In this video, Gina from The Autism Helper demonstrates a quick, low‑cost holiday craft that families and educators can do virtually or in‑person: building an edible bird feeder (or bird house) using graham crackers, peanut butter, and birdseed. She emphasizes using common household items, optional tools like a hot‑glue gun, and flexible adaptations such as gingerbread houses. Throughout the activity she models inclusive teaching practices: highlighting core language words (especially “on” and “more”) on a visual or assistive‑technology board, using hand‑over‑hand assistance, turn‑taking cues, and sensory‑rich, messy play. Gina provides concrete tips for setting up visual supports (e.g., pipe‑cleaner markers on a core board), prompting language during each step, and extending the activity outdoors to observe birds. The overall tone is enthusiastic and supportive, encouraging families to enjoy the process regardless of messiness or imperfections.
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Hi everyone, this is Gina from The Autism Helper. I wanted to show you today a really fun, quick, and easy holiday activity for the winter that you can do with your child or your students over virtual learning or in person in classroom. So what I have for you today is a bird feeder. Of course, it's not finished yet. We're going to do that together, but I figured, um, working with a lot of families online and virtually, um, I try to use a lot of supplies that maybe they have at home. Maybe most likely they have some graham crackers, some peanut butter, and then a couple other things they may not have, but still easy to obtain if they are interested in this activity. So what you'll need are some graham crackers, your choice of peanut butter, a popsicle stick or a knife. My dog's joining me because he likes the peanut butter. And some kind of bird seed. You can find this at the Dollar Tree, a huge bag for a dollar. And I do prefer a hot glue gun. However, for this activity, you're just having fun with your kid. It's okay if it falls down, so it doesn't have to be completely sturdy. You can also do this with gingerbread houses. So if you have an extra gingerbread house and you don't have any extra candy and you want to make it with the bird seed, you can do that too and set it out for the birds. So make sure you always have some type of visual or your child's assistive technology device, any core language board, whatever they're using. I like to do this with my parents where I highlight The word on the board, of course we're going to use more words than what's highlighted, but if we're really targeting certain words like "on" and "more" in this activity, I like to put a little marker on it. These are just pipe cleaners that I cut up real quick, taped on, very easy so that the parent can, and me, can easily remember where the word is because I think sometimes we get a little nervous, you know, performing on the core board and not knowing where the symbols are and stuff like that. So If you're not as familiar with this, that's a great tip. Just give it a little highlight. So we're gonna work on the words "on" and "more," okay? So obviously I've put some of it together for you. I'm gonna kind of show you a little down here. So what you want to do is take your little graham cracker square, and like I said, I've already got some of it finished, and I just have one little side. So you can give your child the graham cracker and say, "We're gonna put the peanut butter on the graham cracker. And then you can go ahead and you don't have to give them a ton of peanut butter. That way you can use the word "more." But you're just going to help them hand over hand, whatever you need to do. It's okay if it gets messy. It's okay if they eat it and lick it. We're at home or wherever you are. And then you're just going to go ahead and kind of glue it on. And that's when we can use those words. On the house. Put it on the house. And then maybe you gave them just a tiny bit of peanut butter and you can say, "Oh, do you need some more peanut butter?" and have them tap more or sign more. Just keep looking at that visual. And then you're just gonna take some more peanut butter and smear it on the sides. And of course, it might break a little bit, it might fall down. That's okay. You can use words like, "Uh-oh!" or "Oh no!" All those exclamatory words, that's really fun. Then you can say, "Okay, we need some birdseed." Then you're just gonna take your birdseed and you're gonna put it on the sides. So really, really, really messy, fun, sticky. It's okay again if you get your fingers messy or if they put it in their mouth. That's okay. Maybe you only give them a little dish with a few items like a little bit of birdseed and they've run out. So you say, "Oh, do you need some more birdseed?" "Okay, put it on," and stuff like that. Or, "My turn." Maybe you're practicing some turn-taking. "My turn to put on the birdseed." And you're just going to keep repeating that all the way around your birdseed house. And then you can just put it outside somewhere for all the squirrels and animals to join and have your child do that with you so they can learn about the outdoors and feeding birds. You can check on it, see if it's gone, maybe something else got it, and just have fun. And happy holidays, everyone!
