Birds and other creatures usually find the food they need. But you can provide a “snack” with these home made feeders.

You’ll Need:

• 1 pinecone
• 1 cup of chucky peanut butter
• 1 bag of bird seed
• 1 roll of ribbon or string
• 1 spoon

Steps:

1. Tie a length of ribbon/string to the base of the pinecone.

2. Using the spoon, spread peanut butter over the entire pinecone.

3. Roll the peanut butter covered pinecone in the bird seed. Cover the entire pinecone with seed.

4. Hang the feeder from a tree with a ribbon. Place the feeder somewhere close to a window so you can enjoy the feeder when the birds are eating your craft!!!

 

Once you have made your feeder, take a picture of your feeder and the birds that are eating it. Then send it to me at abrentzel@pheasantsforever.org for everyone else to see!!!

Here’s a craft that is fun for the kids. Its a cheap and easy and you can learn some phun facts while doing it with your friends and family.

Supplies Needed:

* Paper Plates (1 per person)

* Wax Paper

* Scissors

* Tape or glue (glue works best, but tape will work)

* Black construction paper

* Yellow paint

* Black paint

* White marker

* Paint brush

How to Make:

Start by coloring or painting the plate with black and yellow stripes like a bee. The kids can have as many or as few a stripes as they like. No two bees look the same. (The less paint you use the faster it will dry)

 While the paint is drying the kids can cut out wings from the wax paper.

Once the wings are done, you can have the kids cut out stingers from the construction paper.

Once the paint is dry the kids can glue/tape the wings  and stinger on their bee.

After the wings and stinger have been attached, use the white marker/colored pencil/white out and draw a face on your happy bee.

Phun Facts:

There are more than 25,000 species of bees identified in the world and 3,500 of those are in the United States.

8 of the 1o are hunny bees.

Honey bees are insects with 6 legs, 3 body segements and antennas.

Honey bees feed on pollen and nectar.

Most honey bees have pollen baskets on their legs to carry pollen when they fly

Honey bees are social insects, they do not like to live alone.

There are 4 stages for bees- egg, larva, pupa, and adult.

Bees live in groups called colonies. There is the queen, workers, and drones.

There is only 1 queen per hive.

99% of the population are worker bees.

Only male bees can be drones.

Each colony can have as many as 60,000 bees in it!!!

 

If you make this craft you all should post your pictures on the site so everyone can see your masterpieces.

Paper binoculars for kids are perfect for backyard explorers and nature-lovers. Create this paper craft with a few supplies and a wild imagination.

What You’ll Need:

2 toilet paper tubes

2 large wooden beads

Black acrylic paint

Thin yellow tape

1 yard black cording

Tools:

Paintbrush

Craft glue

Paper punch

Step 1: Paint both tubes and the wooden beads black. Let dry, then run a strip of colored tape around both ends of each tube.

Step 2: Line up the tubes, and glue the beads between them. Let dry.

Step 3: Punch a hole in each side of the binoculars, close to one end. String the cord through one hole, tie a knot on the inside to hold in place, and string through the other hole. Knot this end on the inside as well.

Now you’re ready for a backyard safari!

You can also have the kids color their own binoculars, some like them camoflauged, or pink. Its totally up to you!!

Once the craft is complete take a picture and send it in so others can see it!!

What kind of wild, imaginary animals can you make out of pine cones? Try our pine cone creatures craft and find out!

What You’ll Need:

Pine cone

Decorations

Craft glue

For each creature, you’ll need one large pine cone. You’ll also need an assortment of decorations (old buttons, scrap cloth, pipe cleaners, real or plastic flowers.)

What I noticed is that feathers work really well. Also the google eyes are a nice add on.  Beads work well for shoes or other decorations.

 

  

  

 

Use these decorations to turn the pine cone into an imaginary animal. Pipe cleaners work well for creating legs. When you’re done, give your creature a name, and make up a story about them.

Well after you have created your pine cone creature take a picture and post it on the web site for others to see what your imagination has to offer!! The more creative the better!!!

Kids can have fun outdoors collecting leaves then take their creativity indoors with this pressed leaves place mat. This traditional fall craft includes elements of cut and paste as well as collage.

What you’ll need:

2 Sheets of clear Con-Tact paper, place mat size

Scissors

Leaves

Waxed paper

Large book, Dictionary, or Encyclopedia

How to make it:

Gather some fall leaves.

Place each of the leaves between two pieces of waxed paper.

Place the leaves inside a large book to flatten them.

After the leaves are flattened, take them out of the book and remove the waxed paper. This may take a day to about a week.

Peel the back off of one of the sheets of clear Con-Tact paper.

Place sticky side up on your work area.

Arrange your leaves on the Con-Tact paper in any way desired.

Peel the backing off of the other sheet of Con-Tact paper and carefully place on top of the leaves.

You can trim around the edges or use decorative scissors to give it a different look.

Tips:
If you have trouble trying to work two sheets of Con-Tact paper, then adhere the first sheet of Con-Tact paper to a piece of construction paper cut slightly smaller than the Con-Tact. Next place the leaves on the construction paper and cover with the second sheet of Con-Tact paper. Trim if necessary.

If there are no fallen leaves you can use cut outs from magizines, or old pictures!!! Make them your own. You can add twists to them by adding glitter, construction paper cut outs, grasses work well, feathers, its up to your imagination!!!

Once you have completed your place mats take a picture and post them to the web site for others to enjoy!!!

Thanks!!