The Daring Book for Girls - Andrea J. Buchanan [89]
Cut the wood to size and sand the edges and top smooth. While you have the saw out, round the four edges to remove the points.
The caster wheels are set at each of the four corners, a half inch away from each side. It helps to draw lines a half inch in on all sides and place the wheels where the lines meet. Put each wheel in position, and mark the holes for screws or bolts through the plate. Use a 3/16/3/16″ bit to drill the holes.
Insert the bolts and tighten. Depending on the wheels, there may be some adjustments to make. There are two considerations. The first is that the nuts need to be tight. The second is that space between the plate and the wheel might be limited, and tightening the nuts may slightly get in the way of the wheels turning. We tried several solutions; the best added a washer under the head of the bolt, on top of the scooter.
Bird Watching
BIRD WATCHING might seem difficult (or even boring), but we can assure you, it is not. Birds are everywhere—easy to spot and fun to observe. Most birders keep a life-list journal, a kind of bird diary, by writing down the birds they see. As you begin to bird, you can use a small spiral notebook to make a life-list journal for yourself, writing down the names of the birds you find, or sketching their distinguishing features so you can look them up in a bird identification book once you’re back home. All you need to go bird watching is a pair of binoculars, a good bird guidebook, comfortable clothes, your life-list journal—and some patience. Bird watching demands a certain kind of presence on the part of the birder: You must become a part of nature rather than stand outside of it. Here are eight common birds to start you off on a lifetime pursuit of bird watching.
American Robin
The American Robin is one of the most popular species of birds, a regular visitor to front porches and in backyards. The Robin can be seen throughout North America and is recognizable by its gray head, orange underbelly (usually brighter in the male), and distinctive crescents around the eyes. During breeding season, adult males grow eye-catching black feathers on their heads; after the season is over, the plumes fall out (just like their middleaged male human counterparts). The Robin’s song sounds like a whistled musical phrase, sometimes described as “cheerily, cheer up, cheer up.”
Cool facts:
The American Robin is the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin. And there is a Crayola crayon color named after the color of the eggs: Robin’s Egg Blue.
Blue Jay
The Blue Jay, a large crested songbird, is immediately recognizable by its characteristic bold blue coloring. Blue Jays are intelligent, resourceful, and adaptable. They can imitate the sounds of hawks, driving off competitors for their food, and have a reputation for stealing the eggs and nests of smaller birds during breeding season.
Cool facts:
Male and female Blue Jays look the same. Blue Jays living in captivity have shown themselves to be capable of using tools, grabbing strips of newspaper to rake in food pellets just outside their cages.
Chickadee
There are five species of Chickadee in North America: the most common, the Black-Capped Chickadee, is found all over North America; the Carolina Chickadee is found in the southeast; the Mountain Chickadee is found in the Rockies; the Chestnut-Backed Chickadee is found along the Pacific coast; and the Mexican Chickadee is found in Arizona, New Mexico, and west and central Mexico. Chickadees are smaller than sparrows and very acrobatic. The Chickadee has two characteristic calls: one that sounds like “cheeeeeese bur-gers” and one that gives them their name: “chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee.”
Cool facts:
The Black-Capped Chickadee hides seeds for later, and can remember thousands of hiding places. The bird’s seemingly simple calls are actually used to communicate sometimes complex information, such as identity or predator alerts, to other Chickadees.
Ruby-Throated Hummingbird
These tiny birds are the only species of hummingbird