CO-CURRICULAR PROGRAM IS THE BEES KNEES

After successfully applying for a Woolworths Junior Landcare Grant, Trinity Anglican College Year 4 teacher, Mr Jarryd Thurling, was thrilled to launch the ‘The Bee Team’ project late last year.

The Bee Team meets weekly on Thursday afternoons as a co-curricular program for students in years 4–6 at Trinity Anglican College.

Students learn about the importance of bees, beekeeping and bee conservation in theoretical and practical components.

The theoretical component includes learning about bee life cycles, the roles performed by bees, Queen bees, the pros and cons of various hives, finding bees, hive management and disease identification.

The practical component sees students donning beekeeping suits to get hands-on with the management of the hives. Students practice record keeping, honey extraction, weighing, bottling, label design, advertising, sales and the allocation of charity donations from the honey sales.

Mr Thurling said that the program had introduced students to a fun and interactive approach to learning across a range of areas including biology, agriculture, community connections, innovation and product design.

“Our students are thoroughly enjoying these unique, fun, and engaging sessions,” said Mr Thurling.

“It’s a great initiative to be able to provide our students and future beekeepers with a practical understanding of bees, their role in the environment, and the products derived from beekeeping.”