I decided to teach the students to identify the song/call of eight wetland =
birds, and to match them with the appropriate bird's name and picture. This=
choice was made while working with students
K-4, at the Yolo Basin nature center. This refuge is where I am becoming an=
enthusiastic beginning birder. There are many birds at the refuge, and the=
bird song is magnificent. Often they can't be seen in the bushes or the r=
ushes, but I can hear them. I wanted to learn the song/calls myself, and i=
dentify them for my students. It was surprisingly hard to sort them out in =
the field, or remember them after repeated listenings to the best available=
recordings (Gibson, 2004, LaFleur, 2006, Thayer, 2003). This led to a plan=
to design a more humane and effective way of learning aural material.
Also, I'm a grandmother, and want to help my grandchildren enjoy and learn =
more about birds, so naturally thought of storytelling as a medium of instr=
uction. There is great value in listening to nature and learning how bird s=
ong can provide species identification.
Of course the story, a folktale from Cuba, is a lively and very satisfying =
story of parents lost and found. It stands on its own merits as a piece of=
folk literature, and carries the bird song as a natural extension of the n=
arrative.
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