Learning about Blue Jays

As part of our bird study at Maple Tree, during circle time recently we passed round a set of photos of a Blue Jay Mommy in and around her nest of a growing family of chicks. The nest had been discovered late last spring in an evergreen tree right beside the front entrance of the building where a friend of a Maple Tree staff member worked. As the children looked at the photos they expressed delight at how small and fluffy the chicks were when they first hatched. "They are so soft," a little girl noted. When asked how the chicks got their foods, several children knew that the Mommy fed them. A couple of the boys were surprised at how the chicks were opening their mouths so wide as they waited for Mommy to return with food. Another boy remarked that the chicks looked very squished in the nest as they stared to grow. One of the older girls noticed how much like the Mommy the growing chicks looked with the marks on their wings. The photos of the Blue Jays have now been threaded on a string and attached above the nature table in the classroom. They continue to be a source of interest for the children. One hears comments like "Look at the little birds, they are so cute".