Kid and Youth Project

 Kid and Youth Project

Bluebird House Kit



Everyone remembers the first bird house they built.  It doesn’t matter if they did it by themselves or with the assistance of Mom or Dad or a grandparent.  It’s perfect as a gift.  And the memories will last a lifetime.  Learn more.

 



Visit us at www.kingbirdfeeders.com for quality binoculars, spotting scopes, bird feeders, bird houses, field guides, and gear. roy@kingbirdfeeders.com

Great Binos for Young or Beginning Birders

We adults recognize we should be doing all that’s possible to foster the upcoming generation of birders and conservationists. Many Audubon Groups have stated this as a goal and mission for the next few years.


The Central Texas Audubon Society a couple of years ago purchased almost two dozen binoculars for their youth education programs. CTAS supplemented these with field guides in a one to one ratio. The San Antonio Audubon Society Education Outreach Committee has done similarly, purchasing new Vortex Raptor Binoculars in its efforts to grow young birders.



Vortex Raptor Binoculars

 The Vortex Raptor Binoculars are designed specifically with Young Birders in mind. The lightweight bins have sharp optics, and the eyepieces and binocular body are just right for smaller faces and hands. The field of view is great facilitating locating the bird. Focusing is pretty easy, too.


Yet, any small adult beginning birder wanting a lightweight alternative would find them perfectly serviceable as well.

These binoculars are great and well worth the price for your youth or beginning birder program.

Walk in the Woods

Saturday mornings we find ourselves walking the trails of Bastrop State Park. We have been doing so for over a year now. Consistently, we have seen groups of boy scouts and their leaders around the lake as well as families with children walking in the primitive camping area, exploring nature and testing their mettle in a setting beyond the normal creature comforts of home and hearth. And it is good.


Some of these have carried binoculars; some have spent time overturning rocks. Some have concentrated their gaze on the forest canopy; others have their attention drawn to the forest floor. Pine Warblers calling in early spring and Summer Tanagers in late spring are so noted. Rabbits and Copperheads rustle through the leaves and try to blend into the surroundings hoping that the youth around them will not notice.

It is on these outings that I find myself thinking of my youth when my father brought me my own first pair of binoculars. I do not think he had a clue as to how that would shape the rest of my life, nor did I.

I would encourage you to take your children and grandchildren to the woods. Provide them with binoculars and field guides and take the time to learn about the natural world around them. I find myself grinning when I see a young person staring in awe of a male Rose Breasted Grosbeak or dumbfounded because the male and female Painted Bunting look so different in coloration. Celebration comes at the moment that young person says to me, “There’s Peter, Peter, Peter”, and without ever seeing the bird knows it is a Tufted Titmouse.

A walk in the woods, a simple gift, time well spent, who knows what such might mean to our youth and the future.

Encouraging a New Generation

Photo by bill Ravenscroft

Birding is such a wonderful avenue to developing one’s sense of nature. It is an activity the leads many into a greater appreciation for the environment. It may even lead one to advocacy of good stewardship of the earth and influence the decisions made as one conducts their life. Thus birding serves as a gateway into an understanding of humans interplay with nature and the environment. It behooves us to encourage our youth in nature observation.

If your community has a green space or green corridor, take your children on a hike. The fresh air the beauty of the woods surrounding the trail will fill you and your children with a sense of adventure. It may lead to an appreciation of our ancestors as they trekked across the wilderness to establish roots where the family now lives.

One way to accomplish this goal would be to purposely plan vacations in which the family camps out. State and National Parks provide a way in which a family can drive up to a campsite with their gear and have an enjoyable time “in the woods”. If you are not sure that the family can endure a week or two living in such a way, then try a weekend campout at a nearby state or regional park.

And then there is birding. Birding is an activity that can begin in the backyard. Its beginning is as simple as putting up a feeder, filling it with black oil sunflowers, and then watching through the window. Of course, providing youth with a good pair of binoculars facilitates their identification of the birds they watch, but also allows for the observation of the fine detail of their feathers and the unique behaviors of particular birds. For children up to third grade a small yet good binocular would be the Audubon 7 x 18 Mini. For youth up to middle school one might consider the Vortex 8 x 42 Crossfire. High School youth would be well equipped with a Stokes 8 x 42 Talon or Vortex 8 x 42 Diamondback.

Our children are filled with wonder and blessed with curiosity. With a bit of effort on our part we can encourage our children to grow into adults caring for the very earth we ourselves hold dear. Now is the time to begin, if we have not previously done so. It is not too late nor too early. For what is good, it is always the right time.