Building a Youth Bird Club

What does it take to build a bird club for youth? Actual in-the-field experiences with a woodpecker, a chickadee, a warbler, or a duck can do more to connect kids to nature than any indoor instruction with an adult. In spring 2015, some adult birders teamed up with Burroughs Community School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and put this idea to work.

The Burroughs Birders youth birding club combines the insatiable curiosity of kids with the fun of tearing around outdoors. It also eschews an overly formal format. After a quick chat about bird sightings and two new target species, they hit the trail.

The only rule: carry binoculars or a note pad and pencil. The only screen on the trail is the occasional check-in to bird identification apps such as eBird or iBird on the adult leader's phone.

Casual structure notwithstanding, the kids are learning, says co-leader Amber Burnette, "It is so satisfying to see them recognize calls as they get used to hearing the birds, and then try to find them with their binoculars. Even if it's just for a few hours, what a neat thing to have birds be the teachers of our shared world."

"The plan to have multiple sessions during peak migration times in Minnesota means the kids get to see the week-to-week changes in bird species around us," explains Burnette. Learning sneaks in all the time. A woodpecker taps out the importance of dead trees; a warbler shows how insects play into migration; a chickadee lectures on the need for quality habitat.

"And so often, birding is just the beginning, an opening to the wider world of nature and conservation," adds co-leader Julie Brophy.

Peyton Knock-Swanson, a 4th grader, bubbles with enthusiasm. "I like birding because it lets me get out in nature and explore.... I think that other people should join our bird club. I'll bet you'll see lots of birds; all you have to do is be quiet, have a sharp eye, get out there and explore. Oh, and don't forget to have fun!"

Originally published in Bird Education Network Bulletin #86