Easy Birdseed Ornaments

Birdseed ornaments are really easy to make! Studying nature is a rewarding science activity for kids, and learning how to care for and give back to nature is equally important! Get the birdseed ornament recipe below, and grab the free printable bird activity pack! Make your own super simple birdseed ornaments with gelatin, and add this fun bird-watching activity to your kid’s day!

Make Birdseed Ornaments With Kids

Making homemade birdseed ornaments is a fun and kid-friendly activity that is perfect for Earth, spring or even winter! Anytime you want to attract a few birds for easy bird watching with the kids or family.

Learn how to make birdseed ornaments and bring your backyard alive! This is a great opportunity to find out about the wildlife in your own backyard or even outside your classroom. Birdseed ornaments made with gelatin are also peanut free.

Here’s another easy way to make birdseed ornaments with peanut butter.

Bird Watching Tip

Always keep a pair of binoculars, field guide, and sketchbook/journal handy for observing your birdseed feeders!

Kids love to take pictures, too, so keep a camera nearby for snapping photos. Kids can record their data and draw or identify the birds from their photos!

Free Printable Bird Worksheet Pack

Add this free printable bird theme pack to the hands-on activity!

Birdseed Ornament Recipe

Time to grab the supplies and start making these easy bird seed feeders with the kids. You can pick up everything you need at the grocery store too!

Supplies:

• ½ cup of cold water
• ½ cup boiling water
• 2 packets of gelatin
• 2 Tablespoons of corn syrup
• 2 ½ cups of birdseed, “Country Mix” shown here
• Cookie Cutters
• Straws cut in 2” pieces
• Parchment paper
• Twine or another kind of string (biodegradable if possible!)

Instructions:

Tip: Remember, this is a kid-friendly birdseed feeder! Have those kids help measure, pour, and mix. You can even get kids as young as toddlers involved in the process.

STEP 1: First, mix the gelatin with a half cup of cold water until it’s all dissolved!

Now add a half cup of boiling water (adult help required) to the bowl, and stir it slowly until its completely dissolved.

STEP 2: Next, add two tablespoons of corn syrup, and again, stir until dissolved.

Quick Tip: Spray the tablespoon with a little non-stick spray, and the corn syrup will slide right off!

STEP 3: Finally, it’s time for you to mix in the birdseed.

Keep mixing until the gelatin/ corn syrup mixture evenly coats each seed. Let this rest for a couple of minutes if the mixture seems watery.

STEP 4: Now for the messy part, spoon the seed mixture into the cookie cutters.

Fill the cookie cutters about halfway and use a small piece of parchment paper to press the seeds firmly into the mold. Then fill the cookie cutter to the top & press again.

STEP 5: Push the straw into the birdseed to make a hole for your twine. Leave plenty of room between the straw and the edge. Press around the straw to ensure the seeds will hold shape around the hole.

STEP 6: Place the cookie cutters in the fridge to set overnight. Once set, remove the cookie cutters by gently pushing at the edges until it falls out, taking extra care with detailed cookie cutters.

Pop the straws out & thread the twine.

Your bird feeder is ready to hang outside. You want to hang it near other branches, so the birds have a place to rest while eating!

How Does Gelatin Work?

Not only do you learn how to make birdseed ornaments, you can also check out simple science in the kitchen! We first used gelatin when we made this creepy gelatin heart activity for Halloween. Oh, and we also used gelatin for this awesome fake snot slime!

Who would have thought gelatin was chemistry? I love being able to share simple science with my son when we are doing what he considers fun activities. It just amazes all of us that science is really everywhere and easy opportunities like making simple gelatin is a hands-on learning experience for both of us.

Jello or gelatin is all about chemistry. It is called a semi-solid. Not quite a liquid and not quite a true solid. Gelatin is long strings of amino acids {with a little hydrogen} that when heated loosen up and jiggle and slide along each other in a liquid state, but they also love water and like to stick to it {just not very well}.

As the water cools, when the birdseed ornaments are placed in the fridge, the bond between the atoms in the water and gelatin strengthens, and the semi-solid object forms. It’s only a weak bond, though, making it semi-solid but it holds together the birdseed nicely.

Not only do you get to engage in nature studies, but you get a little bit of cool kitchen chemistry too!