Tags: Class Ideas, All-Seasons, Outdoor, Indoor, 3rd grade, 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, Bees
Time: 60 mins (Use a combination of activities for a 30 min class).
Author: The Bee Cause and Whole Kids Foundation
The Bee Cause 6 Week Curriculum Complete Guide
Outline
| Greeting and Intro to Lesson |
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| Activity 1 (15 min) |
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| Activity 2 (30 min) |
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| Activity 3 (30 min) |
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| Activity 4 (20 min) |
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| Activity 5 (30 min) |
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| Cleanup |
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| Goodbye |
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| External References | Observe Inside the Hive video
Observe Outside the Hive video |
| Worksheets(Please email the worksheet separately) | 04a_Honey_HowSweet_Lesson
04b_Honey_HoneyBeeRelayRaces_Lesson 04c_Honey_PollenNectarCollection_Lesson 04e_Honey_LipBalmsSoaps_Lesson |
It is a good idea to split the class into smaller groups and rotate activities, if possible.
ACTIVITY 1: Honey: How Sweet It Is
Materials
- 04a_Honey_HowSweet_Lesson
- Paper
- Pen
Instructions
- Read “I Eat Peas With My Honey” poem.
- Ask the following questions:
- Have you ever seen a bee on a flower?
- Do you eat honey?
- What are some of your favorite products made from honey?
- What are some of your favorite fruits and vegetables?
- Review facts and information from Unit04_Honey_Resource.
- Follow steps 1-4 from 04a_Honey_HowSweet_Lesson.
Journal Entry
Ask students to write a poem about bees.
ACTIVITY 2: Honey: Honey Bee Relay Races
(04b_Honey_HoneyBeeRelayRaces_Lesson)
Big Idea
Students feel what it is like to be a forager honey bee as they quickly collect nectar and pollen and bring it back to the hive.
Materials
- Cardboard
- Staple of tape
- Paper cups
- Yellow pom poms
- Eye droppers
- Printed flower template for each student
Instructions
- Before class make 4 cardboard bee hives as shown in DIY Cardboard Bee Hive Cell.
- Follow steps 1-7 from 04b_Honey_HoneyBeeRelayRaces_Lesson.
Assessment/Reflection
Ask students to fan the cups of “nectar” to help turn it into honey. Bees also use a special enzyme to turn nectar into honey. Show students 1/12th of a teaspoon. That is how much honey an average worker bee makes in her lifetime. Honey bees travel 112,000 miles and visit 4.5 million flowers to make a 16 oz jar of honey sweetness.
Journal Entry
Imagine you are a forager bee. Where do you get the energy to fly and collect pollen and nectar? Where do plants get their energy from? Write a short story about your day collecting pollen and nectar.
ACTIVITY 3: Honey: Pollen and Nectar Collection
(04c_Honey_PollenNectarCollection_Lesson)
Big Idea
Honey bees collect pollen and nectar and deposit it in the cells of the comb in the hive.
Materials
- Yellow pom poms
- Tongs or pinchers
- Cardstock for hex hive
- Hex hive template
- “Yellow nectar” (food coloring and water)
- Hex hive hot pads
Instructions
- Before the lesson; prepare hexagon cells from card stock and water dyed with food coloring for nectar.
- Remind students that the final job of a worker bee is to go outside of the hive and collect nectar and pollen. We call that a forager bee.
- Bring the class over to the observation hive to show students the yellow cells filled with pollen, the liquid cells filled with nectar, and the forager bees that are entering the hive with nectar and pollen.
- Students use tongs to collect pompom pollen from flower and place in each cell of the comb.
- Students use droppers to collect nectar/water from flower and put drops in each cell of the silicone hive.
ACTIVITY 4: Honey: Honey Tasting
(04d_Honey_HoneyTasting_Lesson)
Big Idea
Honey flavors vary depending on the season and type of flowers that the bees have visited to collect nectar.
Materials
- 3 different honeys, each from a different flower/region/source (not processed or flavored)
- Paper/sample cups
- Stirring sticks for honey
- Printed 04d_Honey Tasting Lab Sheet for each student
- Prepare samples in numbered cups or squeeze bottles prior to lesson.
- Discuss what makes each honey taste differently. ( Note that honey from a single hive can look and taste differently each season based on the different kinds of flowers in season).
- Have students taste honey one at a time. Identify each, discuss and describe what each tastes like.
Assessment/Reflection
Ask students to share their thoughts on the different honeys. Do they have a favorite? With what foods might they use honey?
Journal Entry
Imagine you are a forager bee. Where do you get the energy to fly and collect pollen and nectar? Where do plants get their energy from? Write a short story about your day collecting pollen and nectar
ACTIVITY 5: Honey: Lip Balms and Soaps
(04e_Honey_LipBalmsSoaps_Lesson)
Big Idea
Introduce students to some of the many products that depend on honey bees for their ingredients.
Review the properties of matter.
Investigate mixing two or more substances.
Materials
- A few beeswax and honey products
- Beeswax for lip balm
- Lip balm containers
- Vinyl sticker printer paper for lip balm labels (Optional)
- Lip Balm Labels Template (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon of organic cocoa butter (you can also use shea or mango butter but I find cocoa butter is perfect for this)
- 1 tablespoon of organic coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon of vitamin E oil
- Mason jar
- Small pot
- Soap base
- Soap mold
- Hex hive hot pads (to put hot pots on)
- Enter student names into the Lip balm labels template, then print labels on vinyl sticker printer paper.
- Review, gather and set up materials and supplies needed for soap and 04e_LipBalmRecipe.
- Follow steps 1-8.
Assessment/Reflection
Discuss benefits of natural products versus others. Brainstorm list of the many things made from honey, wax and propolis.
Journal Entry
Did you make a new substance? Is it a solid, liquid, or gas? How do you know?
References
The Bee Cause: https://www.thebeecause.org/resources/
Whole Kids Foundation