Bird-themed mystery box activities promote student observation and classification skills.
Feely box, or mystery box, activities are sensory games for young children who are developing their scientific and tactile observation skills. The contents of the box are hidden from sight and the child must rely solely on their sense of touch and their problem-solving skills to identify the objects in the box. Incorporate a feely box activity into a classroom unit on birds to engage tactile learners, and build understanding of ways to classify and identify birds.
Designing the Box
The basic design of a feely box for a bird-themed unit should adhere to the simple requirements that the contents be hidden from view and that students have access to the interior materials through a hole large enough for their hands. A birdhouse design maintains the integrity of the mystery box while contributing to the bird theme of the activity. Shoeboxes or small cardboard boxes are suitable materials for feely boxes because they have a removable lid to place items inside and hand holes can be easily cut. Create an A-frame with cardboard or thin wood to place on top of the box to resemble the peaked roof of a birdhouse. The boxes can be decorated with paint or construction paper to resemble wood-sided birdhouses.
Feeling Feathers
Feathers are a classic crafting item for young children because they are colorful and soft. They are also important parts of a bird anatomy. A feely box activity on feathers challenges elementary or middle school students to think more critically about the feathers they have seen or felt for years. One option is to place different types of feathers into each feely box. Boxes might contain contour feathers, bristles, semi-plume feathers or soft down. Though older students may be able to identify the correct names for each feather type, younger children are unlikely to have the specialized knowledge to do so. Another option is to ask students questions about the feathers and use their answers to determine which type of birds the feathers might be found on. For example, ask students if the feathers are stiff or flexible, long or short or heavy or light. Students might then predict that smaller, stiffer feathers are on smaller birds and light, down feathers are more common to baby birds.
Egg Identification
Bird eggs come in various sizes, shapes and textures; examining the eggs of a bird reveals traits about the species of bird. Feely boxes are suitable ways to encourage students to use their tactile observation skills to examine and classify different types of bird eggs. Though you can purchase imitation bird eggs typically used for craft projects for the feely box activity, you can also supplement non-egg materials that are similar in size, shape or weight to real bird eggs for the activity. For example, miniature chocolate eggs are similar in size, shape and weight to sparrow or bluebird eggs, while a large avocado is a more likely match for an emu egg. If you use real or imitation eggs, ask students to guess what types of birds might lay the eggs. If you use non-egg objects, ask students to guess which type of egg the object is meant to represent.
Nest Building Materials
Birds are crafty animals that use multiple natural and unnatural materials to build their nests. A nest-building feely box activity encourages students to consider the multitude of materials a bird may use to build her nest. One option is to collect abandoned bird nests and place them in feely boxes. Students then feel the nests and try to identify the materials the bird used to create its nest. Another option is to collect materials that birds might use for nest building, including grass, fabric rags, pet fur, mud and trash items. Students identify the items in each feely box and then discuss in groups how the materials might be used or why the birds choose the materials for nesting.
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