(Update · 17 February 2023: The Great Backyard Bird Count is now underway and will continue through Monday the 20th! Get all the details and start participating right here!)
We love natural history in the River Houses, and we think bird study in particular is one of the best educational activities you can take up in a homeschool environment. It can be made as elementary or as advanced as you wish, it teaches a wide range of facts and skills, and it can be done at all times of year and just about anywhere. There’s no better way for beginners to get started with bird study than through the big annual event coming up this month (17–20 February 2023): the Great Backyard Bird Count, sponsored by Cornell University and many other nature organizations.
The idea is simple: just count the birds you see in your backyard (or any other single location) for at least 15 minutes on one or more days during the four-day count period (Friday through Monday of Washington’s Birthday weekend), and then submit your list to the GBBC website. Your counts will be combined with tens of thousands of others to generate a snapshot of current bird populations across the United States and around the world. Your homeschool observations will become part of a real international scientific project.
Please join in! On the GBBC website you can print out a set of beautiful Great Backyard Bird Count posters as well as a handsome GBBC certificate (available each year after the count is complete) — all ideal things to display on your homeschool bulletin board.
How many birds can you find this year in your homeschool neighborhood? 🐦
❡ Books in the running brooks: Our recommended homeschool reference library includes an excellent bird guide that would serve your homeschool well. Many other similar guides are also available — find one that’s a good fit for your family and take it with you on all your outings, whether far afield or just out to the backyard. 🦉
❡ Come, here’s the map: Natural history and geography are deeply interconnected. One of the first questions you should teach your students to ask about any kind of animal or plant is, “What is its range? Where (in the world) does it occur?” Our recommended homeschool reference library includes an excellent world atlas that will help your students appreciate many aspects of biogeography, the science of the geographical distribution of living things. 🌎
❡ Whether they work together or apart: This is one of our regular Homeschool Natural History posts and it’s also one of our “Lunar Society” posts about the many independent projects we recommend to homeschool students. Add your name to our weekly mailing list and get great homeschool teaching ideas delivered right to your mailbox all through the year. 🗞
❡ Homeschool calendars: We have a whole collection of free, printable, educational homeschool calendars and planners available on our main River Houses calendar page. They will all help you create a light and easy structure for your homeschool year. Give them a try today! 🗓
❡ Support our work: If you enjoy our educational materials, please support us by starting your regular Amazon shopping from our very own homeschool teaching supplies page. When you click through from our page, any purchase you make earns us a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for helping us to keep going and growing! 😊
