Day 63 - Tues Dec 18: As the last class of the day was diving into a homework assignment, my peripheral vision (& ADD tendencies) caught a moving pale spot on the soccer field. The tell-tale stop-and-go gait made the ID pretty easy but . . .
It's been a long day. I'm gonna take a second to really watch this guy.
Snatching a pair of bins from the shelf, I savor the sight of several plover foraging on the grass. I decided to risk total mayhem breaking in my room.
There's only a few minutes left in the day anyway!
"We have Killdeer on the soccerfield."
The window seat students were trying their best to find these birds about 50 yards away. The puppydog eyes of the other 20-some-odd kids suggested that they missed my subtle invitation.
"If you want to come and look, feel free guys!"
The ensuing rush of students to the port side of the class could have capsized the most stable of marine vessels. I simply backed away and allowed the kids to work out the problem of finding the birds as a group.
"I can't find it. Oh wait - there it is! Right on the field!"
"Where?! I don't see anything!"
"Look through the gate. It's in the middle of the gate right . . .[bird takes a few more steps] . . . NOW!"
"THERE HE IS! I SEE IT!!"
I start pasing around a few pairs of bins for anyone interested in getting a closer look.
The kids start calling out different observations. FInally, the connection is made.
"Isn't that one of the birds from the game last week?!"
Suddenly, a voice chimes in from the back of the room. "We were looking for a bird?! Mr. Mag, you said there was a killed deer on the soccerfield!"
"The bird is called a Killdeer. We have them behind school frequently and . . ."
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