“Looking for a place to go this fall break? Grade 3 students went to Avifauna last week to launch their science unit on Adaptations. What is Avifauna? Read these articles by Grade 3 students to find out!” - Kat Millar, Grade 3 Teacher

By York, Grade 3 student

Do you know where a good place to go is this vacation? I know, it is Avifauna! It’s a great place for families. Last week Grade 3 took a field trip to Avifauna. It is in Alphan aan de Rijn. It is only 30 minutes by car from ASH.  Avifauna is a bird park. There is a bird show daily. You will see birds swooping over your head as they explain about different birds. They show you how flamingos sit in the water and other birds grab food from midair. One bird takes up to 2 hours to get its food from an ostrich egg. You can see them feeding pelicans and penguins. There are other animals to see too, like red pandas. On each bird cage, it tells you information, like if they are endangered or not. 

Lori Landing is another place to visit at Avifauna. This is where you can feed the birds. It costs one euro. The loris land all over you to get the nectar. They can scratch you. One thing you may want to look out as they can poo on you! I advise you to keep your arms out straight so they can land on you.

Your kids will really enjoy the playground at Avifauna. It has the biggest slide in Holland. It also has the eagle's nest. To do this you go with a partner to pull yourself up to the eagle’s nest. Then you let go of the rope and drop. There are also go-carts to race and boats too. Be careful on the hamster wheel! If you go too fast you may go upside down in a 360 loop!

I hope you go to Avifauna someday. It is a great place to learn about birds and have fun!

By Faye, Grade 3 student 

Did you know that there are more than 18,000 species of birds in the world? In Avifauna you will see some of them. Avifauna is a park. It is located in Alphen aan de Rijn. It takes about 30 minutes to get there from ASH. 

In Avifauna you will find all types of birds. There are beautiful parrots, cute penguins, sunny parakeets, and lots of other birds. You will find birds in the tropical rainforest in a warm rainforest enclosure. The is a lake for penguins and rocky hills for eagles. There are also other animals such as striped lemurs, red pandas, and more. 

If you like to feed birds, then you should go to Lori Landing. For 1 euro you can buy a cup of yummy nectar for the birds. If you are sensitive and don’t want to have birds landing on you, you can watch through the window. One piece of advice; wear a hat because they might poop on your head! If they do though, remember it is good luck.

Another thing to do at Avifauna is visit the humongous playground. There you will find a tower with slides to go down. There are boats that you can ride and go-carts to steer. The eagle’s nest is a tall tower where you drop down and there is a bouncy place where you can do tricks. And there is so much more! There is also a cafe with things you can eat and, if it is sunny, you can sit outside at the tables.

If you really enjoy Avifauna, you can go to the souvenir shop near the entrance. There are big stuffies that you might like. There are also fantastic decorations. If you want to put something on your bag, there are keychains. 

As you can see, Avifauna is a great place to go!