School Incubating Program
Stop me if You’ve Heard This One…60 Chicks Walk into a Barn…
From mid April until the third week in May, BHS First Graders were incubating, hatching, and caring for chicken eggs (and ultimately CHICKS) in their classrooms as part of their science curriculum! Each classroom had 6 eggs of different breeds delivered to their school. The purpose of this program is to hatch chickens that will ultimately join our flock as laying hens, providing fresh eggs for our farm store.
For three weeks, the students tracked the days and followed the future chicks’ development. They learned about the specific needs of temperature, rotation, and humidity to give the eggs the best chance to hatch. With a built-in candler in their incubator, they could track chick development inside the egg.
On day 21, the chicks began hatching! Using their egg tooth to break the shell and all their muscles to climb out, the chicks dried off and fluffed up their downy feathers. There is nothing cuter than a newly hatched chick, except maybe an excited group of 6 and 7 year olds watching it happen in real time.
The chicks then moved to a brooder box which was set-up in each classroom. With wood shavings, feeder, waterer, and a heater, the brooder became the chicks’ classroom home. The first graders learned how to hold (gently) a chick. They learned the names and functions of chicken body parts. They learned chick care and valuable life lessons.
On May 11, the new chicks began coming back to the Farm with students on their field trip days! Some classes brought their chicks on the bus (road trip!) and some were picked up by staffers and brought to their new home here at Bowers Farm. In all, 60 out of 90 eggs hatched! This was a 66.7% hatch rate. Great work!
On the day of their field trip, students arrived at the farm excited, and full of comments, stories and questions. Students spent their day seeing the chicks’ new home (the poultry barn) and sharing their chick names (Oreo, Brownie, Sunny, Honey, Zha Zha Floof, Bob, Chippy, Thunder, and Fluffball were some fan favorites).
Students designed and built their own bird in the Design Studio using recycled materials. These creative tinkerers created amazing birds and even endowed them with a “special feature.” We had soccer and hockey playing birds, queen and king birds, invisible birds, fire-breathing birds, robot birds, and MORE!
They played a bird game and had a wild bird scavenger hunt on a wagon ride around the farm. Learning about the features, different habitats, and nesting preferences of the birds we see on the farm opened students’ eyes to the fantastic feathered friends all around us.
Students learned about the farm store and what contribution their birds will make to Bowers Farm. The new hens will start laying eggs beginning around 4-5 months old. Fresh chicken eggs are a favorite item in the Farm Store. You really can taste the difference!
Finally, in the forest, the first graders used found materials to create their own nests. Working on their own, with a buddy, or as a group, they built ground nests that would make any bird proud to call it home. Sticks, stones, dried leaves, acorns and even feathers featured prominently in their thoughtful creations.
The Guide Team truly enjoyed all the positive energy, excitement, and curiosity the students, staff, and chaperones shared with us during this, our final BHS program of the year. “Animal Investigations” is always a favorite program for students as well as the Guide Team.
In September, when these intrepid birders return to the Farm for their first field experience as 2nd graders (Pocket Full of History), they will be able to visit their chicks at the “Chick-Inn” and see how much they have grown in just a short time. Have a GREAT summer and THANK YOU!
