerang?
Activity: Go Fly a Kite
What you need:
- string
- plastic straws
- string
- cardstock
- markers
- pencil
- tape
- scissors
What you do:
- Start by creating the “sticks”. You’ll need at least 5 straws to create two sticks for a diamond shaped kite. Carefully bend the end of one straw to put inside the end of anther straw. One stick of your kite should be at least 3 straws long, and the other 2 straws long. You may use more straws for a bigger kite, but be careful. Too many straws and your stick won’t be strong enough to help the kite fly.
- Tape your paper together to create a square. You can create a pattern of colors, or decorate it with markers if you like. NOTE: Do not use stickers, paint or anything that will add weight to the paper.
- Lay your paper flat, and put your straw-sticks in the shape of a cross on top. Use a pencil to draw a diamond shape around your straws, going end to end.
- Carefully cut out your diamond shape. From the extra paper, cut out another triangle, the length of the straw below the cross piece.
- Tape on your straw sticks in place.
- Carefully tape your extra triangle along the bottom half of your kite, so that it is perpendicular to the kite surface. This will help it be stable while it flies.
- Cut a piece of string about the length of the kite (not the width).
- Attach the string to each side of the cross piece, about half way between the end and where it crosses. Then tie the end of your string to the middle of the loop, and keep the rest of the roll as it is.
- Now you’re ready to try to fly!
Snack: Bird Cupcakes
This is one snack your kids will love to both decorate and eat!
What you need:
- plain cupcakes (store bought, made from mix, or made from scratch)
- white icing
- white sugar, dyed yellow (or yellow decorator’s sugar)
- yellow & orange icing (just a little bit!)
- mini chocolate chips
How to make:
- Prepare cupcakes, and let cool.
- Spread a thin layer of white icing on the top of your cupcake.
- Dip iced cupcake into yellow sugar. Shake off excess.
- Use 2 chocolate chips for the eyes, pushing the points into the icing.
- With small icing tips, add yellow wings and orange beaks & feet. (NOTE: for small hands, squeeze bottles make great icing decorator tools!)
- EAT your bird cupcakes! YUM!
Activity: Feather fight
For this activity, you’ll need a bag of feathers. You can usually get them cheap at a dollar store, but in a pinch, break open an old feather-filled pillow.
NOTE: avoid carpet for this activity, for easier cleanup. Vacuums don’t like feathers!
So, basically this is a free-play type activity. Give the kids the feathers, and let them do whatever. Encourage them to blow the feathers, to throw them up or try tossing handfuls at each other. Trust me, your kids will know what to do with them with a minimal amount of encouragement.
Activity: Dress Up as Birds!
You’ll need: scarves, towels, sheets and pillow cases for this activity.
Give your kids the items, and encourage them to get creative. For example, want to be a Blue Jay? Tie a blue scarf or pillow case around their head, and let them hold a blue sheet for “wings”. Have them run around outside pretending to “fly”!
For a cardinal, you’ll need a red scarf. For a chickadee, a black cap and yellow wings.
Experiment with colors and sizes of wings. Does adding a “tail” help them “fly” (run) better?
Don’t forget your bird calls!
Activity: How to make a bird call
Have you ever heard someone make bird calls? It sounds pretty cool, and if you can get really good at it, you can even make calls that will attract birds to you.
End of the day: read aloud time.
Today was full of flying and fun. And now it’s time for our end-of-day storytime. Grab your bird-themed story, and read the next section. You should be getting close to the most exciting parts now, as we’re almost done our bird-themed week.
Here’s our recommended list of bird books, for your read aloud. Read a chapter or two every night this week.
Don’t forget to subscribe so you get every day of the DIY Summer Camp at Home right in your inbox. Tomorrow, we’ll talk about what birds look like and how they move.
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