Five Reasons Easter Chicks May Be the Perfect Educational Gift

There's probably not a child alive in the U.S. today who hasn't begged for a baby chick for Easter. As with any pet, responsible parents shouldn't give in and buy a chick just because it's cute. Families need to ensure that they have the means to care for the animal properly as it grows and the newness wears off. Peeps start off fluffy and cute, but in a few short weeks they become hens or roosters, requiring proper housing and containment other than a small box or cage. But does that mean chicks are a bad idea for Easter gift-giving?

Absolutely not!

If you have the space and time, raising a few baby chicks with your children can be a fun, educational experience. Make sure to check local zoning laws before buying chicks. While you should definitely read up before acquiring chickens, they're not difficult to care for. You can start your research with Straight Poop on Keeping Backyard Chickens.

Five Educational Experiences While Raising Chicks

Chickens make especially good pets for children who are home schooled, because they offer plenty of learning opportunities. Use these five learning opportunities to teach kids geometry, carpentry, science, and more while they enjoy their pet chickens:

1. Young chicks must be kept in controlled heat conditions under a brooder lamp, with a gradual decrease in temperature over a period of days as they start to feather. Having the kids keep track of temperature and climate conditions for the chicks is great classroom material.

2. Chickens must be kept safe from predators and inclement weather. Building a chicken coop is fodder for lessons on math and geometry as well as carpentry.

3. Breeding chickens to produce fertile eggs is curriculum for studying biology, math, and genetics. Hatching your own eggs requires strict temperature control, turning at regular intervals and watching for hatchlings to appear after a certain number of days - all lessons in responsibility, with real-life consequences for not following through.

4. If you have enough chickens, selling extra eggs can introduce your kids to customer service and simple business practices.

5. Raising chickens for meat, eggs, or both teaches sustainability, cooking skills, and respect for the land and environment. Chickens eat scraps from your kitchen and produce fertilizer for your garden which in turn feeds your family and your flock, and the cycle continues, teaching kids how ecosystems function.

Even on a small scale, chicken farming requires forethought and a bit of research, but the benefits gained from such an experience can be very rewarding to both parents and children. If you can't see beyond the cute balls of fluff and commit to the long haul, say no to your children and stick with the peeps in the candy aisle. However, if you can envision those chicks providing food and fun for your family beyond the Easter holiday, give it some consideration and perhaps a maybe instead.

Starting with six young pullets, Marie Anne's little flock has grown to nine laying hens plus six new chicks that were recently added to the menagerie. Her critter family also includes a houseful of cats and dogs (one of which plays mother hen), all living in a peaceful coexistence.