At-home and at school learning resources from Learning for a Sustainable Future
Week 8: Migrating Waterbirds 
This week’s theme focuses on migrating birds, specifically our resident Canada Goose. Although Canada geese are considered easily recognizable for their blackheads, white cheek patches and long, black necks, there are several species of Canada geese. These birds don’t always migrate, but when they do, they fly south from Canada in the fall to overwinter throughout the US. Unfortunately, climate change affects bird species’ behaviour, migration patterns and population dynamics. With warmer weather, birds seem to be delaying their autumn departure, and some groups of Canada geese have decided to stay put and skip the migration altogether. 

Be sure to read our Late October Step Outside Guide to learn more about Canada Geese and discover which other waterbirds are migrating and other happenings in nature. Try out some of the activities below to help take your learning outdoors!
This website explores the role of climate change in altering bird distribution and provides an overview of how NASA uses satellite imagery to map important bird areas and evaluate weather pattern changes in these regions. Students are also encouraged to become amateur birdwatchers to assist in documenting bird species and abundance in their community.



Activities
  • Want to take a close-up look at the birds in your schoolyard or neighbourhood? Follow these simple instructions to make a bird feeder that birds won’t be able to resist
  • After completing the bird feeders, inventory species and numbers of birds that visit your feeders daily and provide the information to a local naturalist or bird-watching club
  • Play Bird Migration Hopscotch and have students pretend they are flying from their summer habitat in Canada to their winter habitat in Mexico along their annual migration route
  • Get to Know: Birds is an excellent resource for introducing younger students to local birds. It offers two easy-to-implement outdoor activities that teach observation and record-keeping skills while promoting a connection to nature
  • Help your feathered friends through their migration journey by creating some migration-friendly window decorations
  • Create a migration of birds along a hallway where students can write a bird conservation action they will commit to on a bird cut-out
What did you think of Birds and Climate Change?
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Grades 3-5
Students role-play migrating birds during three outdoor games. Students will model a flock of migrating birds, identify and communicate the advantages and disadvantages of travelling in groups and cities, and discuss solutions for reducing migration hazards.


Activities
  • What challenges do birds face as they migrate through cities and towns searching for food, water and shelter? This outdoor activity has students modelling a flock of migrating birds and discussing solutions for reducing migration hazards
  • The Sit Spot Activity has students use their senses to explore the natural environment and experience a connection to nature in their schoolyard or nearby park. Explore and identify any migrating birds students observe during the activity
  • The Fly Away Home activity explores the impact of habitat loss and fragmentation on bird migration and animal populations with paper airplane birds
  • Follow the migration journeys of five bird species and then have students write their own bird migration story
  • Two more outdoor activities Flying to Survive - The Migration Cycle or Globetrotters: A Lesson on Bird Migration, teach students about natural habitats and the many dangers and threats faced by birds along their migration routes
What did you think of the resource Migration Challenge?
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Grades 6-8
This resource is a highly entertaining game that simulates the spring and fall migration of many shorebird and waterfowl species. Students become migrating birds, travelling between their nesting habitats and wintering grounds, experiencing many threats that affect shorebird populations. In addition to bringing meaning to the term migration, this activity provides real examples of limiting factors and demonstrates the significance of habitat destruction.



Activities
  • Get outdoors and play Migration it’s a Risky Journey and have students explore the hazards migratory birds encounter on their long-distance journeys
  • Have students become migrating shorebirds, travelling between nesting and wintering habitats. Along their journeys, they experience some of the threats that affect the survival of migratory shorebird populations
  • Introduce students to the topic of migration and the impacts of climate change. They learn about why birds migrate, which birds migrate, and how they migrate. The Migration Analogy lesson introduces students to the concept of migration by comparing the analogy of bird migration being like a tropical vacation
  • The Place is for the Birds resource teaches students about the migratory flyway they live in and then has them create invitations that promote the local area as a good place for birds to stop or stay
  • Try this Canadian Geese Art Project using a mixed media approach, or complete the Birds Migration Mural with your students
What did you think of Migration Headache?
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This resource aims to determine the migratory path of a bird species and investigate whether the habitats in its summer and winter locations are similar or different. Based on this information, students will devise a recommendation for which areas should be conserved to protect this species.



Activities
  • Here Today, Gone Tomorrow is a STEM activity which has students determine the migratory path of a bird species and, based on this information, students identify which locations should be conserved to protect this species
  • The Bird Migration Explorer provides the most complete data collected on migratory species in your neighbourhood and where those birds go throughout the year
  • Watch this video on Climate Change and Birds and discover what birds are threatened by climate change using this interactive map 
  • Climate Change is a serious threat to birds and your community. Using the Birds and Climate Visualizer, have students enter their province to see which impacts from climate change are predicted for their area and how birds are affected. Discuss how students can take action to help birds facing climate change
What did you think of Here Today, Gone Tomorrow: Saving Migratory Animals?
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About Learning Inside Out

Above you will find a selection of activities, broken down by various grade levels. These guides will be released weekly and archived on our Learning Inside Out page, so you can always access the full catalogue.

All activities have been modified from resources on our R4R database, simplified and adapted for both outdoor learning in the school yard or at-home as needed. The activity descriptions above should contain all the information and links that you need!

If you'd like to view the full original resource on R4R, including curriculum connections for every province/territory, click the activity title.

We want this guide to work for you, so your feedback is invaluable to us.
Use the feedback button at the bottom of this Guide, or email us at info@LSF-LST.ca. We would also love to see photos of students engaging in the activities, please e-mail us any pictures or videos you have!
Let us know how this helped your learning and teaching from home or at school indoors and (hopefully) outdoors and what you'd like to see more of by filling out our brief feedback form!
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Learning for a Sustainable Future (LSF) is a Canadian charity with over 25 years of experience working within the education system. Our Resources for Rethinking (R4R) database is an award-winning collection of resources that are peer-reviewed by certified teachers and connected to curriculum in all provinces and territories. R4R is recommended on many Ministry of Education websites.
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