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swan

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

April 18, 2024 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

There are so many fun facts about swan to turn a simple unit study into something more. Also, you’ll love my post How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan.

You could keep it simple, just focus on the swan, a variety of aquatic birds, or even expand into an entire pond unit study.

Swans are one of the most eye-catching aquatic birds, with their long, elegant necks and large size.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

They are found in temperate environments, preferring lowland and freshwater wetlands.

Also, they take to man-made artificial water sources such as reservoirs, gravel pits, ornamental lakes, and even canals.

We are creating a sweet but simple canvas swan “painting” with a pair of little hands and some paint.

Then you can also dive into fun facts about swans and check out my suggestions for more books and activities.      

Do you have swans in your area?

Take a few hours to go enjoy them in person and remember that processed white bread is not good for them.

If you want to feed these feathered friends take things like grains, vegetable matter, corn, chopped cabbage, spinach, frozen peas as well as swan and duck food pellets from a feed store.

Swan Books and Resources

Next, add some of these resources to your unit study.

7 Swan Quick Unit Study Resources

Read The Trumpet of The Swan as your read aloud during your study, it is a wonderful classic by E.B. White..

The Trumpet of the Swan

Like the rest of his family, Louis is a trumpeter swan. But unlike his four brothers and sisters, Louis can't trumpet joyfully. In fact, he can't even make a sound. And since he can't trumpet his love, the beautiful swan Serena pays absolutely no attention to him.

Louis tries everything he can think of to win Serena's affection—he even goes to school to learn to read and write. But nothing seems to work. Then his father steals him a real brass trumpet. Is a musical instrument the key to winning Louis his love?

Photo Credit: www.youtube.com

Needle Felting: The Swan

Challenge yourself to make this needlefelted swan next, a beautiful handiwork craft.

Photo Credit: www.thecrafttrain.com

Paper roll swan craft

These swans are particularly simple to create, the first time we made them was back when the girls were princess-obsessed preschoolers.

Photo Credit: backyardsummercamp.com

Origami Swan Step-by-Step Craft Tutorial

Create a paper wonder by following this Origami Swan Step-by-Step Craft Tutorial.

Photo Credit: www.youtube.com

Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake - The Kirov Ballet

Take in some of the beautiful music and dance of Tchaikovsky’s  SwanLake

White Swan Figurine Animals Figures Project Diorama Model

4PCS farm animals figures. Kid can use these plastic animals farm toys to build their own farm up. Farm sets for kids can bring happy.

Farm Animal figurines farm toys set made of environment friendly materials.Good quality and durable to deal with lots of play.

Swan Lake

A prince's love for a swan queen overcomes an evil sorcerer's spell in this fairy tale adaptation of the classic ballet

Next, look at these facts about swans.

7 Fun Facts About Swan

  1. Most swans are found in the northern United States, Canada, and Alaska.
  2. Swans can sleep on either land or the water. They can either sleep while standing on one leg or while they are floating in the water.
  3. All the mute swans in England and Wales are owned by the Crown of England.
  4. While you will most commonly see white swans there is also a black swan. Black swans are native to Australia and New Zealand.
  5. Baby swans are called cygnets, female swans are called Pen, and males are called Cob.
  6. The term ‘swan song’ comes from the ancient Greek belief that a swan sang a song of death when its life would end.
  7. Swans are very important to their aquatic ecosystems. They eat plants and small aquatic animals and help spread seeds and aquatic animal eggs by way of their feces. Their swimming stirs up sediment from the bottom to help circulate nutrients and support the health of plants and fish below the surface.
7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Too, another favorite resource we love is The Big Book of Birds.

It is a wonderful resource for all things bird, an oversized hardback it has a pretty two-page spread on swans and plenty of info on habits, nests, eggs, and habitats of birds in general.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Finally, look at how to create a hand print swan.

How to Create a Handprint Swan

You will need:

  • A canvas
  • 2 shades of blue craft paint
  • Green craft paint
  • White craft paint
  • Paintbrushes
  • Paint pens
  • A little hand
7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

First, choose two shades of blue and let your child paint the sky one shade and water at the bottom the other.

Don’t forget to have them paint the sides of the canvas the corresponding colors all the way around to finish it off.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Allow the paint to dry, if you want to speed up the process a bit you can use a blow dryer on low to get it to dry to the touch so you can get to the next step.

Paint your child’s hand entirely white and have them press it into the water portion thumbs up, if you want two swans like I have here paint the other hand and press it into the other side.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Use a paintbrush to create the rest of the curving neck.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Allow the swans to dry and use paint pens to add details like eyes, beaks, and wings.

You can also add in some details like grass and clouds.

Allow it to dry fully and it is ready to hang up.

7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

2 CommentsFiled Under: Hands-On Activities Tagged With: birds, handprint, hands-on, hands-on activities, life science, science, swan, waterfowl

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

November 4, 2023 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I’m excited to make this fun animal soap carving and a quick study on a swan. Also, look at this Free Bird Unit Study and Lapbook And Fun Edible Bird Nests.

Carving with soft soap bars is a great way to practice fine motor skills, safe knife skills, and is fantastic for relaxation.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

I chose to make this carving of a swan because they are such beautiful and graceful creatures and worked beautifully with the white soap.

Swans are birds found in wetlands, ponds, rivers, and lakes around the United States,

I am not going to just leave it there though, you will have tons of facts, resources, and more to help you with your own swan study before I am through.

First, look at these quick facts about swans.

8 Swan Facts

There is much to learn about swans whether they are a topic on their own or part of a larger study on lakes or ponds.

  1. There are both black and white species of swans. Black swans are found in southeast and southwest Australia as well as Tasmania, but white swans can be found throughout Canada, Northern United States, and Alaska.
  2. Male swans are called cobs, females are pens, and young are called cygnets.
  3. Swans choose a partner and stay together for their whole life. If their mate dies they will mourn for a while just like people and may or may not find a new mate.
  4. Swans can eat as much as eight pounds of food per day, they have big appetites and need to consume 20% to 25% of their bodyweight each day.
  5. While most mammals only have 7 neck vertebrae, swans have 24 or 25.
  6. Trumpeter swans are the largest waterfowl native to North America and they are also the heaviest flying birds in North America. Their wingspans can reach up to 10 feet wide and can weigh up to 30 pounds.
  7. Swans have a long lifespan, In the wild swans can live for over 20 years.
  8. Amazingly swans can sleep on land on one leg or while floating in the water.
How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Then, look at some bird resources or ideas for animal soap carvings.

More Bird Resources for a Fun Animal Soap Carving

  • How to Make a Chalk Pastel Bird Nest Easy Drawing
  • Galapagos Islands Animals Fun and Simple Watercolor Flamingo Tutorial
  • Peregrine Falcon Lapbook And Fun Unit Study Ideas
  • Free Homeschool Chicken Unit Study and Anatomy of an Egg Felt Activity & Worksheet
  • Make Way For Ducklings Fun Duck Pond Playdough Invitation to Play
  • How to Make an Easy Bird Craft Fun Paper Plate Peacock
  • Free Bird Journal – Hands-on Nature (Coloring & Identification Pages)
  • North American Robin Bird Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas
  • Bird Craft For Kindergarten Make an Adorable Fun American Robin Foot Print
  • Beautiful Bald Eagle Fun Facts And Torn Paper Bird Craft
  • Bird Unit Study and Lapbook And Fun Edible Bird Nests
  • Wildlife in the Amazon Rainforest – Create Fun Macaw and Toucan Crafts
  • How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft
  • How to Make a Kid’s Fun and Easy Bird Nest Activity
  • How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Your kids will love my Bird Unit Study and Lapbook And Fun Edible Bird Nests.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan
  • Dynamic Delightful Bird Lapbook for Multiple Ages

    Dynamic Delightful Bird Lapbook for Multiple Ages

    $4.00
    Add to cart

Also, here are more activities to learn about swan.

Swan Unit Study Activities

  • 7 Fun Facts About Swan | How to Create a Handprint Swan

Next, look at these resources for a study of a swan.

Resources for a Quick Study of Swans

7 Swan Quick Unit Study Resources

Read The Trumpet of The Swan as your read aloud during your study, it is a wonderful classic by E.B. White..

The Trumpet of the Swan

Like the rest of his family, Louis is a trumpeter swan. But unlike his four brothers and sisters, Louis can't trumpet joyfully. In fact, he can't even make a sound. And since he can't trumpet his love, the beautiful swan Serena pays absolutely no attention to him.

Louis tries everything he can think of to win Serena's affection—he even goes to school to learn to read and write. But nothing seems to work. Then his father steals him a real brass trumpet. Is a musical instrument the key to winning Louis his love?

Photo Credit: www.youtube.com

Needle Felting: The Swan

Challenge yourself to make this needlefelted swan next, a beautiful handiwork craft.

Photo Credit: www.thecrafttrain.com

Paper roll swan craft

These swans are particularly simple to create, the first time we made them was back when the girls were princess-obsessed preschoolers.

Photo Credit: backyardsummercamp.com

Origami Swan Step-by-Step Craft Tutorial

Create a paper wonder by following this Origami Swan Step-by-Step Craft Tutorial.

Photo Credit: www.youtube.com

Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake - The Kirov Ballet

Take in some of the beautiful music and dance of Tchaikovsky’s  SwanLake

White Swan Figurine Animals Figures Project Diorama Model

4PCS farm animals figures. Kid can use these plastic animals farm toys to build their own farm up. Farm sets for kids can bring happy.

Farm Animal figurines farm toys set made of environment friendly materials.Good quality and durable to deal with lots of play.

Swan Lake

A prince's love for a swan queen overcomes an evil sorcerer's spell in this fairy tale adaptation of the classic ballet

Finally, look how to make this fun animal soap carving.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving

A soft soap like Ivory carves nicely with simple tools like plastic knives and toothpicks.

It is a great size for small hands and makes a good new medium for an art project.

You will need:

  • Ivory soap bars
  • Toothpicks
  • Wooden Skewers
  • Carving tools-Dollar Tree (optional)
How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

First, open soap a few days ahead of when you are ready to use it and allow it to dry out for 2-5 days, the longer the better.

It makes a little less mess and is easier to work with than if you carve it straight out of the package.

Scratch off the name of the soap with your tools.

Use a toothpick or wooden skewer to lightly outline the shape of the swan on both sides of the soap.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Continue scraping away at the edges of the soap, removing the bulk of the soap that is not part of the design, going all the way from one side of soap to the other.

Going slow and easy will allow you to get more details and less mistakes.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Once you have removed the bulk of the excess material scratch details like feathers deeper into the wings and tail to create some texture by going in different depths and avoid using perfectly straight lines.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Be sure to do all sides of your swan with all the feathering.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Add details like eyes and the beak with a toothpick, do both sides.

Use a smooth rounded tool to rub the edges smooth and flat.

If your child wants to keep their soap, you can seal it with a good lacquer sealer to preserve it.

How To Make A Fun Animal Soap Carving & A Quick Study on A Swan

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Hands-On Activities Tagged With: animals, birdjournal, birds, crafts, elementary science, homeschoolscience, life science, science, spring, spring crafts, swan

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