January is hard on birds in your backyards and communities. The birds that haven’t flown south are outside in rain, sleet, snow, frost and below freezing temperatures. Food is not easily available for them and it’s up to us to provide nourishment and water for them to drink. For this week’s virtual book club for kids theme we are focusing on Kindness and as a family, we’re being kind to the birds by making some DIY Bird Feed ideal for the cold snap we are experiencing at the moment.
For more, Kindness themed activities for toddlers and preschoolers scroll to the bottom of the page and you will find the posts from our co-hosts this week as well as some other book suggestions for your book basket. This week’s featured book is the Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney, this book retells one of my favorite fables with a great kindness and friendship moral to it.
Materials needed for these DIY Suet Balls to feed the birds
200g of Beef Suet
1 and a 1/2 cups mixed bird seed
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1/2 cup of sunflower hearts
This will make approximately 12 small suet balls.
Fat Ball holder for the garden.
How to make your DIY Fat Balls for the birds
Make sure that you are on a surface that is easily cleared up and can be wiped down with HOT water this does get messy.
Pour the suet into a bowl and add in your bird seed.
Mix well with your hands
Now take a tennis ball size of the mix and squish and squash it together.
The warmth from your hands push your squishing and squeezing will make it compact and turn into a ball. My daughter gave up after ball number 3 but my son pushed on.
We made 12 balls in total 6 to use now and 6 to use later as they will store well in a closed container.
Once you have them made add them to the fat ball holder and position in the garden.
Connect, Explore & Learn with Nature
JOIN OUR FAMILY WILD CHALLENGE THIS SEASON
Challenge the family to learn about the natural world and experience some of it's highlights and earn certificates as you do
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Big Garden Bird Watch
If you are in the UK then the RSPB is holding it’s Big Garden Bird Watch from the 28th to 30th January this year. It’s a great opportunity for your kids to start recognizing the birds in the garden and you could combine it with the use of the RSPB My First Bird App so that you and your kids can start to learn more about the visitors to your garden.
All of the information about the event can be found on the RSPB site as well as some top tips for attracting, even more, birds to your garden.
More ideas for kindness to wildlife that kids can do
- Build a log pile home
- Construct a Bird Box
- Plant these flowers and plants to attract ladybirds to your garden.
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Books for Toddlers and Preschoolers on the Kindness Theme
Our featured book this week is The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney. This beautifully illustrated book based on my favorite (ok second favorite as I do love the Tortoise and the Hare) is a great addition to your bookshelf and one that will be treasured. Here are 4 more books to add to your book basket this week on the kindness theme
Days with Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel
I see Kindness Everywhere by Shelley Frost
How do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends by Jane Yolen
If you Plant a Seed by Kadir Nelson
Kindness Themed Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers
This week’s cohosts for the Virtual Book Club for Kids have put together some fantastic fun ideas around the theme of kindness for you to enjoy do check them out.
Kindness Activity the Ripple Effect by J Daniel4s Mom
Making Bird Seed Cookies to Feed the Birds by To Be a Kid Again
Printable Thank You Cards for Kids to Colour and Send by Sunny Day Family
Random Acts of Kindness Colouring Notes from Teach Beside Me
Simple Ways Children Can Make a Difference from Mama Smiles
Quick Daily Kindness Bingo Game for Kids from Toddler Approved
Lion Thumbprint Valentines Card from The Educators’ Spin On It
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