Cardinal Craft Activity

Background: The cardinal was named West Virginia's official state bird with the adoption of House Resolution 12 on March 7, 1949, which authorized pupils from public schools and civic organizations to name the bird. Even though the state of Virginia (1607) was founded before the state of West Virginia (1863), when it comes to state birds, West Virginia adopted the cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) in 1949 before Virginia (1950). The cardinal was named by early American settlers, for Catholic cardinals who dress in bright red robes. The male cardinal can be easily-spotted with its red coloring. This songbird has a loud, whistle-like call/song. Cardinals are strongly territorial, living in open woodlands and they do not migrate.

1.Paint the pinecone and small, wooden ball red. 2.Sprinkle red glitter on the pinecone while the paint is still wet. 3.Let the paint dry.

1.Glue the ball to the pinecone. This may work best with the glue gun and glue sticks. Make sure an adult is in charge of these step. You may wish to have this step done before the kids arrive. 2.Cut pieces of felt to make two wings, a tail feather, and a small beak for the bird.

3.Cut the brown pipe cleaner in half. Then cut 1.5” off the bottom of each piece. Twist the remaining piece of pipe cleaner around the middle of 1.5” piece to create a “Y” shape for the bird’s feet. Make two legs/feet for the bird.

4.Using the craft glue, add the wings and tail feather to the pine cone. 5.Glue the legs to the pinecone.

6.Using the black paint or permanent marker, make two eyes on the wooden ball as well as make a larger black circle where the beak will go. If you use paint, it may take a little while to dry. 7.Glue the felt beak on the black circle. 8.Cut a small piece of twine. Make a loop by knotting the twine. This will be used to hang the bird. Make the loop an appropriate size for where you plan to hang it. 9.Glue the twine onto the top of the pinecone to hang the bird. Since the bird will be hanging from this loop, you may wish to use the glue gun again on this step to make sure it is really secure.

References: State Symbols. Available at: Official State Symbols of West Virginia. Available at: Cardinals. Enchanted Learning. Available at: nalprintout.shtml nalprintout.shtml West Virginia State Bird. Available at: Christmas Bird Ornament. Available at: ornament.html ornament.html How-To Pinecone Cardinal. Martha Stewart. Available at: