Bird House     

Figure nª 1

  Cut two pieces of wood that are 10cm by 15cm. These are the SIDE pieces. Numbers 1 and 2.

Cut a piece of wood that is 15cm by 15cm. These is the BASE of the bird house. Number 3.

 

Cut two pieces of wood that are 14cm by 12cm. These are for the ROOF. Numbers 4 and 5.

 

Cut two pieces of wood that are both 15cm by 22.5cm. These are for the FRONT and the BACK of the bird house. Numbers 6 and 7. See figure nª 2

 

Take piece number 6, the front of the house. Mark a point halfway along the 15cm edge. That's 7.5cm from the corner. Mark another point 7.5cm from the same corner, but along the other edge. Join these two marks with a line. Cut along this line. Repeat this with the opposite side.

 

Repeat step 5 with piece number 7.

 

Now we are going to make a hole in the middle of the front piece. Find the middle of the rectangular part of piece number 6. Use your compass. Set it at 3cm. Place the point in the centre of the rectangle and use it to draw a circle of diameter  6cm.

 

Drill a hole in the centre of this circle.

 

Cut out the circle using a saw.

 

Use sandpaper to make the wood smooth and get rid of the splinters. Remember to follow the grain of the wood so you don't scratch it.

 

Use a hammer and nails to fix together the different parts of the bird house. You can use glue if you prefer. Or you can use glue first and hammer some nails in later.

 

Coat the house with plastic to protect it from bad weather.

Decorate your bird house. Think carefully about the colours you use. This house is for birds. You want birds to use it. If you use very bright colours the birds will be frightened away. Think like a bird. Use natural colours. Perhaps you can paint leaves or flowers on it.