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Homeschool Resources

  • The Eastern Bluebird: Winsome

    The Eastern Bluebird: Winsome

    When we first moved to Illinois, one of our closest preserves was the Reed Turner Woodland in Long Grove. Small but diverse, this woodland is comprised of multiple ecosystems and the perfect place to take young children wanting to explore nature. It has become one of our favorite places to explore throughout the seasons and…

  • Dotty, The Tree Sparrow

    In Chapter 4 of The Burgess Bird Book, Peter explains to Johnny Chuck, who sleeps all winter, that Dotty is a Tree Sparrow who takes Chippy’s place when Chippy flies south for the Winter. Then when Chippy flies north, Dotty goes even more north (p. 19, The Burgess Bird Book, Living Books Press). What’s confusing…

  • Chipping Sparrow

    Chipping Sparrow

    One of the smallest of the sparrow family, Chippy, has a rufous cap. If you love nature study, you may come across the word “rufous” often because so many animals are labeled by this descriptive term. Rufous means reddish brown in color. It can be a really helpful descriptor to keep in mind when you…

  • Burgess Bird Book CHAPTERS 13-24

    Burgess Bird Book CHAPTERS 13-24

    Included in Chapters 13 through 24 of The Burgess Bird Book are the Eastern Meadowlark, Swallows and a Swift, a Kingfisher, a Great Blue Heron, a Whip Poor Will, a Common Nighthawk and more! The Red Tailed Hawk was the most difficult bird to draw as a coloring page, but to be honest so were…

  • Scratcher

    Scratcher

    Scratcher is a Fox Sparrow, known for his round body and rust brown coloring. Peter Rabbit remarks that: “(t)he only thing I’ve against him is the color of his coat. It reminds me of Reddy Fox, and I don’t like anything that reminds me of that fellow.” The Burgess Bird Book, Living Books Press Edition,…

  • Whitethroat

    Meet the White-throated Sparrow, a bird who loves the North, but can be found almost all over the North American continent. Of whom Jenny Wren mentions, “he is one of the largest of the tribe (of Sparrows) and has such a lovely white throat. He really is handsome with his black and white cap and…

  • Little Friend

    Little Friend

    Little Friend is a Song Sparrow in the Burgess Bird Book. He is a little sparrow characterized as the opposite of Bully, hence his name is “Little Friend.” The Cornell Lab notes that, “it’s one of the first species you should suspect if you see a streaky sparrow in an open, shrubby, or wet area.…

  • Bully, The House Sparrow

    Bully, The House Sparrow

    I almost titled this blog post “Bully,” but I realized that may be a bit misleading. What an interesting name for Burgess to name the little house sparrows that we see so often. If you look at a range map for the House Sparrow, you’ll see that they reside in 49 of the 50 states…

  • Jenny Wren

    We started The Burgess Bird Book this past week with Jenny Wren. Jenny is a common House Wren. I have to admit that I don’t think I’ve ever identified a Wren before, even though they are common over most of the Western Hemisphere. As we read the book and learned more about Wrens, we realized…

  • Burgess Bird Book

    We began our time in a Cycle 2 of A Gentle Feast this week and started a new nature study book that you know we are excited about… The Burgess Bird Book. Thornton W. Burgess is so good at capturing the animal life of the forest through his characters. In The Burgess Bird Book, Peter…

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