1-2-3 Come Do Some Bee Activities With Me

My son has taken up beekeeping as a hobby and asked if I would design some educational activities he could share when he gives a talk.

Of course my answer was yes! This jumbo "Honey Bees!" packet is the result of that request.

So … I spent days reading books and articles, countless hours doing research online, plus more time watching videos.

Fascinated, I sifted through a mountain of material, sorting, consolidating and making it “kid friendly”, while designing fun “stuff” to help students learn about honey bees.

This is a comprehensive and very versatile unit.
Simply choose whatever information and activities are appropriate for your students, then “print & go”.

Don’t know anything about bees? Doesn’t matter.
It’s all in here, so you too can enjoy learning right along with your students.

I did a ton of work, so you don’t have to!

The packet includes:

* Honey bee vocabulary (54 words) with definitions & fun word work activities to practice these new science terms, with a “My Bee Words” cover for a student-made dictionary.

* A detailed explanation of each stage of the bee’s life cycle, complete with posters, worksheets, puzzles, games & crafts students can do to help reinforce these concepts.

* In depth information about the 3 types of bees (queen, drones & workers) and all of their duties, which help run a healthy hive, along with worksheets, a craft. 

There's also a quick, easy & fun assessment game to help check comprehension.

Children color, cut & glue the beehives featuring the 3 types of bees to a Popsicle stick.

The teacher reads one of 30 statements from the "Which Bee Am I?" worksheet. Students decide which bee is being described then hold it up. 

Teacher's can see at a glance who is having difficulty.  It's a fun way to review, before giving older students the quiz, where they circle a Q, D or W.

Because I like mixing language arts with science, comprehension can also be checked via a cute "What'll It Bee?" writing prompt, where students explain which type of bee they'd like to be, as well as which one they wouldn't want to "bee". 

There are also quite a few other interesting writing prompt activities which will enhance what students have learned.

* Parts of a bee worksheet-posters.

* 30 real photographs of the different honey bees, their hives, stages of their life cycle, pollination, and beekeepers. Use these (2-on-a-page) photo posters to introduce the lesson, explain things, then as a bulletin board display featuring students’ work.

You can also have older students pick one and write about it, or make a list of descriptive words.

* 52 interesting facts about bees, which are displayed on mini posters (2-on-a-page). Simply choose your favorites.

Share the information with your students, then check comprehension with the quick true or false quiz, which can be given orally to younger kiddos, who show their answers with a Popsicle stick puppet paddle.

* A class book, "If We Were Bees" ,along with several poems, plus a variety of word work activities (including rhyming) are also included. 

* Several "Life Cycle of a Bee" crafts are a super-fun way to reinforce these science terms, as well as check comprehension. 

Choose from a variety of puzzles and a flip-the-flap booklet to do as a whole group activity, then set up the rest as independent centers.

* There’s even a splash of math as well; the puzzles practice counting forwards & backwards plus skip counting.

Take that teachable moment to review ordinal numbers and the hexagon shape with the life cycle crafts, while the “roll & color” life cycle game practices graphing skills, and the honeycomb worksheets reinforce guess-timation, plus greater & less than, with another graphing extension.

The versatile bee craft practices number recognition, and also has options for upper & lowercase letter review.

I use the worksheets  as a whole group "I Spy" assessment game. Aterwards, each colorful bee looks different, and teachers can see at a glance who is having difficulty.

Younger kiddos can simply color the hexaagon shapes, while older students color the life cycle, or use the "rip & tear" pattern to help strengthen finger muscles. 

There are a variety of posters & anchor charts in the packet to use in your displays of student work. 

Besides using honeycomb cereal as a manipulative, I have students sprinkle rice on their (glue-traced) "Ee is for egg" worksheet, to help them understand the size and appearance of a honey bee's egg. 

As you can see there's a huge variety of bee activities in this jumbo packet.

I have 3 featured FREEBIES for you today.  The first one is a set of 5, bee-themed puzzles. They are used in a dice game to help reinforce number recognition and simple addition.  

The next one is a colorful anchor chart poster, which shows the parts of a honey bee. 

I've also included a picture bibliography of my favorite bee books, plus links to 8 awesome videos about bees, which are educational, short & super-interesting. 

I was absolutely fascinated learning about these industrious insects and hope you will be too.  

The 3rd one is a "Bb is for Bee" coloring page. 

Well that's it for today.  It's hot & muggy, so I won't be venturing out much. 

Wishing you a relaxing day, filled with a myriad of quiet moments.

"The hum of bees is the voice of the garden." -Elizabeth Lawrence

1-2-3 Come Do Some Bee Crafts With Me

My son Steven, has taken up beekeeping as his latest hobby, and asked if I could make him something that he could share with children when he gives a talk about honey bees and their life cycle.

Today's article features the 5 craftivities I came up with.  Which is your favorite? 

Mine is the "Bottoms Up!"  bee craft.  I named it that, because the 4 “pages” of the booklet are located at the bottom of the bee craft, which you flip UP.

Each of the 4 pages, displays graphics depicting a stage of the bee’s life cycle.

Patterns come in color, so that you can quickly & easily make an example to share, as well as black & white for students.

I’ve provided patterns for a “big bee booklet” perfect for a teacher’s sample, as well as a smaller (2-on-a-page) version for students.

The pages come with a “trace & write” labeled option for little ones, as well as a blank pattern page, so that you can build vocabulary & check comprehension, as students label the life cycle pictures.

There's plenty of room for older kiddos to write something about each stage of the bee’s life cycle, as well as share their favorite fact on the bee's belly, which acts as the last page.

I've also included patterns where the bee has a face, as well as a blank head, so that children can draw their own.  If you like a big-eyed look, you can run off the eyeball pattern. 

Wiggle eyes & pipe cleaner antennae add extra pizzazz.

Introduce the lesson by reading a bee story, like Gail Gibbons’ book “The Honey Makers”, then share your example.

Afterwards, students transition to making their own booklet, then partnering up, and taking turns explaining the honey bee's life cycle to each other.

If you decide to hang up your students’ work, I’ve included a sweet “Bottoms Up!” poster to use for the center of your bulletin board display. 

Another super-fun way to explain the life cycle of the honey bee is by making a crown. 

My Y5s absolutely love making and wearing crowns, and since there’s a “Queen Bee” involved in the process, it seemed especially appropriate.

There are 7 different life cycle crowns to choose from, including 2 where you can assess comprehension by having students color, cut & glue the life cycle stages in the correct order on their crown, which also reinforces ordinal numbers.

Besides the black & white options for students, I’ve made several patterns in color, so that you can easily make an example to share, helping to explain what you want your students to do, then wear yourself, or give away as a “prize”.

The patterns vary in ease of cutting as well. Choose which is most appropriate for your students’ scissor skills, or run off the assortment and give children a choice.

I’ve included some labeled as well as not labeled crowns to help you reinforce the science vocabulary.

I use yellow bulletin board border for the headbands. Sentence strips also work well. I’ve also seen honeycomb border for sale, which would make things extra special.

When everyone is done,  we take a few moments to get “the wiggles out” by marching around the room to several minutes of Korsakov’s famous “Flight of the Bumblebee”. 

I’ve included links to free music videos on YouTube, along with a photo poster of the composer, that you can share with your students.  I was pleasantly surprised at how much my Y5s enjoyed this activity. The next day one little girl asked: "Can we listen to the bee song?"

Taking a photo of your students wearing their crowns, makes a cute bulletin board.

Ive included a “We’ve been busy!” & “The Life Cycle of a Bee” posters for the center of your display, along with cute frames & name cards for that finishing touch. 

Next up is an interesting & super-simple life cycle of a bee craftivity, that will help practice that toughie hexagon shape. Since the honeycomb shape is a hexagon, I thought it would not only be fun, but especially appropriate.

Being able to reinforce this often difficult shape, while learning some science is a double bonus.

The packet includes:
* A hexagon foldable, life cycle of a honey bee craft, with 2 options.
There are black & white templates for students, which come labeled & blank, as well as full-color options, so you can quickly & easily make an example to share.

* A “Bee Life Cycle” poster
* A colorful “Life Cycle of a Honey Bee” anchor chart, with matching “color & label me” black & white worksheets for students.

* Colorful ordinal number, life cycle anchor chart, with matching “color & label me” black & white worksheets.
* Color & identify the honey bee’s life cycle worksheet, with a matching “trace & write” option for younger students.

Whenever I do a theme in my classroom, I like to put up some decorations that will generate excitement.

With that in mind, I designed this beehive "dangler" craft.

Even if you don't do this as a whole group, you could make one to introduce the life cycle of a honey bee, then suspend it from the ceiling in a corner of your classroom.

There are a variety of options, so you can choose which is most appropriate for your students’ skill level. Pick your favorite or give children a choice.

You can keep things simple for little ones and make your projects flat, or you can add extra pop & pizzazz by making them 3 dimensional by adding extra wings, additional hives, or "hinged" doors. 

I've included complete "how to" directions with plenty of photographs.

The honey bee craft can be a “topper” for a beehive dangler to add that “wow!” factor. OR…if you like the bee, and want to skip the hive, but still explain the life cycle, I’ve included a “bee back” featuring the 4 stages.

Wiggle eyes and pipe cleaner antennae, also add interest and a 3D effect.

I’ve included 2 posters: “What’s All The Buzz About?” & “The Life Cycle of a Honey Bee” to use for the center of your or hallway display.

Finally, since my life cycle wheels have been so popular, I decided to create one for the honey bee.

There are 2 circular wheel covers, as well as a beehive, and hexagon-shaped honeycomb option.

Choose your favorite or give children a choice.

The patterns come in black & white for students, as well as colorful templates, so that you can quickly and easily create an example to share.

I make and laminate all 4, keeping them in our science center

When everyone has completed their life cycle wheel, review the stages of the honey bee as a whole group, then have children partner up and take turns explaining the life cycle to each other.

I’ve also included 2 colorful life cycle of a honey bee posters, which can be used to introduce the lesson, then hung up as an anchor chart, or placed in the center of your bulletin board display.

So that you can check comprehension, and reinforce the life cycle vocabulary, the posters also have matching black & white worksheets for your students, with 4 options to suit various levels.

Today's featured FREEBIE, is a super-fun, summer writing prompt craftivity.  I call it "The Shades Of Summer". I hope you find it useful.

Well that's it for today.  Thanks for stopping by.

My hanging flower baskets look a bit on the droopy side, time to go water my garden.  Wishing you a fun-filled and carefree day.

5 pages.

Have students complete the writing prompt: "You're going to have a great year 'bee-cause'..." on the pages inside the mini apple booklet, and then glue it to the bumblebee that your current students make for your next year's kiddos. 

1-2-3 Come Do Some Interesting "Craftivities" With Me

Congratulations!  You're heading down the home stretch.  The first and last month of school arrive quickly and seem to be the most hectic. 

One of the things that helped me check a few more things off my "to do" list, was several "Welcome Back To School" activities and bulletin boards that my current students made for my next year's kiddos.  

This served a dual purpose, as it gave my Y5's something to do when I was running out of ideas for make up snow days, plus accomplished decorating and making a few things, so I didn't have to do them by myself come August.  

Here's a photo of my completed apple back to school bulletin board, with a close up of my sample.  I made sure that all of these children were still in our school before I passed out the apples to my kiddos.

Since Kindergarten and Y5's had the same lunch hour it was fun for them to look for their older new friend.  Simply use any apple dicut.  We ran ours through a crinkle machine.

With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to design several things that your current sweeties could make for your incoming kiddos, as well as a keepsake for themselves if you wanted to do the entire packet. 

The "Tree-mendous" Year craftivies include the writing prompt: You're going to have a "tree-mendous" year in ______ grade, where   students cut and color a tree and then flip it up to reveal their message to the new student.  What a nice surprise for them to find on or in their desk, on the first day of school.

The packet also includes a tree that they help design by tracing their hand (fingers spread to make the branches) plus part of their arm (which becomes the trunk). 

The caption here is: I had a "tree-mendous" year in __________ grade.

The treetop is 3D as students cut out two, fold them in half and then glue one side of them together.   Add some red circles (apples) to the flat side and have students write some of their very favorite things, people, and places that revolved around that grade.  Add a photo for the finishing touch. 

Click on the link to view/download The "Tree-mendous" Year packet.

Another option, with the same idea, is The "Bee-utiful" Year packet.  Students make a bumblebee out of a toilet paper tube using yellow construction paper, black electrical tape (stripes), cupcake liners (wings) and a pipe cleaner (antennae). 

I've included a bee pattern with a face drawn in for them to color, or they can use the oval and design their own.  Add wiggle eyes for a bit more pizzazz.

Students complete the writing prompt page that says: I'm wishing you a bee-utiful year in __________.  Here's the buzz about what you'll learn and then roll it up and insert it inside the TP tube. 

For an easier writing prompt, I've included 2 bookmark options that can also be rolled up and put inside the bumblebee, which say: "You'll have a great year bee-cause..."  or "My favorite things about 'bee-ing' a first grader:" (Fill in the blank with your grade level.)

Click on the link to view/download the "Bee-utiful" Year packet. 

Along the same lines, is the larger bee craftivity, where students make a big bee with wax paper wings and complete the writing prompt: "You're going to have a great year 'bee-cause'"... in a little apple booklet that they glue to the bee's tummy. 

This makes a sweet back-to-school bulletin board as well.  A caption could be: What's the buzz about kindergarten?

When your own students have time to get some work done for their own bulletin board, take this one down and give everyone a bee.  Click on the link to view/download the "Bee-cause" packet. 

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.  If you'd like to see some more end-of-the year activities, click on the link to zip on over to June to grab even more FREEBIES.

 "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." -Muhammad Ali