Written by Mary Britton-Simmons

Little Masters Club is a non-profit group that seeks to help “children discover their potential and develop the skills to be successful adults.” The focus is on parents and children learning together and creating community with others who speak Chinese. This was evident during the two days that volunteers from the Youth Education Committee (YEC) spent with them.

Students participating in Little Masters Club

The weather on September 29 cooperated and allowed students to play a migration game outside in preparation for a presentation on migration. The roll of the dice determined whether the child encountered a tail wind and moved spaces ahead or ahead wind that sent the participant back three spaces. The challenge of avoiding tall buildings and of finding food helped them to understand why so many migratory birds die.

A volunteer introduced parents and their children to five Eastside Audubon Society mounts of migrating birds. A better audience could not have been found, despite standing room only. They listened intently to information on migration triggers, communication on the wing, routes and tracking devices. They battled Hurricane Gert with the Whimbrel Hope as she fought for survival flying from the Canadian Sub Arctic to Cape Cod.

A week later, the group joined YEC volunteers at Juanita Bay Park to find and identify migrating birds. We were a bit early to see many ducks so we invited them back in the spring to search for warblers and other birds on their journey to or through the region.

Reaching out to diverse communities such as the Little Masters Club should be a top priority for EAS as we seek to bring the wonder of birds to others, and at the same time, enrich our membership.