Birdseed Scavenger Hunt

With the start of spring, and all the birds chirping, many people are out filling their feeders with birdseed. Instead, I brought some birdseed in the house for the boys to make birdseed scavenger hunts. I first saw this in a middle school classroom where students were enjoying it. I then saw it in the dentist waiting room.

I took some clean empty plastic bottles with lids (peanut butter jar and water bottle), and had the boys put some toys in them. They had to be little toys. For example, a lego man and a lincoln log. I had them count out 10 toys to put in the jars. We then put a paper funnel on the top of the jar for the boys to put spoonfuls of birdseed in. They filled the jars 3/4 of the way full. I put the lid on tight. Now
they move the birdseed around the jar to try to find the object. For older kids I would have put a list of what to find inside, but pictures work great for little kids too.

This was really good for the boys to learn spacial skills. They had to fit toys through an opening in a jar, so we got a few things stuck. I'm just glad we didn't have to cut open a jar to free any toys. I little lion was close to loosing his leg. They also improved their dexterity by scooping spoonfuls of birdseed into a paper funnel. It made a mess, but it allowed them to use the little Dirt Devil to clean it up.

Hint: use birdseed without corn, it will be less dusty.