For the Birds!

1. Seeding frenzy. Fill a dish tub or baby bath tub with bird seed. Add plastic cups, spoons, containers and sand sifters. A few plastic or stuffed birds will also add to the fun. Your toddler will spend hours filling, emptying and stirring the seed. For an additional small motor challenge, have older preschoolers pick the sunflower seeds out of the mixture and place them in a separate bowl. This activity is best done outside where you can let the birds clean up any mess.

2. Bird walk. Take your child on a walk to look for birds. Sit under a tree and just listen—do you hear any birds? Leave some seed under the tree and come back later to see if the birds have eaten it.

3. Feather fun. Get a bag of multi-colored feathers from a craft store (they should be inexpensive and pretty easy to find). Spread a bag out on the table and let your child sort them by color or size. How many yellow ones are there? How many green ones? Count them then put them into sets of twos or threes. Encourage your child to make designs with them.

4. Snack ornament. String some cheerios or small pretzels on yarn or a pipe cleaner. Tie it into a circle when your child is finished and hang it on a tree branch for the birds to enjoy. Find yourselves a perch in a nearby window and watch for the birds to come and help themselves.

5. People nest. Dig out that wading pool, an old quilt, some pillows and stuffed animals and let your child create their very own soft, comfy “nest.” It’s a great place to read books or even take an afternoon nap! (Gummy worms optional.)