Bird Beak Adaptations Game

Students use household tools to simulate bird beaks and compete for different types of “food.” By testing which beaks are best for which foods, players explore how beak shape is an adaptation for survival and how birds reduce competition by filling different ecological niches.

1. Gather a set of tools (tweezers, spoons, clothespins, chopsticks) to represent bird beaks, plus cups to represent bird stomachs.
2. Choose 4–5 items to serve as different “foods” (marbles, dried beans, rubber bands, string, rocks, etc.).
3. Mark a feeding zone on the floor with string, tape, or rope.
4. Each player selects a beak tool and a stomach cup.
5. Scatter one type of food in the feeding zone.
6. Make predictions about which beak will work best for that food.
7. Start music and allow birds to “feed” by collecting food with their beaks and placing it in their cup. Stop after 90 seconds or when food is mostly gone.
8. Count and record how much food each beak collected.
9. Repeat with other food types, and then play a final round with all foods mixed together.
10. Discuss results: Which beak worked best for each food? How did this affect survival?

Bird Beak Adaptations Game 🐦‍⬛ Fun Science with Ms. Shelley | Kindergarten Grade NGSS - Ms Shelley's Science Show:

Super Science: Bird Beak Adaptations Activity - Staten IslandMuseum:

📄 BIRD BEAK BUFFET - Pacific Science Center: https://pacificsciencecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/cah-bird-beak-buffet-K-2.pdf

• Play multiple rounds with different food combinations to simulate changing environments.
• Add rules that mimic environmental challenges (wind blowing food, limited time, or competition from a “predator”).
• Extend by matching real bird beaks to their foods using cards or magazine cutouts.
• Go outdoors for a “beak hunt” to observe and sketch real bird beaks and guess their functions.

• Play in a safe space where players won’t slip on scattered food items.
• Supervise young children to prevent swallowing small food items (beans, marbles).
• Use care with sharp tools (e.g., metal tweezers); substitute safer options for younger participants.
• Clean up thoroughly after the game.

• Which beak tool was most successful for seeds, worms, or insects? (Answers depend on food and tool type—e.g., tweezers for string “worms,” spoons for marbles or beans.)
• How does this activity show why birds have different beak shapes? (Beaks are adaptations for specific food sources.)
• What might happen if all birds in the same habitat ate the same food? (Intense competition; some birds would not survive.)
• How does this game connect to Darwin’s observations of finches in the Galapagos Islands? (Beak variations helped finches survive on different food sources, demonstrating natural selection.)
• What environmental changes might make one beak more useful than another? (Droughts or seasonal changes affect food availability, shifting which beak types are favored.)