Teen Outdoors

We are so happy to see the sun is back out and the temperature is up, so for today's activity we are going to take advantage!

Today we are challenging you to a City of Binghamton Outdoor Scavenger Hunt.

So, grab your parents, siblings, or any other quarantine buddy you may have, and get outside. We have put together a list of outdoor items that you can find on a walk around your neighborhood!

I'm on the look out for the perfect rocks to do a little painting later or a tree that is in bloom for Spring!

How many items on our list can you find? There are a possible 17 points to get for your hunting skills.

With another hot day, comes a new activity to do outside! Remember to always keep water to drink on hand as well, in order to stay hydrated.

Today we have a Water bomb tutorial, as well as a game to play with them! They are super easy to make, and can be used in a bunch of different ways, so get thinking...

To make these, you'll need about 9 sponges, cotton string or elastic hair ties, and scissors.

1. Cut each of your sponges into 4 equal pieces

2.Take 4 sponge pieces and lay them side by side and stack 4 more directly on top of them (two layers)

3. Take a piece of string (or your hair tie) and tie around all the sponge pieces. Make sure to pull the string very tight and knot it.

4. Cut off the excess string

You are now ready to dip these into your buckets of water and throw them around - they will keep you cool during these hot days!

GAME: Water bomb toss is a game that only requires two (or more!) people, two buckets filled with cool water, and your new water bombs. Each player will kneel behind their bucket, and the other player will attempt to throw their water bombs into their opponent's bucket. The player who lands the most water bombs into the other's buckets, wins!

Happy Thursday! Have a few hours to spend outside? Why don't you build a...

Pool Noodle Obstacle Course!

Materials:

1. Multiple pool noodles

2. Tape

3. Scissors

4. Wooden dowels or pencils (to hold noodles in the ground)

First things first - count how many pool noodles you have to use. It is better if you plan out your course beforehand, to make sure you have enough material.

The circles will take one noodle - you can bend your noodle and tape the ends together. You can practice throwing a ball through. Bigger structures will take more than one pool noodle, so plan it out!

The best part about this activity is that you can make your obstacle course look HOWEVER YOU WANT!

Make obstacles to crawl under, climb over, run through, jump on... the possibilities are endless.

Make your obstacle course more difficult by timing the competitors

Missing the fun of summer carnivals and fairs? You can set up your own similar games right in your backyard!

Water Gun Races:

1. String

2. Duct tape

3. Plastic cups

4. Scissors

5. Squirt guns

First, you will need to decide where you will have these races. The string must be hung between two points, and pulled so there is little to no slack in the line. Find your perfect spot, and only tie up one end. If you have nothing to attach the string to, use chairs or ladders, anything that will remain still while playing.

With parental supervision, poke a small hole into the bottom of your plastic cup(s), and put the string through it. Tie the other end up, and your course is ready to go! You may want to secure your ties with tape, just to make sure they do not come loose.

To play, have each of your players aim their squirt guns into the cup, to push them to the other end.

To make this even more fun and challenging, you can have the players:

Use their non-dominate hand to shoot, hop on one foot, play with one eye closed or covered, add a marble or quarter in each cup to make them heavier and harder to move.

They could also play in teams of two, having the player with the squirt gun blindfolded, the other player tells the blindfolded player where to squirt the squirt gun. Have them change places and play the course from end to beginning.

If you have a large group of kids, time how long it takes for each of them to complete the course. Then compare everyone’s times to see who the winner is! You can also choose to play in teams instead of individuals. The possibilities are endless.

PLEASE REMEMBER: used and broken water balloons are hazardous materials for local wildlife who confuse them for food and are considered trash. Please be respectful and mindful of the outdoors by picking up and disposing of your water balloon trash into a garbage can!

the Binghamton Parks and Recreation department has compiled a list of our favorite water games to play in the sun.

Here are some suggestions:

1. "Water bomb tag:" All you need is a sponge (or water balloons) and a bucket of water to play this one. Someone is "it" and they are given the bucket and the sponge or water balloons. They then have to throw the sponge until it hits another player, who is then "it". A cool twist on tag.

2. "Pop goes the water balloon:" You'll need water balloons for this activity. Have all players stand in a row or a circle. Using a timer or music, let the group pass the water balloon around. Whoever is holding the balloon when the time stops will have to break it on themselves, and then they are out. A new round will then begin.

3. "Fill-the-bottle relay:" Have one player sit on the ground with a water/ soda bottle on their head. The other players will attempt to fill up the bottle on the other player's head using a plastic drinking cup and a bucket of water. Make it a relay and the first team of two that fills up their bottle wins (bigger the bottle, the bigger the challenge, or using a sponge to fill the bottle instead of a drinking cup)

4. "Frozen feet:" Have players sitting with their feet in a bucket of water. At the sound of the start, the judge will dump a container of ice into the water bucket. Each player will attempt to pull as many ice cubes from the water using only their feet. Person with the most ice out at the end of the timer is the winner

5. "Pop goes the water balloon (with a twist): For this one, you will need a bucket of water balloons. Before filling them, use a pin to poke a small hole in each balloon. Then have the players toss the balloon around until it is empty or pops - the one holding the balloon when this happens is out!

8. "Water balloon volley:" You’ll need a bucket full of water balloons for this game. Divide players into two teams and pair them up. Each pair of players gets a beach towel and each child holds two corners of the towel. One pair begins the game by placing a water balloon in the center of their towel. The object is to toss the balloon from one pair of kids to another, with the opposing side catching the balloon in their towel.This can be played with a net, or simply pace off a distance between opposing teams.

It seems as though the rain never stops around here, so today's activity is going to help us see how much rain we get this season:

DIY Rain Gauge

You will need:

1. A bottle, mason jar, old glass container (tip - something with some weight, like glass, works better to hold up in the wind)

2. A ruler

3. A permanent marker

4. Paint, markers, other decorations (optional)

If using a water bottle, cut the top off so you have a large opening. If using a jar, discard the lid - you won't need it.

Using your ruler, measure and mark increments up your container with the permanent marker (we did quarter inches)

Let the marker measurement dry, decorate your jar how you wish, place outside somewhere with full view of the sky, and you have a homemade rain gauge.

Can anyone record how much rainfall Binghamton will get in one week?

Each geographical location has its own unique set of birds that inhabit it, so let's learn more about the birds of Binghamton.

When watching:

1. Be observant, using eyes and ears to find birds in all the different habitats. Birds can be found on the ground foraging for food, taking shelter in shrubs or trees, flying across the yard or high up in the sky!

2. Take note of size, shape, colors and patterns, songs and calls, behaviors and habitats of birds.

3. Be aware of repeat observations during your count period. Try not to double-count moving birds in your tallies

Attached to this post is a list of local birds, as well as a sheet that can be printed and filled out in order to track which birds you are seeing.

If you prefer to do this virtually there is an app called eBird that will send your tracking to Cornell University. You will have to make an account on the app to submit your observations.

No matter which way you submit, all observations that are sent in are used to better understand global bird populations

How many different birds can you find? If you find a bird that you want to know more about, Cornell University has a great site where you can type in a bird species, and it will give you a ton of interesting facts! Check it out at:

All About Birds Cornell

Did you know you can make a great home for a new plant out of a plastic water bottle?

Plastic Bottle Planters:

1. Plastic water bottle - any size will work

2. Ruler

3. Scissors or Xacto knife (be careful!)

4. Small piece of fabric or cheesecloth

5. Rubber bands

6. Paint or other decorations (optional)

1. Mark 1/2 way on the bottle, at cut at the mark (it does not have to be exact, just close to the middle).

2. Take the cap off and use the cloth to cover the mouth of the bottle. Secure the fabric with the rubber band around the neck of the bottle.

*Tip - now would be the time to decorate the inside of the bottle with non-toxic paint! Make sure to let the paint dry before moving on.*

3. Take the top half of the bottle and fill it with dirt about half way up.

4. Take a small plant/seed and put it on top of the dirt. Take more dirt and fill in around the edges. Make sure you have about 1″ of space above the dirt to the top of the container.

5. Put the top 1/2 of the bottle into the bottom 1/2. You can add three or four hole on the bottle, use wire/string to make it into a hanging planter!

What will you plant this spring?

You can create birdfeeders in all shapes and sizes when you mold them.

You’ll need:

1. Cookie cutters – any shape!

2. 2 packets of flavorless gelatin mix

3. Boiling water

4. Birdseed

5. String or ribbon

6. Straws

Boil as much water as two packets of flavorless gelatin call for. Mix the gelatin together until dissolved.

Add enough birdseed to your gelatin mixture so there is no excess liquid at the bottom of your bowl. Cover a tray with parchment paper and place your cookie cutters on it.

Fill the molds with the birdseed gelatin mixture, one tablespoon at a time. Make sure you are overfilling the molds. as it will help them keep their shape. When completely filled, press down on top of them with parchment paper, to flatten out your shapes.

Stick your straw into the spot where the string will go. Let the molds sit with the straws in them overnight, or until hardened

The next morning, taking the straws out, tie your string through the hole, and you can hang these little feeders anywhere!

Kids will love this project, and if you don’t have a lot of cookie cutters on hand you can use mason jar lids or anything that will create a mold.

This bird feeder is easy to make, and you most likely have all the materials to make it around the house. A plastic soda bottle and a couple of wooden spoons makes a great bird feeder.

You’ll need:

1. A plastic bottle

2. Wooden spoons

3. Scissors

4. Decorations (optional)

To make this bird feeder, you just have to make holes in the bottle for the spoons and be sure that you angle the spoons downward so that the bird feed will drizzle onto them.

The one we made had two spoons, but the possibilities are endless.

Today, July 8th, 2020 is National Blueberry Day! The weather looks a little down today, but HERE is a link for places you can go in the surrounding area to pick blueberries.

Each location has certain rules, availability and times surrounding COVID-19 so be mindful of them.

Getting outside and enjoying this beautiful weather we have upcoming these next few days is a fun and great way to spend time with those you wish to invite. The more you pick the more you have to celebrate.... National Blue Berry Muffin Day on July 11th, 2020! Who doesn't love a warm blueberry muffin in the morning, or the afternoon, or in the evening, or as a midnight snack... lets be honest blueberry muffins are great anytime of day! HERE is a link for "To Die For Blueberry Muffins" ….

Happy Blueberry-ing