It’s nearly time to celebrate National Bilby Day – get your kids excited for the occasion with some of the fun bilby activities below!
National Bilby Day is held annually on the second Sunday of September. As they are considered a vulnerable species, the day is generally used to raise support for bilby conservation and protection. It’s a great opportunity to celebrate with your family and to teach your kids about the adorable bilby!
If you’re reading this and you’d like to commemorate the day, why not celebrate it with some or all of the National Bilby Day activities below? Your kids are sure to love dressing as bilbies and learning more about these wonderful Aussie creatures.
Download, print, and make your free bilby mask
Act like a bilby
Hop, dig, hop, hop, dig around the house and backyard (or in public if you choose!) We received quite a few stares at our local nursery while trying to get a photo of Miss Possum with some spinifex-like grass for the occasion.
Read some bilby storybooks
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- Bilby Moon by Margaret Spurling
- Melly and the Bilby by Susan-Zela Bissett and Stephen Hagan
- Hunwick’s Egg by Mem Fox
Watch this video
This is a great video for kids, although I personally don’t think the puppet looks anything like the furry marsupial we are talking about!
Donate to the Save the Bilby Fund
Founders of Save the Bilby Fund, Frank Manthey and Peter McRae, built a sanctuary in the Currawinya Park near Charleville.
This sanctuary is not a zoo, but a 250sq km electrified predator-proof fence that allows bilbies to roam free without interference from feral pests like wild cats and foxes. Ongoing funds are needed for bilby research and to help maintain the fence.
Hop over to this website for more fun stuff
This website includes free printables, such as mazes, dot-to-dots, fact sheets and more.
Encourage your child’s school to help support the day
Schools can help bilbies by selling merchandise and educating their students about the furry marsupial. Approach your school early to give them time to organize an event.
Build a bilby
Search around your house for reusable products and see if you can make a bilby puppet like ours.
Write a story about bilbies with your child
Study the books in point three and then rewrite a new version or come up with your own storyline. Who’s the main character? What’s their quest? How does it end? Kids are avid storytellers, and your child is sure to enjoy writing a story with a cute, furry marsupial as the protagonist!
Which National Bilby Day activities will you do to raise awareness for the plight of the bilby? Let me know in the comments section – I’d love to hear how you celebrate your day.
There are lots of great ideas here and I do love to support our wee Bilbys but the one that appeals to me the involves visiting Darrell Lea.
Yep, can’t wait to eat a choc bilby! Yum, yum, yum!
You had me at ‘chocolate’! Have sent this to my older daughter’s kinder teacher, but we’ll be playing with masks and stories as well. I hate to admit it, but I know nothing about bilbies other than they are endangered.
I might have to help you out with that one. I’ll add it to my list. If I had more time I would write a post up about bilbies for National Bilby Day but I’m heading off to Mt Tamborine today. I’ll see what I can do 🙂
Chocolate ? You want me to eat chocolate ??? Gee, ok. Only if I really have to.
The things I do for the Bilbys 🙂
Make sure it’s Darrell Lea BILBY choclate Miss Grace. It doesn’t mean you should inhale any chocolate you see. 😉
Yup, a definite supporter here too now that you mention chocolate!
Thhis is a really cute post. It has inspired me to add a Bilby story to my Australian animal storytelling workshop. Thank you for the inspiration and your passion for Austrailian wildlife.
Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment Beth. I’m stoked that you will be adding it to your storytelling workshop. I hope your audience love it!
Wow, wow, wow! I am your newest fan!! I love your website Penny and I love the message you are bringing with it! Thank you for stopping by at http://www.learning4kids.net
I love the little video of Bob the Bilby, made me giggle but a very serious message with it too.
I have to agree with the others- I am going to eat some chocolate! 🙂