If your preschool has access to grass and sticks, give each student a paper lunch bag and go for a nature walk. Have students pull blades of grass and pick up small sticks to place in bags. Listen and look for any birds while you are outside. Return to the classroom. If it is not possible to allow your preschoolers to gather sticks and grass, you will need to provide a bundle of twigs for the class. Give each child a sheet of construction paper and a bottle of glue. Have the children glue the grass and twigs into nests.
This activity helps develop fine motor skills in preschoolers. Prepare for this craft by cutting twine into an 18-inch length for each child. Tie a small jingle bell onto one end of the twine and wrap the other end with a small piece of tape to create a pointed needle end for lacing. Give each child the prepared twine, a paper plate, and a large handful of small "o" shaped cereal. Have the children string all the cereal pieces onto the twine. When each child is finished, knot the remaining twine on his feeder into a loop for hanging. Allow the children to bring the feeders home and hang in a tree.
Print a set of sequencing cards for each child in the class, or draw and copy your own set. Ideas for cards in the set include a mother bird finding a stick, a mother bird building a nest, a mother bird sitting on the eggs, the eggs hatching, the mother bird feeding the babies worms and the baby birds flying away. Allow the children to color cards and assist in cutting them out as needed. Have children arrange the cards in logical order.
Include books about birds during story time. Some suggestions include "Are You My Mother?" by P.D. Eastman, which is about a little bird that hatches when his mother is away, "Make Way for Ducklings" by Robert McCloskey, which is about a mother and father duck finding a place to raise their ducklings, "Calvin Can't Fly: The Story of a Bookworm Birdie" by Jennifer Berne, which is about a bird who spends his time reading instead of learning to fly, and "Henny Penny" by Paul Galdone, which is about a group of birds who jump to conclusions. You may wish to include some nonfiction picture books as well.