In the days before the weekend, the children in class could talk of nothing but what the weather would be like on Sunday—whether it would warm up or stay frosty. When Petya woke up that morning, the first thing he did was go to the window and look at the outdoor thermometer; it read -4 degrees. Frost! Brilliant! The children gathered their skis and poles and packed sandwiches and sweet hot tea in thermoses into their rucksacks. Tatyana Ivanovna got ready for the trip, as did Petya's dad Vova; they also brought their skis along.
At nine o'clock in the morning, the electric train brought the children to the forest. The children put on their skis and set off along a well-worn path that someone had left as a ski track before their arrival. In the winter forest, there was silence, broken only by the creaking of large snow-covered spruces and the occasional sound of bird calls.
That's probably a flock of sparrows
Katya suggested.
No, those are crossbills. Sparrows don't live in forests; they live in towns and villages, so you can't hear their chirping in the forest. And blue tits only live in the forest in summer; they fly to town for the winter. Crossbills and woodpeckers winter in the forest,
Tatyana Ivanovna explained.
The children stopped to rest for a bit, and Tatyana Ivanovna began counting the children. Vasya was missing, so Petya's dad quickly went back along the path and soon returned with an angry Vasily.
Can you believe it, Tatyana Ivanovna, what this nature vandal did? He took off his skis and climbed a tree.
Petya's dad Vova reported.
Why did you climb up there? You could have fallen
Katya said, worried.
I only wanted to get a nest for my collection. Besides, the nest is empty anyway; the chicks have grown up and flown south
Vasya explained.
I don't think so, Vasya
Tatyana Ivanovna objected.
Come spring, the birds will start building new nests and will use the material from old ones. So the nest you wanted to take will be very useful to the birds, and Katya was right—you could have fallen out of the tree and hurt yourself.
Tatyana Ivanovna told the children that bird nests should not be touched; it's better to sketch them or photograph them. After all, nests can contain not only forest debris but also bird parasites, which can be dangerous to humans.
Together they continued on and stopped for a break near midday. The children gathered dry twigs. Petya's dad lit a fire and melted snow in a pot so the children could wash their hands before eating. When all the sandwiches had been eaten, Tatyana Ivanovna asked the children to collect the packets into one large bag and put it in the rucksack.
Why not just burn the packets in the fire?
Anton asked in surprise.
There wouldn't even be a trace left.
The packets would burn, but the dangerous fumes from burning polythene would spoil the clean air in the forest
Petya's dad Vova explained.
It's better to put the rubbish we've collected in a bin, and leave the leftover bread in the forest.
The birds will peck at it
Petya realised.
Birds, squirrels, and mice—life goes on in the forest even in winter. It's just that the animals are frightened of people and try to hide.
The children decided to behave very carefully. After resting a bit more, they all set off towards the electric train, as they needed to head home. Both the children and the adults were pleased with their walk through the winter forest.
