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It’s a Good Time to Start School Birdhouse Kit Projects
Spring is still months away for most two-legged beings, but for birds it’s the slight increase in daylight hours that sends signals. Instinctively, some of the earlier nesting birds who typically have 2-3 clutches per season, will begin scouting for suitable territory and housing to claim as their own. One of the milder winters of 2012 actually saw bluebird nest starts in February!
These cavity-dwelling birds (chickadees, nuthatches, titmice, woodpeckers and others) seek both man-made and natural nesting spots to raise their young. Providing homes for them through birdhouse kit projects makes perfect sense. Start now to have housing in place prior to nesting season in spring. The scouts will be on it sooner than than you think!
A great class-project for schools, with potential to get kids excited about and noticing some natural yet everyday wonders around them! The sturdy wooden housing offers birds a viable roost for cold nights, as well as an ultimate nest spot for several years. The houses may be decorated or painted incorporating art into the project as well.
Also as part of the project, kids can gather home-made nesting materials to help lure birds to their new creations. Feathers, and pet hair are favorites, while decorative mosses are heavily used for nest building-even by those birds who don’t use houses. Dryer lint is never recommended because polyester and such are aren’t natural. Should any of the families have horses or if the school’s near a farm… even better because horse hair is a big winner for birds! The mesh produce bags from the grocery store (like the kind apples come in) make ideal holders for the materials collected.
Please do inquire on bulk rates for school birdhouse kit projects! We’d be delighted to help… our thanks for housing the birds 🙂
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bird house kits for a new york park make-over
An elementary school in New york City has a great idea that’s going into action! Eighty school children at Village Community School will each assemble their own bird house kit, decorate, paint it and help install all 80 bird house kits in a nearby park.
When administration first contacted us, we were more thrilled with the idea itself, than the net profit from a sale. So much so, a deep discount was offered on the bird house kits, and they received a plethora of extras to further entice birds, and to get the kids more involved while making their project a huge success.
Chickadee, Wren and Eastern Bluebird wooden birdhouse kits were ordered, but 16 packages of assorted nesting materials were graciously added. In addition, there was a wonderful Stokes Bluebird Book, and 24 “Pop-Outz” recycled plastic suet feeders, (which are perfect for offering nesting materials) along with a pamphlet on “attracting nesting birds” for each child to take home.
Although bird feeder kits and bird food were thought not to be a smart idea for the area, we also sent along a few suet cakes and explained there would be no ground waste with which to contend. Now I can’t wait to see pictures of the project in progress or the finished product. Park services will be taking care of the water aspect as far as birdbaths or small ponds, making sure there are ample fresh water sources to help birds thrive. The birds in this area of NYC are getting a great make-over!
By the way… the tooled leather birdhouse kit shown here is actually recycled plastic-and super fun to assemble. It provides a real nest site for feathered friends and lasts for years to host many successful broods!