Grade 4 Building Bird Houses

Bird House Building
Curriculum Developed by Carolyn Brown. Written by Anastasia Sinclair

Building a bird house (or bat house) is a great project for Grade 3 and up. At Waldorf School of the Peninsula, students build a bird house in Grade 4 during the winter months.

There are many good plans for bird houses. Here is a link to the plans we use:
http://www.bygpub.com/bluebird

Note: In these plans, you are directed to cut some of the boards down to 4 inches wide. This does make the project easier, but students who are experienced with saws can cut the boards themselves if the boards are cut up into the proper lengths.

I learn the directions to build the bird house by heart, and keep several copies on hand to reference. I do not provide the students with copies of the directions, but instead show them a finished bird house and ask them to deconstruct it in their mind. When I am helping a student with the next step, I will have several other students watch and see if they can then accomplish the task on their own.

On Wood:
At Waldorf School of the Peninsula we usually use rough redwood fence boards, as wet and green and light as possible. Although many teachers will use other kinds of wood and enjoy painting the bird houses with the students, it is important to research what kind of birds you are hoping to house. We are trying to house bluebirds, which are not attracted to freshly painted homes, so we use a wood which does not require treatment, including stains and oil. Older wood cracks much more easily, and the students will find it very difficult to work with. Heartwood is very strong, and generally needs to be pre-drilled.

On Drills:
At WSP, we have hand-powered drills, which the students love to use, but they break the drill bits. At a couple of dollars a piece, and each student breaking one or two or more drill bits, I could easily spend over a hundred dollars on drill bits. The hand drills need much repair and upkeep and the students are hard on them. So, I feel they are nice to have as a demonstration, but I generally don’t use them very much. The larger drills for making the bird house holes are more durable and the drill bits larger so by nature stronger. These are a better investment. Two per class should be sufficient.

On Nailing and Finish Work:
The students must pull out any nails which are not true. Their nails must be “flush” with the boards and the boards must be “flush” with each other, not showing large air gaps and mistakes. Cuts which are not straight must be fixed. Bird houses are rasped, sanded and holes are patched with wood putty. Cracks are fixed with wood glue. They must be beautiful and functional. Students wait to take them home until everyone is finished, which encourages them to support each other. If some students finish early, they are asked to team up to build another one for the school garden. These expectations are laid out before students receive their wood. They are given at least one full class day to practice measuring, sawing and hammering on scrap wood. If some students wish to practice longer, I will let them, while I start the confident ones on the project. This allows my time and the classroom resources to be used most effectively. An alternative it to bring in several adults for assistance. If there are limited resources, the students can split up into groups of 3 and share the tools and work benches.

Supplies Needed:
Wood: I use redwood fence boards, 1×6, 6 or 8 feet in length. Green and lightweight (not heartwood) with as few knots and blemishes as possible.
Nails: 5 penny d nails are ideal.
2-3 or more Hand turned drills with bits for the bird house hole and some bits for the latch nail (see instructions)
T-squares with rulers. Metal is nice. 1 for every 1 or two students.
Saws. You will want almost 1 per student, unless you divide students up into partner groups of 2-3 so they can help each other and take turns, in which case you need one per group. Small wood handled saws that saw on the push and pull stroke.
Hammers. Lighter weight wood handled. One per student is ideal.
Pencils and sharpener.
Safety goggles.
Clamps: metal are nice. At least one per student.
Small scrap wood chunks to protect the loom wood from the clamps. One per clamp.
Saw horses and/or work benches or sturdy old desks which can stand some wear. Students can usually work with 3-4 students on two sawhorses. More than 4 would be unsafe.