February Environmental Superhero Project

Valentines

I gave a hundred Valentines.
A hundred, did I say?
I gave a thousand Valentines
one cold and wintry day.

I didn't put my name on them
or any other words,
because my Valentines were seeds
for February birds.

                                               Aileen Fisher

Today we worked on making valentines for the birds. (I think we used a lot more than a thousand seeds.) I'm hoping by tomorrow these will be ready to string, and then students are welcome to take theirs home to hang in the yard. The February birds should love them. Aren't they sweet?

If you want to make these at home, the recipe is simple:

4 cups bird seed, 3 T corn syrup, 1/2 cup water, 3/4 cup flour - mix thoroughly, and then smoosh into cookie cutters. Poke a hole for hanging with a straw, and leave overnight to dry. 

Environmental Superheroes continues to be just one more way to keep ecology on the forefront in our classroom. It has an important part of our school curriculum since the beginning, and I hope these children will be stewards of our earth forever. So far this year we've appreciated our natural surroundings as we:

planted a garden

picked raspberries on a beautiful Fall day

did a "junk mail challenge" 

prepared bird treats for a bake sale and sponsored an owl (for two years!)

made snow ice cream and vegan treats

made these seedy valentines for our backyard birds

In future months, we will:

make "green" cleaners and do some spring cleaning

decorate Trader Joe's grocery bags with a special Earth Day message

go on a field trip to the Materials Recovery Facility