A Singing Bird Basket - For Toddlers & Preschoolers!
These are the sweetest little birds, I loved them as soon as I saw them. They are plush birds that play authentic bird songs. They are lifelike enough for the child to recognise them with accurate colourings and patterns.
I've put a collection of these singing birds into a basket for Otto (22 months) to explore. Most of these birds can be found in our garden, with the exception of the Woodpecker which we've only heard at Forest School and the Puffin which we have watched on live webcams (around Scotland and Wales). The Blackbird, Robin and Tits are very common and the Mallard is common in our parks and nature reserves.
This is a wonderful way to explore the sounds and songs of each bird. They are the right size for toddlers, not to scale but they are comfortable for the child to hold in their hands or sit in their laps. I was surprised that I didn't recognise the song of most of the birds. These birds would also be lovely in a bird watching basket and can absolutely be used for language work.
In our Singing Bird Basket we have the following birds:
- Atlantic Puffin
- House Sparrow
- Mallard Duck
- Great Tit
- Green Woodpecker
- European Robin
- European Blackbird
The above singing birds are made in partnership with Wild Republic and the RSPB. The RSPB is a UK charity working to secure a healthy environment for birds and wildlife. The RSPB belongs to BirdLife International, the global partnership of bird conservation organisations. The authentic bird songs have been provided by CEBA - Centre Bioacoustique Alpin, Europe.
There are many more singing birds available including US based birds here. Using the Singing Bird Basket has made us more mindful when going on nature walks or when bird spotting in our garden. There are many extension ideas we can try but for toddlers this feels just about right!
My original inspiration for the singing bird basket is this bird watching basket from Playful Learning, isn't it lovely?!
P.S. For bird songs we also love The Little Book of Garden Bird Songs (US readers might like The Little Book of Woodland Bird Songs).