Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance wants to get kids outside, learning about nature in their own neighborhoods.

Our after school programs are typically six to twelve week long curricula sets that can be adapted for students in a variety of grade levels, in any location in south-central Wisconsin. We strive to get kids excited about nature in their neighborhood, and reinforce the idea that you don't need to travel to find wildlife! SoWBA educators come to your community center, and bring our free, kid-tested nature based education programming with us. 

We work with educators to create curricula that meets classroom goals! Some of our past lesson plans have included:

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Science Inquiry: 

  • All about owls! (1 session)

  • What do owls eat? (1 session)

  • Why do frogs get sick in dirty water? (1 session)

  • How do birds fly? (1 session)

  • Create your own science project (3-4 sessions)

MicroExplorers: 

  • All about insects

  • Explore with magnifying glasses

  • Collect small things, explore with microscope!

  • Draw: life sized and magnified

  • Search for water critters (microscope)

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Nature Art:

  • Clay birdhouses (3 sessions, winter)

  • Nature photography (3 sessions, any season)

  • Soil paint (1 session, early fall or late spring)

  • Leaf art (1 session, fall)

  • Painting/drawing in nature (1-several sessions, any season)

Service Learning: 

  • DIY bird feeders

  • Stormdrain marking

  • Bird Count

  • Seed collection (1 session, early fall)

  • Invasive plant removal (1 session, spring)

  • Habitat clean-up (1 session)

  • Prairie planting (1 session, fall or spring)

General Nature Programming: 

  • Birding 101

  • Birding with binoculars

  • Nature walks and scavenger hunts

  • Migration obstacle course

  • All about owls

  • Nest building

  • Habitat scramble

  • Bird adaptations

  • Birdcall BINGO and bird ID

  • Fur, scat, and tracks

  • Feather experiment

  • Honeybees & the Geometry of Hives

  • Magnificent Monarchs

Here are a few of our curriculum sets available for download:

Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance also brings nature-based education to you! If you are interested in contracting one of our educators for these programs, just contact us at education@swibirds.org.