Lesson Plan: The Great Bird Poop Disaster/How to Solve the Bird Poop Problem

Essential Questions

• How can the actions of humans affect animals? 
• When a problem affects many people, who is responsible for solving it?

Literature Connection

• Novel: Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
• Graphic nonfiction: World Without Fish by Mark Kurlansky and Frank Stockton

Activate Prior Knowledge (5 minutes)

Ask students if they’ve ever seen a sign that says “Do not feed the birds” at a park or another public place. Discuss why humans are advised to refrain from doing such a thing. How might not feeding birds be beneficial to birds? How might it be beneficial to humans? Encourage students to make predictions and to keep these predictions in mind as they read the articles.

Preview Text Features (15 minutes)

Guide students to locate the articles. Then preview the text features by asking the following questions:

• Read the title of the first article. Based on the images you see along with the title, do you think bird poop is causing a true disaster, or is the word disaster used in a playful way? Sample answer: The word disaster seems to be used in a playful way. Unlike a true disaster, like an earthquake or a hurricane, that can wreak havoc on a city,  problems caused by bird poop are probably not as serious. The images support this idea. The pigeon saying, “Oops! Did we do that?” suggests a sense of lightheartedness.
• Read the title and subtitle of the second article and predict how the focus of this article will be different from that of the first. Sample answer: This article seems to focus on solutions to the bird poop problem. The first article seems to give information about the problem by focusing on one city (Rome) in particular.
• Look at the image of people cleaning a city street and read its caption. Why is it important to keep streets clear of bird poop? Bird poop, combined with dead leaves, creates slippery roads that can lead to traffic accidents.

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Point out the vocabulary box. Read the terms (skidded, menaced, corrosive, overpopulation, predator) aloud and discuss their definitions.
• Play the Vocabulary Slideshow.

Make a Plan for Reading

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan: 

• Set a purpose for reading by telling students that the articles discuss why bird droppings cause problems in cities and what can be done to solve these problems. 
• Tell students that after they read, they’ll synthesize information from the two articles to understand what causes excessive amounts of bird poop in cities and how cities have dealt with the problem in the past.

Guide students to read the articles. Once they understand them well, discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (20 minutes)

• Reread the first three paragraphs of the first article. Why do you think author Anna Starecheski waits until the third paragraph to reveal that “the cause was bird poop”? (author’s craft) Starecheski likely waits to reveal that the cause was bird poop to create suspense. She is also setting the reader up for a surprise; most people probably don’t think that bird poop could cause cars to skid off roads. This surprise grabs the reader’s attention—he or she will want to know how bird poop could have caused such chaos. 
• What is the central idea of the section “Danger From Above”? (central idea) The central idea of this section is that bird poop is corrosive and that large amounts of it can cause serious problems.
• The author explains that birds like pigeons and starlings thrive in cities. What makes cities such easy places for birds to live? (cause and effect) According to the article, cities make ideal homes for birds because there aren’t many wild animals to hunt them, there are many places to nest, and there is plenty of food. 
• Why might New York City have decided to release hawks in one of its parks? (synthesizing) In “The Great Bird Poop Disaster,” we learn that part of the reason bird poop is such a problem in cities is that there are too many birds. One reason there are so many birds in cities is that, unlike in the wild, birds have few predators there. Releasing hawks in a New York City park could help control the pigeon population by introducing a predator into the pigeons’ environment.

Critical-Thinking Questions (10 minutes)

• Based on both articles, what role have humans played in creating the bird poop problem? (drawing conclusions) According to both articles, humans have contributed greatly to the bird poop problem. In “The Great Bird Poop Disaster,” the author explains that there are many birds in cities because humans have created a wonderful home for birds. In “How to Solve the Bird Poop Problem,” we learn that bird populations could be reduced if people stopped feeding birds. 
• Which of the ideas in “How to Solve the Bird Poop Problem” do you think is likely to be most effective? Which do you think is the kindest to birds? Why? (critical thinking) Answers will vary. 

• Have students work in pairs or small groups to complete our Synthesizing Skill Builder.  (Click here to view all of your Skill Builders.)
• Writing Prompt: Imagine that your city is dealing with a major bird poop problem. Come up with an idea of your own for how to reduce bird poop in your city. Then write a letter to your city council in which you explain why your idea would be successful.