This DIY bird feeder for kids is a not-so-spooky Halloween idea that the birds will love! This bird feeder is so easy to make and doubles as a decoration for your yard.
Making this bird feeder is a great way to teach children about caring for nature and how to identify local birds that stick around during the colder months! In Wisconsin, we see Black-Capped Chickadees, American Crows, Northern Cardinals, Blue Jays, Morning Doves, and many more birds during the colder months!
We made heart bird valentines last winter and thought these cute ghosts would be fun for Halloween!
Ready to make a DIY bird feeder?! Here’s what you’ll need..
Supplies:
- Cardboard– Grab these if you don’t have any cardboard to reuse.
- Cookie Cutter Shapes -Optional: We did not use cookie cutters for our bird feeders. This is an option for people that don’t want to freehand their shapes!
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Glue
- Clothespins
- Bird Food- I tried multicolored bird food at first and it did not work out. I highly suggest using black and white birdseed for this activity. We used safflower seeds and black oil sunflower seeds
- Peanut Butter or try PEANUT FREE Sunbutter
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Here’s How We Made This DIY Bird Feeder:
Step 1:
First decide on a shape for your bird feeder. You could make bats, pumpkins, cats or any other fun Halloween design! I quickly drew a simple ghost design.
Step 2:
Trace your cookie cutter or drawing onto cardboard.
Step 3:
Cut out your shape.
Step 4:
Glue the clothespins to the back of your cardboard shapes. We used a hot glue gun, but I think Elmer’s glue would work just fine. The clothespins make the perfect perch for the birds!
Step 5:
Now hold on to the clothespin and spread peanut butter onto your cardboard shape. Make sure you spread a thick even layer, so the birdseed will stick in the next step. Don’t forget the edges! We stuck our sunflower seed eyes and nose on right away.
If you can’t use peanut butter due to allergies, try PEANUT FREE Sunbutter.
Step 6:
Decorate your bird feeders!
The easiest way to decorate the bird feeder, is to hold on to the clothespin and press the peanut butter side into the birdseed. The clothespins are not only functional, but help make this a low-mess activity!
Here is another way to decorate your bird feeder! Decorate the edge of the the ghost with the black sunflower seeds and sprinkle the middle with the safflower seeds! This is great for building fine motor skills and practicing hand-eye coordination. This way is a bit more challenging and messy;)
We had fun searching for spots around our yard to clip our bird feeders! In the winter, we chose evergreen trees, but we found thick sturdy stems of flowers worked well this time around. They looked beautiful clipped on to the sunflowers and mums!
Pin this activity to save it for later!
I hope you give this DIY bid feeder a try! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.
∼Tara
Looking for more nature activity ideas?! Check out:
Stunning Leaf Lantern
A Simple Mummy Rock Nature Craft