Chicken Life Cycle Stories
Hi Mamas,
We’ve been hatching chicks in our Little Red Schoolhouse for over 10 years, since our very first life cycle project I did with my own children. Our hens and roosters that my children named and have cared for are now 10 years old, still laying eggs and doing our life cycle project with us year after year. We love sharing this magical journey each year with our learners.
Read below to learn what two of our families have to say about their own amazing learning experience raising chickens this year, from hatching chicks in the Little Red Schoolhouse, to using math and STEM skills in creating architectural plans for the full build-out of their coops!
The Fletcher Family
We moved into our home at the beginning of 2018 and we knew we wanted to keep chickens. We hadn’t planned out the when and how, so when the boys started the Chicken Life Cycle unit at the Little Red Schoolhouse we knew it was finally time. The boys’ experience from start, selecting their eggs, to finish, first pip and hatching, was incredible! The boys and my husband started building our coop, and it truly didn’t feel real the day we brought them home. It was both exciting and a bit overwhelming, never having kept chickens before. They stayed in the brooder in our music room for a few days, and we got to see their personalities develop. We also learned they enjoy music, so many days we play classical music or our favorite songs for them!
When they were ready we moved them to the coop, equipped with a heat lamp, and they really seemed to love their new space. After a couple of weeks, we let them explore outside of the coop in our side yard, and they were such fun little explorers to observe. As a family, we have all enjoyed holding them, allowing them to perch on our arms and hands, and even hand feeding them! Our “peeps” quickly became part of our family, and we are loving the joy and sweetness they add to our lives. They’re like therapy animals!
The boys work together to feed our chickens and keep the coop clean, which has taught them responsibility and new life skills, in addition to learning about the life cycle through reading, writing and science in the Schoolhouse. We love our chickens! Thank you Mrs. Madden for this experience and for introducing us to this wonderful new world!
- Yasmin Fletcher
The Fritchle Family
We are so grateful we found Mrs. Madden this year. When we decided to homeschool at the beginning of the year, I knew I wanted some fun learning experiences that would give my children an opportunity and environment to get positive socialization and a space to learn from someone other than just me. My entire family loves the animals that Mrs. Madden keeps, so when we discovered they were going to learn about the life cycle of a chick, we were all elated.
When our oldest first asked if we could bring some of the chicks home, my husband was not too keen on the idea. After some convincing, we approached Mrs. Madden and asked if we could be one of the chosen families this year. Every day while the chicks were still in the brooder, my kids wanted to hold them. They helped with the cleaning and feeding process and really loved every second. We have since moved our chickens outside into a big coop and run, and all three of my kids are still helping with the entire process. They are very interested in what the chickens are going to do next and we are all anxiously awaiting our first egg!!
This has been such a great experience for me and my whole family. It has given me more time to teach my kids outside of the schoolroom and without workbooks! The Chicken Life Cycle project with the Little Red Schoolhouse has taught my kids reading, writing, and science in a real life, hands-on application that we have now taken home. The learning never stops!
- Krissi Fritchle
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And take a look back at this year’s Chicken Life Cycle project from our blog!