Visit to birds zoo with early year kids

The grace and beauty of birds give us simple aesthetic pleasure of enjoying. Diversity among their looks, color, their habits simply amazes us. Birds symbolize freedom for many because they fly with such ease. For some, it has spiritual qualities and evokes feelings of peace and tranquility.

Their exquisite plumage and vivacious songs enliven our sense of the magnificence and beauty of the world we share.

 Allah has created the birds, and their aerodynamic is a miracle of Allah.

In Quran, Allah says:
“Do they not see the birds suspended in mid-air up in the sky? Nothing holds them there except Allah. There are certainly signs in that for people who believe.” [Al-Qur’an: Surat An-Nahl (The Bee) – 16:79]

The way that birds comply with the principles of aerodynamics continues to astonish scientists. Using no form of trial and error, they cope with the laws of aerodynamics in the most perfect manner.



Few years ago, I heard about mini bird's zoo and got chance to locate that place which was situated at Sonargaon Road. I was amazed to see variety of birds at this privately owned zoo. There are various kind of rear and expensive birds which you cannot find anywhere else in Bangladesh.
As an educationist I believe that connecting with nature is the best way to teach kids. Nature itself is a teaching tool which can be effectively used by teachers.

We planned our visit to 'The Bird Zoo" with a small group of early year kids. Students were very excited learning about 'birds' in literacy, Science, or Bangla language classes.
Teachers told them stories, rhymes, facts about birds.

Our goal was to create an opportunity to learn about diversity in nature, Geography (relating our local birds to migrating or foreign birds), food chain ie, what they eat, prey, predators etc.
I was simply amazed to see so many vibrant colors in variety of birds. Chirping of birds was really loud when we entered into the wide open space of zoo. Our kids noticed their food which was served in their cages and it consisted carrots, apple, grains, nuts etc. We learned that birds are omnivores that eat seeds, nuts, fruit and insects. Some tropical birds eat small lizards and animals.

By visiting bird's zoo, kids learn about "environmental responsibility" for example, how environmental catastrophes, natural or man-made, can impact birds. As a result, we hope that children will learn to be more environmentally savvy in order to protect different bird species and their habitats.

Owner of the zoo, Dr. Abdul Wadud has a large collection of exotic foreign birds. The scarlet macaw, hahns macaw, Bourke's parakeet, rainbow lory, sun conure, African grey parrot, rock pebbler western rosella, port lincoln, electus parrot, kakariki, eastern rosella, chattering lory and black-capped-lory are some of the species in his collection.

The blue and gold macaws are the prime attraction of the zoo. These are the largest and gaudiest of all parrots, familiar worldwide as show birds. The highly intelligent and beautifully colored Macaw species come from deep within the Amazon rain-forest. The pattern of dark lines on the face of these parrots is unique to each individual bird.

How this mini zoo was started?

Rainbow Rosella

Dr Wadud's grandfather was a forest officer. Sometimes he visited the forest with his grandfather and observed birds. The bird chirping and twitting made him happy. Sometimes he used to draw birds in the pages of his notebooks instead of doing homework.

After finishing his academic career from Dhaka University he devoted his life for preserving various species of birds, especially exotic birds. He is a prominent bird specialist of our country who has been actively involved in collecting and preserving birds for the past two decades.

blue and gold macaws

National Bird of Bangladesh:

The Doel is the national bird of Bangladesh. The Magpie Robins are mostly known in Bangladesh as the Doel. Doel is a Bengali word.  The color of the male bird is a combination of black and white.

Many people keep the birds as pets in their homes. In Dhaka, Katobon is the most famous place to buy various kind of birds such as Bojrica, Fizz, Love birds, Pocatello, Java Sparrow, Parrot, Myna, Pigeon etc.
Australian Love Bird is a very popular species. Besides, Macao, Gray bird are very expensive species and these rare and expensive birds delivered upon advance order. Birds are mainly imported from India, Pakistan, Australia and China.

Bird watching as a hobby:

A bird watching hobby can be adopted by anyone as you can watch birds anywhere you like - even in your own backyard. those that take up a bird watching hobby are fascinated by different species of birds, their behavior, their color and migration patterns. Depending on which part of the country you live, you can see different types of birds every season as they migrate from north to south.

Importance of bird watching/Observing:

Bird watching also involves serious study of physiology, behavior and the role of birds in the ecosystem that sustains life.
Studying birds can teach kids great secondary skills, such as:

1. Observation skills to find birds around their locality.
2. Listening skills to identify birds by their songs 
3. Deduction when comparing two challenging bird species 
4. Research skills for following clues to a bird’s identity (linking to habitat)

We should not forget that birds are not just for enjoyment, but also because birds and wildlife need friends who care enough to protect them.

Few of 'Earth House Alternative School' pictures:

In Science class kids learning parts of the birds (before bird's zoo visit)

Bangla writing after story telling, relating to 'Bird' theme

Excitement of getting ready for visit to bird's zoo

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