Star Peck, the Next Generation
One thing about living with an unfamiliar alien species? Even with plenty of research and best laid plans, on this Journey to our First Egg: you can never be sure what to expect!
Week three arrived with a very real problem: the chicks were outgrowing the brooder, and fast.
As a professional procrastinator, I don’t like to start something before I need to. Whatever needs to be done now has my attention, but if it’s not needed ‘til next week then it will wait. I call that being efficient.
Tomato…. Tomahto….
So, knowing this about myself, I had made sure to ask in preparation for the chicks’ arrival: “how long should I expect them to stay in the brooder?”
They’ll be in there 4 – 6 weeks, I was told. Plenty of time before I’d need to build the coop!
The 3-week-old stretched-out pullets in front of me begged to differ!
Cue the Coop Crisis.
It’s not that they were uncomfortable, or cramped, but it had become obvious that they wanted to roam more than the brooder allowed. Having worked in cubicle before, I get it: four bare metal walls become pretty boring after a while.
Margaret, of course, was first to make a bold escape attempt (we like to think it was an exploratory mission). With more new feathers filling in their wings worked a little too well and it was clear our timeline had to speed up.
It was still chilly enough at night though, that we didn’t want them fully outside quite yet, so we compromised:
Their supervised yard time increased, and I kissed my 2-week buffer goodbye and got to work getting the coop set up… inside the garage.
So it goes!
Earning their Wings
Perches, stumps, and makeshift roosts had become very popular attractions in the brooder, and critical to developing their new skills. The chicks were constantly flapping and hopping to higher ground. Watching them stretch their wings, sometimes successfully, sometimes not, and tumble around was pretty funny, but we had to admire their determination!
They’re still small, still noisy, still in need of the heat lamp, but they’re determined to go up and out.
Their obvious curiosity is another reminder that growth doesn’t wait for you to be ready. Sometimes you just have to make space for it.
Margaret Hatcher, Born Leader & Star
If we didn’t already know Margaret was a star, this week confirmed it. She climbed higher, explored further, and struck more majestic poses than all her brood-mates combined. Her cool grey plumage (officially “blue,” but we won’t get pedantic) sets her apart visually, but it was her confidence and curiosity that earned her the name:
Margaret Hatcher, The Iron Chicken.
Don’t get the reference? Margaret Thatcher “The Iron Lady” was Britain’s first female Prime Minister, and the longest-serving British Prime Minister in the 20th century.
Love her or hate her, I think most agree that she was a force to be reckoned with. Determined and self assured, she was not afraid to stand alone and valued resolve over popularity.
It had initially been a bit of a tongue-in-beak (sorry, I had to!) joke but for some reason, the big name seemed to fit the little grey chick, and so it stuck.
What seemed like just a silly name has now inspired us to dig deeper into Margaret Thatcher – not just to find fun quotes to chicken-ify (turns out, there are PLENTY of gems) but to genuinely learn her history. We moved into some lighter material and started learning about other famous chickens: Chicken Little, Foghorn Leghorn, Camilla from the Muppets, Super Alfred Chicken… You forget just how many there are!
From there, we moved into just general fun facts about chickens: comparing how they’re different or the same from us and exploring concepts like omnivorous and diurnal.
I never knew how much I didn’t know about chickens!
… And Beyond
This free-association approach to learning is a favorite of ours as we round out our first year of homeschooling. Being able to branch out from one topic, especially if it’s something real like backyard chickens, and explore each facet from a different angle has proven to be a great way to get loads of unique curriculum ideas with built-in engagement. It’s easy to ignore worksheets, but it’s hard to ignore Margaret (or Spot, or Professor Peck, or Fluffy… all of them!).
So, with all this overflowing inspiration, in addition to these chicken stories I’ve also created Multi-Subject & Chicken-Themed Activity Sheets that parents can use to supplement their own homeschool curriculums and entertain their kids with some silly chicken facts.
I said I was a procrastinator, not an underachiever.
My goal is to release these Activity Sheets 4-pages at a time (plus Answer Keys, but no pecking… again, sorry) monthly. They’ll be FREE in the Prairie Tide Store for the first 2 weeks OR sign up for our mailing list to get them all sent directly to you (always free!). Plus you’ll be the first to know what other exciting tidbits we come up with.
Homeschool Notes: Daring to Ask “Could I?”
After just one year, something that has become crystal clear is that the most important aspect of homeschooling isn’t picking a curriculum or mastering time-blocking. It’s daring to ask: Could I do it?
Anyone who has asked themselves this question has already completed the first step. Parents creative enough to even wonder if their kids could get more value from a more flexible, practical, or curiosity-driven approach to education are already thinking outside the traditional box. That’s the heart of homeschooling.
Whether you’re here because school schedules don’t fit your life, because you’re disillusioned (to put it mildly) with standard outcomes, or because you believe your child might thrive with a little more freedom to explore, I’m glad you’re here because you are someone who wants to do better.
Hatcher’s Homeschool is here to support families like yours.
Prairie Tide Projects was always meant to be a space for dreamers and doers. With the addition of Hatcher’s Homeschool it’s found a purpose as a resource hub for families who believe that education can be unpredictable and deeply meaningful.
If you believe your child deserves more room to grow, question, and explore, just like our chicks, you’re already on your way. If you believe that sometimes all it takes is two hands, a brain, and a good attitude then I know you CAN do it.
Still not convinced? Let’s let Margaret Thatcher have the last word:
Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous, you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides.
Either way, it’s for you to decide! Take a lesson from the chickens, and cross that road!
Help us, help you!
Making connections is more important now than ever. If you enjoy this chicken-themed take on a homeschool journey, and want to keep up with the coop: sign up for the mailing list, get FREE activity sheets, and share it with a friend! Or check out our Partners page to see the other BIG THINKERS who are along on this journey.
