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 . . ."
Monday, December 31, 2007
P2F - Pollyana Wants a Cracker
Day 62 - Mon Dec 17: The Pledge to Fledge blog generally highlights bird-related interactions with my students (or other kids). Yet, today I feel compelled to share what happened at a holiday pollyana party with some fellow teachers.
Immediately upon receiving the familiar shaped gift, I ust hoped the calendar would be something of my interest.
RIP! Tear! Crumple!
A Songbirds calendar! Complete with bird song CD!!
Yep - I would enjoy this.
Within seconds the proclamations reverberate around the room, "the perfect gift for the Bird Man of VMS!"
With the door flung open, I savor this opportunity. The calendar is swiftly released from its cellophane sheathing. Colorful favorites such as American Goldfinches, Ingido Buntings, and Northern Cardinals adorn each month. The expected "Oohs" and Aahs" did not sound the least bit obligatory as the calendar was passed around the room.
Everyone was quite surprised to hear that most of these attractive birds could be found on our own school grounds!
Immediately upon receiving the familiar shaped gift, I ust hoped the calendar would be something of my interest.
RIP! Tear! Crumple!
A Songbirds calendar! Complete with bird song CD!!
Yep - I would enjoy this.
Within seconds the proclamations reverberate around the room, "the perfect gift for the Bird Man of VMS!"
With the door flung open, I savor this opportunity. The calendar is swiftly released from its cellophane sheathing. Colorful favorites such as American Goldfinches, Ingido Buntings, and Northern Cardinals adorn each month. The expected "Oohs" and Aahs" did not sound the least bit obligatory as the calendar was passed around the room.
Everyone was quite surprised to hear that most of these attractive birds could be found on our own school grounds!
P2F - All Birds, All Day!
Day 61 - Fri Dec 14: Given the democratic landslide vote of yesterday, I rushed to work this morning to throw together a quick PowerPoint bird identification game for my classes. Each of the 20 slides featured a different species. Some of them had several photos of of the same bird from various angles or exhibiting trademark behaviors.
The students were broken up into groups. After a quick field guide tutorial, the game commenced. Students were told to jot down their individual observations of the bird then work together to find it in the field guide.
I have never seen them WORK quite so eagerly!
The whole day was quite invigorating for me. They were discriminating body structure, picking up such interesting details, scouring the field guides, and (almost always) finding the right species.
All the while, words of excitement of birds were floating across the room. These kids were discovering the amazing beauty of our North American avidiversity right before my eyes. What an experience!!
As the end of class beckoned, many of the students begged to continue playing the game (even through lunch!!!)
This virtual birding excursion with more than 130 students was extremely rewarding today = )
The students were broken up into groups. After a quick field guide tutorial, the game commenced. Students were told to jot down their individual observations of the bird then work together to find it in the field guide.
I have never seen them WORK quite so eagerly!
The whole day was quite invigorating for me. They were discriminating body structure, picking up such interesting details, scouring the field guides, and (almost always) finding the right species.
All the while, words of excitement of birds were floating across the room. These kids were discovering the amazing beauty of our North American avidiversity right before my eyes. What an experience!!
As the end of class beckoned, many of the students begged to continue playing the game (even through lunch!!!)
This virtual birding excursion with more than 130 students was extremely rewarding today = )
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
P2F - The Birding Majority
Day 60 - Thurs Dec 13: Studying (and teaching) about the Holocaust takes a toll on young (and not so young) hearts and minds. Today was a brief test on the background information for this most difficult unit. With one day left in the week, we decided to turn the mood of the class around tomorrow by doing something light-hearted.
I proposed two options for the students to vote on:
a) a class period of "chatting" about any/all topics that the students would like to bring up.
- OR -
b) playing a bird identification game.
At day's end, the popular vote among all of my classes was beyond the sabotage of hanging chads or resurrected voters!
I proposed two options for the students to vote on:
a) a class period of "chatting" about any/all topics that the students would like to bring up.
- OR -
b) playing a bird identification game.
At day's end, the popular vote among all of my classes was beyond the sabotage of hanging chads or resurrected voters!
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
P2F - Roadside Hawks
Day 59 - Wed Dec 12: The gym teacher was powerwalking down the hallway. I attempted in vain to clear enough room in the corridor. It turns out he was seeking me out!
"Hey Dave, I have to tell you this!"
"Is everything alright Phil?"
"Yeah but this is all YOU!"
He had me very curious.
"I was driving down Route 70 and I saw this huge hawk swoop down," he launches into arm flapping charades as students are slowly filtering into the previous barren hallways.
"He landed right on top of a rabbit! The bird was huge and he just sat there - on the rabbit! It was almost as if he was proud of his catch - like a cat would do!"
Again, charades played out as Phil poses like a pompous movie start at a photo shoot.
The kids walked by twisting their heads toward him with subtle chuckles.
"When I saw it, I thought 'Dave would love this' "
"Hawks are so impressive to watch. They can be so powerful and graceful. Thanks for getting my day off to such a nice start."
Phil walked away looking almost as proud as his roadside hawk.
"Hey Dave, I have to tell you this!"
"Is everything alright Phil?"
"Yeah but this is all YOU!"
He had me very curious.
"I was driving down Route 70 and I saw this huge hawk swoop down," he launches into arm flapping charades as students are slowly filtering into the previous barren hallways.
"He landed right on top of a rabbit! The bird was huge and he just sat there - on the rabbit! It was almost as if he was proud of his catch - like a cat would do!"
Again, charades played out as Phil poses like a pompous movie start at a photo shoot.
The kids walked by twisting their heads toward him with subtle chuckles.
"When I saw it, I thought 'Dave would love this' "
"Hawks are so impressive to watch. They can be so powerful and graceful. Thanks for getting my day off to such a nice start."
Phil walked away looking almost as proud as his roadside hawk.
P2F - Birding at the Book Fair
Day 58 - Tues Dec 11: I volunteered to help the school librarian with the book fair today. My job was simple: show up, take some money, make some change.
Not hard at all.
Not birdy at all.
Well . . .
There was a student's mother assisting during the same period. We exchanged brief pleasantries before the big rush came in. Once the last purchase was completed, she and I sat at our post like Harris Hawks awaiting some unexpected prey. Fortunately, our survival was not dependent on unsuspecting passersby since the library was pretty quiet for the remainder of the period.
This dramatic lull was quickly punctuated.
"By the way Mr. Mag, that was a great article in the paper a few weeks ago!"
"Gee thanks. The lady from the Courier did a really nice job with it."
"You were in the Courier too?! I only saw the one in the Inquirer."
The next few minutes focused on the Fledging Birders philosophy of creatively bringing the benefits and fun of birding to our youth. She was such a receptive audience and asked some great questions.
It wasn't long before our conversation turned to one of her own very interesting endeavors - "geocaching".
I always welcome the opportunity to talk "birding with kids" or just plain birding with any potential new birders. It's also great to learn about other new hobbies!
Not hard at all.
Not birdy at all.
Well . . .
There was a student's mother assisting during the same period. We exchanged brief pleasantries before the big rush came in. Once the last purchase was completed, she and I sat at our post like Harris Hawks awaiting some unexpected prey. Fortunately, our survival was not dependent on unsuspecting passersby since the library was pretty quiet for the remainder of the period.
This dramatic lull was quickly punctuated.
"By the way Mr. Mag, that was a great article in the paper a few weeks ago!"
"Gee thanks. The lady from the Courier did a really nice job with it."
"You were in the Courier too?! I only saw the one in the Inquirer."
The next few minutes focused on the Fledging Birders philosophy of creatively bringing the benefits and fun of birding to our youth. She was such a receptive audience and asked some great questions.
It wasn't long before our conversation turned to one of her own very interesting endeavors - "geocaching".
I always welcome the opportunity to talk "birding with kids" or just plain birding with any potential new birders. It's also great to learn about other new hobbies!
P2F - Curiosity Caught the Kids
Day 57 - Mon Dec 10: Minus the craziness of the Food Drive, today's homeroom was much more relaxed than last week. Once the morning administrative tasks were tackled, I popped open the field guide that resides on the corner of my desk.
Almost immediately I heard, "Which is your favorite bird in that book?"
How could I possibly answer this?!
"There are so many really cool birds. Like this one . . ." [pointing out American Kestrels to a growing gaggle of kids]
This one statement led to more questions which in turn led to even more questions and so on and so on.
The innate curiosiy is perhaps our strongest ally in the fledging of new birders. They yearn to learn more about the world around them. Their minds are blank canvases waiting for a masterpiece. These masterpieces can come in many mediums - soccer, playing violin, performing in plays, etc.
Why not birding?!
Even if birding does not become their prime focus, it can really enrich their lives in SOO many ways.
This morning's Kestrel uriosity craze enticed me to be a bit more birdy this week ; )
Almost immediately I heard, "Which is your favorite bird in that book?"
How could I possibly answer this?!
"There are so many really cool birds. Like this one . . ." [pointing out American Kestrels to a growing gaggle of kids]
This one statement led to more questions which in turn led to even more questions and so on and so on.
The innate curiosiy is perhaps our strongest ally in the fledging of new birders. They yearn to learn more about the world around them. Their minds are blank canvases waiting for a masterpiece. These masterpieces can come in many mediums - soccer, playing violin, performing in plays, etc.
Why not birding?!
Even if birding does not become their prime focus, it can really enrich their lives in SOO many ways.
This morning's Kestrel uriosity craze enticed me to be a bit more birdy this week ; )
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)