Birds: 50+ resources for your elementary and early-middle school science and nature studies

You know I love to study history primarily textbook-free. But what about science? Don’t we need worksheets and tests, even for our elementary students?

Spoiler alert: my answer is NO!

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I do use science textbooks often as our core read-aloud. This year, for example, we will be studying birds (and other flying creatures) using an Apologia textbook I already owned.

While I will read chapters aloud each week to my girls (in 1st, 3rd, and 6th grade), our science exploration will be fully fleshed out through lots of reading, bird watching, and nature journaling. (We gave my husband a new bird feeder for Christmas, and now we all love to take our field guide to the window and watch for new birds.)

But if you know me at all, you know my real love language is a book list! I found so many wonderful resources on our own shelves and at the library’s, and I have 2 huge stacks tumbling over ready for us to enjoy!

If you like to study subjects in multi-faceted ways – through poetry, fiction, art, biography, and non-fiction – you’ll love the more than 50 resources I list below! With this much variety, you’re sure to find something for every learning style and personality!

Invite a Master Artist to teach the joy of art to all grades and ages using this bird video art course. Enjoy chalk pastel art from the comfort of your home.

50+ Textbook-free Bird Resources for your Homeschool

The official Great Backyard Bird Count (February 17-20, 2023) details can be found here.
Cornell University’s Feeder Birds student workbook and coloring book (free pdf)
He clasps the crag with crooked hands: Simple Science Unit Study of Eagles and Other Birds of Prey, inspired by Tennyson’s “The Eagle” (free printable)
Geography Quest: Bird Migration Edition: study more about how birds migrate during the year and map some migrations.
All About Robins free unit study from Kristin Moon Science
10 pieces of Classical Music inspired by birds
Nature Journaling: Birds course
Bird nature study guide from Our Journey Westward!
Bird chalk pastel art video course (you can check out a free sample lesson here)
Free bird flashcards and nature study printables
15 minute music lesson on bird songs and calls
Winter Birds Morning Time plans from Everyday Graces
How to attract birds to your yard from Nature Study Homeschool

**Check out this hands on, literature based science lessons, all focused on amazing nature studies!**

Birds in Poetry

Song for the Whooping Crane by Eileen Spinelli

Fine Feathered Friends by Jane Yolen

Feathers by Eileen Spinelli

The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom by Jack Prelutsky

On the Wing by David Elliot

Wings on the Wind by Kate Keisler

Wild Wings by Jane Yolen

Birds and Beasts by William Jay Smith

I am Phoenix: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman

Birds of a Feather by Jane Yolen

Birds in Fiction and Fable

When Birds Could Talk and Bats Could Sing by Virginia Hamilton

The Conference of the Birds retold by Alexis York Lumbard

Gay-Neck: The Story of a Pidgeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji

Check out this awesome nature study guide from Our Journey Westward! This guide helps bring birds nearer and dearer to your heart through serious observation and study during all seasons of the year. *Take your next nature walk up a notch!*

Birds in Early Readers

A to Z Mysteries: The Falcon’s Feathers by Ron Roy

Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends by Wong Herbert Yee

Birds in Non-Fiction

Weird Birds by Chris Earley

Sparrow, Eagle, Penguin, and Seagull: What Is a Bird? by Brian P. Cleary

The Long, Long Journey by Sandra Markle

Thunder Birds by Jim Arnosky

An Egg is Quiet by Dianna Hutts Aston

The Birds of America by John James Audubon

On the Wing: American Birds in Migration by Carol Lerner

My Baby Blue Jays by John Berendt

Mama Built a Little Nest by Jennifer Ward

Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Stewart

Pale Male: Citizen Hawk of New York City by Janet Schulman

Zoology for Kids by Josh and Bethanie Hestermann

Crow Smarts: Inside the Brain of the World’s Brightest Bird by Pamela S. Turner

The Burgess Bird Book by Thornton Burgess

Bird Builds a Nest: A First Science Storybook by Martin Jenkins

Ravens in Winter by Bernd Heinrich

When Birds Get Flu and Cows Go Mad: How Safe are We? by John DiConsiglio

State Birds by Elaine Landau

Watching Water Birds by Jim Arnosky

Birds: Nature’s Magnificent Flying Machines by Caroline Arnold

Be sure to check out this mini unit study all about robins!

Birds Nature Study, homeschool unit study resources, bird books for kids, great backyard bird count

Birds in Art Projects

I love the resources from Hodgepodge and Chalkpastel.com! You can try their free video tutorial demonstrating how to draw a bird’s nest with chalk pastels, or you can experience their entire bird chalk pastel art video course!