Living and Learning with the Birds Who Share Our Place 

Boorloo📍

This project unfolded through children’s deepening curiosity about the birds we share our space with. What began as moments of noticing grew into sustained inquiry as children explored the many varieties of birds who visit and live in our environment. Questions emerged about bird families, with children making connections to their own family structures, routines and relationships, often speaking about birds as if they were part of their everyday social world. 

Birds began to appear as active participants in play, with children inviting them into stories, movement and conversation. In this way, birds were not only observed but also related to, spoken with, and woven into daily experiences. 

Through looking closely and listening deeply, children developed wonder, questioning and responsive thinking. This inquiry supported a sense of belonging within a shared more-than-human world, where birds became familiar presences in everyday life. 

This learning was enriched through connections with Noongar language, the language of Traditional Custodians of this Country, as children engaged with bird names and sounds that carry cultural knowledge, story and deep relationship to place.