Corvids of field and folklore | Printable nature study pack

Explore British corvids through nature, intelligence, myth, art and autumn observation

A printable nature study, folklore and creative learning pack for mixed-age families. Corvids are familiar birds that become more intriguing the longer we watch them.

Crows remember faces. Jays hide thousands of acorns. Rooks build crowded nesting colonies, while jackdaws gather above rooftops in noisy groups. Ravens soar over hills and cliffs, carrying centuries of story behind their dark wings.

This printable pack explores Britain’s corvids through nature study, observation, science, folklore, poetry, art and creative activity. Families can learn how to recognise different species, listen for their calls, explore their remarkable memory and intelligence, and consider why these birds have gathered so many stories around them.

The pack meets the real birds first. It then follows them into old rhymes, myths, paintings, poems and legends.

There is no need to work through the pages in order or complete everything. Choose the parts that suit your family, return to favourite activities, or use the pack alongside autumn walks, birdwatching and nature journalling.

Meet Britain’s corvids. The pack introduces the eight corvids found in Britain:

• carrion crow
• hooded crow
• rook
• jackdaw
• raven
• magpie
• jay
• chough

An illustrated identification guide helps children compare colour, size, bill shape, eye colour and tail shape. The corvid voices section explores their calls and offers simple descriptions of what each sound might resemble.

Nature study pages explore:

• corvid families and social lives
• rookeries and communal roosts
• seasonal behaviour
• autumn gatherings and food stores
• communication and calls
• facial recognition
• memory and food caching
• tool use and problem-solving
• approaching and feeding wild corvids responsibly
• slowly building trust while allowing birds to remain wild

Children can complete a seven-day observation record, take a listening walk, watch seasonal behaviour and investigate the routines of local birds.

Intelligence, memory and problem-solving

Corvids are known for flexible and resourceful behaviour. This pack looks at how they recognise people, learn from one another, remember hidden food and approach unfamiliar problems.

It includes the story of the scientific mask experiments that showed crows remembering threatening faces for years, along with a careful discussion of whether crows really “hold grudges”.

The traditional fable The Crow and the Pitcher leads into a practical water-displacement experiment and a closer look at real corvid puzzle-solving.

Folklore, myth and old stories:

• the ravens of the Tower of London
• the legend of the six ravens
• Huginn and Muninn, Odin’s ravens of Thought and Memory
• the Morrígan and the battle-crow in medieval Irish literature
• the traditional magpie counting rhyme
• corvids in farming history
• sayings, phrases and collective nouns

These pages make space for uncertainty. Legends are not presented as proven history, and complex traditions are not reduced to tidy modern labels.

Poetry and art

The pack includes an excerpt from Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven, with child-friendly notes on its language, sound, repetition and atmosphere.

The art study explores Vincent van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Crows. Children can look closely at colour, brushstrokes, paths and mood before creating their own field beneath a changing sky.

Printable activities. Activities and worksheets include:

• easy corvid identification
• corvid listening walk
• seven-day observation record
• seasonal nature study
• Tower raven identity card
• Huginn and Muninn observation and memory activity
• create a corvid proverb
• invent a collective noun
• rewrite a legend from the bird’s point of view
• The Crow and the Pitcher science investigation
• further research prompts
• choose your own corvid investigation
• step-by-step drawing guidance
• drawing pages
• colouring pages

Younger children can take part through listening, drawing, counting, colouring and outdoor observation. Older children can explore animal intelligence, historical evidence, symbolism, literature and independent research.

Designed for mixed-age families, with simple activities for younger children and deeper folklore, discussion, and reflection for older children, teens, and adults.

For best printing results, open the PDF using 'Adobe Acrobat' - the reader app is free to download for all platforms. Select paper size 'A4' and a 'fit to page or printable area' option to avoid cropping when printing. Only print the pages you need to, to save ink.

📎Format: PDF download. 58 page pack. No physical item will be posted.

🖨️ Printing, usage & group licence

All content in this pack is © Sasha Jackson / Dartmoor Kin.



This is a personal and limited group-use resource. You are welcome to print it for your own family, class, group, or session, but the digital file must not be shared, uploaded, copied, resold, or redistributed. Full usage guidance is included inside the pack.

Thank you for respecting the time, creativity, and care that went into making this resource.