Four years and several months ago, our family made the decision to begin our homeschooling journey. At that point in time we lived in-town, in a quaint little neighborhood and enjoyed all the comforts that living in-town brought.
Almost three years ago, our family embarked upon a journey moving into the country, enjoying a simpler lifestyle and a slower pace of life while continuing our homeschooling studies.
One year and six months ago, our family decided to embark upon the journey of raising our own backyard flock of chickens while incorporating it into our homeschooling studies. The task at hand was to create a general knowledge and understanding of chickens within our family before we actually invested in a shelter, chickens, and our time. This was the easiest part of the whole venture.
We quickly turned to our local library for information on chickens. We also turned to the internet and to our local feed stores for even more information on the keeping, care and involvement needed to raise our fine feathered friends. Some of our favorite resources are Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens, Storey’s Guide of Basic Country Skills, Homeschool Shares’ Chicken Lapbook and of course our local feed store because they can really help you find a breed that will thrive in your own area.
After we compiled and learned every piece of information possible regarding the care and keeping of our fine feathered friends, it was time to decide upon a shelter. This is where dad came in and killed two birds with one stone. Dad held mini classes in organizing/planning, mathematics, selecting materials, building and well just good old fashioned quality time spent in the outdoors, as well as creating a shelter for our new flock.
After the shelter was built and we had proper accommodations, it was time to start selecting birds that we would be able to take care of and enjoy in every aspect. We had to also enjoy the cleaning up because without enjoyment or at least some enthusiasm for the cleaning up of the chickens, it won’t work. There is so much fun to be had with chickens but they also require a lot of cleaning so the birds do not become ill.
We chose Rhode Island Reds, Austrolorps, White Leg Horns, Red Sex Links, and Japanese Bantams. These were all breeds that we purchased from our local feed store and these breeds were well suited to our area. I must say that research goes a long way in the different breeds of chickens, as some breeds are more aggressive than others. When children are involved it is always best to know these things before someone gets hurt. All of our chickens are very calm or run-away from us and aggression is only shown to newcomers to the flock around our homestead.
After selecting the breeds you wish to take home and care for the fun begins. A great deal of care goes into raising young chicks but it is also very rewarding. We only lost two chicks that spring, which is very good.
Six months into our venture, we got our very first egg and the excitement of that day was like no other. We rejoiced in our efforts as our chickens produced food for us. It was an awesome feeling for not only me but for my children as well.
We continue to raise chickens, collect eggs, enjoy the antics of our fine feathered friends, sell our extra egg supplies, clean up after our chickens, track our expenses, and in general enjoy the privilege God has given us in caring for these chickens.
For those of you who live in town, keeping chickens has become more common place and many towns have a standard set of rules when it comes to having a backyard flock, including limiting homeowners to only raising pullets, therefore eliminating the annoying crows of the overbearing rooster. A small flock of six birds is more than sufficient for a backyard farmer wanting to enjoy fresh eggs and teach children the many different lessons associated with raising animals.
I am no expert on chickens. I am merely sharing what we have learned along the way through our journey of raising chickens and how we incorporated it into our homeschooling studies. We recommend starting small and working up as time, space and comfort is factored in. Most of all enjoy these creatures and all they offer because they are truly a lot of fun!
Amanda can be found over at All American Family collecting eggs and cleaning out the coop.
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We were able to watch our neighbors chickens for a week this summer while they were on holiday and it was the best experience for my kids. We did a lap book, got books from the library, kept a daily journal/observation chart and did many egg experiments. You brought back lots of good home schooling memories.
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Hi, very good idea raising chickens and using it to teach your children, I wish more people would raise their children to know where their food comes from. thanks Judy
We love our seven girls! We’ve kept a log book of all the eggs that we get each day so that we can see how many eggs each chicken has laid after a year. I’m hoping it will be a good graphing exercise and it’s fun to see who’s laid today’s breakfast…
We would love to be able to do this. My boys talk about it all the time.
But alas, chickens are illegal here. We couldn’t even own a pet chicken (or pot belly pig or anything like a farm animal).
So, instead of learning about raising animals, we learn about government’s role in our lives.
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