I’ll always remember what my high school English teacher, Mike Huskey, told us about analyzing poetry: “Form follows function.” This applies to quite a bit more than just poetry, I have learned.

Some of the best outdoor crafts are ones that aren’t just fun to make and pleasing to the eye, but also provide shelter and sustenance for wildlife. Have you ever caught the show Backyard Habitat on Animal Planet? In it, the hosts would visit a family and help them figure out how to attract local wildlife to their own backyard. Their refrain for every episode was that every animal needs water, food, cover, and a place to raise their young.

We can help attract wild birds to our homes with some simple crafts like these:

Birdfeeders: You can go all out and build one out of a kit or even scrap wood, but my daughter and I like this very simple craft: Take an empty toilet paper tube and punch two holes in the top and two holes in the bottom, both on opposite sides. Next, spread peanut butter all over it. Roll it in some birdseed, then put a string in through the top holes to hang it with, and a stick through the bottom two holes to serve as a perch. Voila—an instant bird treat that’s cute and recycles!

(Note—kids might want to eat the peanut butter so it’s best to do the birdseed part yourself if you think they might try to eat it. When we first did this, my toddler ate some! I called Poison Control and they just laughed at me, but I’m pretty sure that eating birdseed wouldn’t be all that healthy for little kids.)

For even smaller tykes, an edible wreath is a fun and easy craft that helps build fine motor skills. Simply get a long piece of string or jute and let your toddler thread it with Cheerios. When you’re finished, you can hang it up and let birds and squirrels feast on the wreath—and during creation, you don’t have to worry about accidental ingestion, since Cheerios are A-OK.

Birdbaths: Birds also need plenty of water, so having a birdbath is another great way to attract them to your yard. Instead of buying an expensive one, try making your own out of a pie pan. You can punch four holes into the top—spaced evenly apart—and hang it; then, fill it with water. If you have two spare flower pots, let little ones paint them and put them on top of each other—the bottom one upside-down, the top right-side-up. Then attach a small bowl or pie pan to the top and fill it with water.

Did everyone get a chance to create a fairy house last week? If you did, be sure to post your photos on the blog!