3. Every year the RSPB asks children across the UK to count the birds in their school grounds

4. Why do you think the RSPB asks for your help?

5. Create a ‘picture’ of how birds are doing across the UK. If we know that the bird population is healthy and you see lots of birds during your Birdwatch, it tells us that the rest of our wildlife is doing well too. The Big Schools’ Birdwatch helps the RSPB to...

6. Record birdwatching data and compare it to earlier years so we can spot any trends or changes. Identify and help species that are in trouble. In previous years the RSPB noticed a dramatic decline in house sparrows and starlings.

7. Last year nearly 75,000 children from 2,000 schools took part..........and the blackbird, starling and black headed gull topped the charts!

8. How can you tell which type of bird it is?

9. Identification skills Ways to tell different birds apart Look at the size and shape of their beak What colour are their feathers? What are their legs and feet like? What size and shape is the bird? Listen to, and try to remember their song

10. Can you identify any of these birds?

11. Blackbird

12. Chaffinch

13. Robin

14. Great tit

15. Greenfinch

16. Mallard

17. Illustrations by Andy Hamilton and Mike Langman. Photographs by Ray Kennedy, Andy Hay, Ben Hall and David McHugh (all rspb-images.com) Sounds © British Library Help to give nature a home by making this Big Schools’ Birdwatch the biggest yet!

18. The RSPB is the country’s largest nature conservation charity, inspiring everyone to give nature a home. RSPB Wildlife Explorers and RSPB Phoenix are the junior and teenage memberships of the RSPB.