Bird School Project: Inner-city LA get's a full day of birds!

When Darrow was in high school, he had a dear red-headed friend named Landry. He did not know at the time that Landry would grow up to be an energized and passionate teacher in downtown LA. Landry allowed us to visit her fifth grade class for the entire day on Friday. When we asked students to introduce themselves and share something they were grateful for, every single one responded with how grateful they were that we came to visit and teach them about birds. They showed us, in that short introduction, how important our work is. Esperanza Elementary is a Title 1 school-- meaning enough students' families fall under the poverty line that the school provides some free services, school supplies, and food to students. Many of these students have had harder experiences than we can even imagine. It is imperative we help provide meaningful experiences like this to them.

We began our day by introducing our birds, doing a lesson on bird sounds and bird language, and had students pick a focus bird and draw and label the various parts of a bird. They learned some new vocabulary like crown, nape, and rump and learned about the genus and species names for their birds. After recess, they learned about using binoculars (which no one had ever used) and we went outside to look for birds. We were able to see a few common species, but it was a bit hard to focus with other students having lunchtime on the playground. After lunch, we decided to try going out on the yard again. This time, without the added noise of other students, we were able to find all sorts of birds including House Sparrows, Anna's Hummingbird, and the exciting and tropical Yellow-Chevroned Parakeet!

The Yellow-Chevroned Parakeet is quite the bird to see in downtown LA
(credit: birds.audubon.org)

The Parakeet is native to South America from Brazil to Argentina. There are established feral populations of Parakeets in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Miami. They are believed to have been released from captivity and have established their populations since then. Though the bird is non-native, it is still an attention-grabbing bird and did not fail to get our students squeaking with excitement.

Mr. Rumble is a major bird education advocate

We also had the privilege of meeting Esperanza's principal, Brad Rumble. Mr. Rumble happens to be perfectly aligned with the vision and interests of the Bird School Project. Mr. Rumble is on the board of Los Angeles Audubon and is a passionate teacher and birder that has made great strides for the outdoor education movement in Los Angeles. Rumble used to work at Leo Politi Elementary, another LA school that made headlines when Rumble received a large grant from Audubon and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to transform the school's yard into a native habitat oasis for birds and insects alike. After completing his noble work there, Rumble is now at Esperanza and hoping to accomplish a similar transformation. Please read about this incredible project and watch the video HERE. We are excited to be connected with Mr. Rumble and look forward to collaborating with him in the future!

The class getting quiet to check out nearby birds

To wrap things up, we wrote up our species list for the day (nine species!) and came up with some "I wonder" questions for students to work on for homework. We made sure that everyone could easily identify the four most common species on the schoolyard--American Crow, Western Gull, Rock Pigeon, and Mourning Dove. By the time dismissal came around, students couldn't stop asking questions. Many wanted to stay after class to look at the bird specimens and tell us stories about birds they have seen at the local park. We are confident that this was not just another day at school for these students. This was something that many were needing--an assuring experience that it is okay to take the time to honor the beautiful and natural, that it feels good to just go for a walk and listen, that birds are simply amazing!