Episode 8
Meet Sebastian and Baxter, the House Birds
Inside for a change, with two twenty-year-old cockatiels. Whistling, bath time, and the daily routine of feeding and cleaning that keeps Sebastian and Baxter happy.
Stepping inside for a change, Nana introduces her two 20-year-old cockatiels, Sebastian and Baxter, and walks kids through what daily life looks like for a pet bird. She shows off their play tree with its rope, chain, bells, swing, and ladder, explains how Sebastian likes to whistle back and forth with her, and gives both birds a gentle misting “shower” — revealing that Sebastian loves bath time while Baxter, usually more reluctant, ends up enjoying it too. Along the way, Nana shares a personal memory of her first bird, a parakeet named PJ, and teaches the word “preening” for how birds groom their feathers after a bath. The episode wraps up with a full feeding and cleaning routine: swapping out empty seed shells for fresh seed, adding a millet treat, refreshing water, and sweeping and re-bedding the cage floor before sending Sebastian and Baxter off to enjoy their lunch.
What this episode teaches
- Animals communicate in many ways — Sebastian whistling back and forth with Nana shows kids that communication with animals doesn’t have to involve words — sound, rhythm, and response-taking-turns can be its own kind of “conversation.”
- New vocabulary — preening and whisk — Kids learn specific words like “preening” (a bird grooming its feathers) and “whisk” (a small broom for small messes), connecting new vocabulary directly to what they’re watching happen.
- Daily care behind the fun — Feeding, cleaning water bowls, sweeping cage floors, and refreshing bedding show that caring for a pet bird is a consistent daily routine — not just playtime — reinforcing the idea of steady responsibility in pet ownership.
Themes: Bird care and daily routines, communication through whistling/sound, hygiene and grooming (“preening”), responsibility and consistency in pet care, personal memory-sharing.
Word of the day
How a bird cleans and smooths its feathers with its beak, especially after a bath.
