Sourced from the RSPB.
Amazingly, thousands of schoolchildren will want to keep quiet in classrooms this month to spy on some special neighbours.
Classrooms
will be turned into bird hides, binoculars will be fixed to eyes and
children will be staring out of windows. Why? To take part in the
world’s biggest bird survey, the RSPB Big Schools’ Birdwatch.
Running
from 19-30 January 2009, the survey encourages children and their
teachers to look for and count the birds that share their school
environment.
Last year, almost 50,000 children and teachers from
1,500 schools took part, revealing the starling as the most common
visitor to school grounds. Over 64,000 birds were counted from 60
different species, ranging from house sparrows and blue tits to siskins
and kestrels.
Laura Osborne, RSPB Big Schools’ Birdwatch project manager, said:
'The Big Schools’ Birdwatch provides an opportunity for thousands of
children to join in and discover more about the birds visiting their
schools. The activity is suitable for children of all ages and it also
appeals to teachers because it’s fun, easy and simple to set up.'
A
host of curriculum-linked learning flows from the survey. Some schools
make the activity the centrepiece of a whole week devoted to learning
about wild birds. Other schools hold birdwatch breakfasts and after
school wildlife clubs.
All you need to do to take part is watch
and count the birds in your school grounds for one hour, then send one
set of results back to the RSPB detailing what you saw. All the results
are then put together to create an overview of which birds are making
the most of school grounds across the UK.
Laura added: 'Whether
you’ve seen several common birds or a few exotic species, it doesn’t
matter – all sightings are useful to us! This year, our online results
form can be used as a fun data-handling class activity allowing you to
build your choice of graphs and charts using your results.'
No
birdwatching expertise is necessary for teachers, helpers or children
and the RSPB has produced a free schools pack containing everything a
teacher will need. The emphasis is on having fun and joining in. The
pack includes guidance notes, a full colour bird identification poster,
counting chart and survey form.
For further information about Big Schools’ Birdwatch, visit the RSPB website www.rspb.org.uk/schoolswatch
or ring 0300 456 8340 (calls charged at standard rate) for a free
teachers’ pack. The hotline number will be operational until 28 January
2009.