Maker Monday: Kids can make these easy, orange peel bird feeders

After your family eats oranges or other citrus fruits, the peels usually end up in the trash or on the compost heap. This week’s Maker Monday project gives new life to those citrus shells by creating “orange peel bird feeders.”

Kids can have fun getting creative and also do an act of kindness by helping keep birds fed during the winter. The design is simple but practical: Besides holding birdseed inside the orange peel, the bamboo skewers give small birds a convenient place to perch while eating their lunch.

Place your bird feeder in a place where you can watch the birds enjoy their meal. As birds come to feed, you can identify them through the Audubon Society Guide to North American Birds or download the free Audubon Bird Guide app.

As with all Maker Monday projects, the steps are easy and they’re all laid out in detail below. The materials are things you may already have at home or can get at a dollar store.

A safety note to kid makers: Please work with a parent or caregiver on any Maker Monday project and always be very careful when using tools of any kind. This project involves using a drill, so that first step needs to be done by a grownup.

Maker Monday supplies you’ll need:

• an orange
• bamboo skewers
• two pieces of string or twine (each about 18 to 20 inches long)
• birdseed
• scissors
• a spoon

Maker Monday directions:

Step 1: Cut your orange in half. Then juice it and scoop out the pulp or carefully remove the sections to eat.

Step 2: Pierce the orange shell with a skewer about an inch below the edge and feed it straight across through the opposite side. Repeat with a second skewer, making an X across the middle.

Step 3: Tie one string to each skewer, knotting the string on both sides of the orange so that the string extends up over the top of the orange, making loops for hanging on a branch.

Step 4: Fill the orange shell with birdseed and hang it on a tree branch or a branch of a sturdy bush. Then wait for hungry birds to discover it and enjoy a meal.

Want more at-home fun making beautiful things? Check out more Maker Monday projects right here.

Do you have an idea for a Maker Monday craft project? If so, please share it with Kidsburgh! Send your maker activities to info@kidsburgh.org.