Just Bee - Teacher's Guide by Hoopla Education

Hoopla Education is an Education company specialized in natureinspired, Sustainable Education. Our mission is to deliver a more integrated approach to learning to allow children to develop their natural curiosity through the observation and experimentation of the Natural World.

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t s u JBee Teacher’s Guide

An ELT Sustainable Education Program Inspired by Bees

Author Angelica Manca

Table of Contents Table of Contents

Introduction

Scope & Sequences

Teaching Strategies, Learning Tools, and Student Learning Goals

Terms and Definitions

The Role of Sustainable Education

Beeing Champions of Sustainability and Education

Linking Bees to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Sustainable Action

English Language Learning to Widen Global Communication and Collaboration

Applying Outdoor Education

The Dangers Teaching “Sustainable Education” at a Young Age

Student Booklet

Unit 1: Bee Biodiversity

Lesson 1: To Bee or not to Bee

Lesson 2: Pollinators

Lesson 3: Garden Scouts

Lesson 4: From Flower to Fruit

Outdoors: Seeding Biodiversity

Unit 2: Bee Social

Lesson 1: Life in the Colony

Lesson 2: The Waggle Dance

Lesson 3: The Sound of a Buzz

Lesson 4: Follow your Nose

Outdoors: Meet the Community

Unit 3: Bee Architecture

Lesson 1: The Hive

Lesson 2: Honeycombs and Shapes in Nature

Lesson 3: Body Ruled Measurements

Lesson 4: Bee-Inspired Architecture

Outdoors: Bee Architecture Hunt

Unit 4: Bees and Human Bee-ings

Lesson 1: The Beekeeper’s Toolbox

Lesson 2: As Sweet As Honey

Lesson 3: Mind Your Own Beeswax

Lesson 4: Busy Bees Doing Our Part

Outdoors: Visit a Bee Farm

Appendix Nature Hunt Guide

Leaf Hunt Guide

Introduction Just Bee is a Sustainable Education Program for 6 to 10 year olds that gives real world examples of how to live sustainably by drawing parallels to the fascinating world of Bees. It also introduces English to elementary school aged children in fun and developmentally appropriate ways. Students learn how to take the lead from bees on living a more sustainable life. Bees have been guides to Humanity since the beginning of time, and they continue to be so even today. As Buddhist texts noted centuries ago, pollinators, especially bees “take what they need to survive without harming the beauty and vitality of their source of sustenance”. For humans, to act in the manner of honey bees is an enactment of compassionate and conscious living that is crucial for us to apply to everyday living. Sustainability, with its thousands of nuances, seems to be the key word today. Just Bee introduces Sustainable Action to students, by linking the magical world of bees with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Not only can we identify with bees as an example of a creature that can live sustainably, i.e. the ability to maintain an equilibrium within its natural environment without harming or destroying it, but we’ll also find how these insects can be our partners in helping us to achieve the SDGs. The activities in the program are set-up to demonstrate how honey bees are champions of sustainability in action. For one, everything honey bees produce can be reused. Honey, a truly magical mixture formed in the alchemy of honey bees mixing the nectar from flowers with enzymes inside them, breaks down the nectar’s composition into simple sugars and is said to be the only non-perishable food found in nature. Beeswax, also made by the honeybee, is made by the worker bee converting the carbs from excess honey into liquid beeswax, produced from a gland in the female worker bee’s abdomen.The wax is used to build the honeycomb, needed to store honey, pollen and the bee brood (eggs, larvae and pupae). In times of scarcity, bees can eat that wax, reminiscent to the gingerbread house in the Hansel and Gretel, where parts of the house are eaten by the children to appease their hunger.These are just two of the countless examples that are used to show how honey bees not only live in equilibrium with their natural environment but enhance it as well. A central theme of Just Bee is communication. As social beings living in a globalized world, English Language Learning has become a critical part of Education. Communication has a central role in Just Bee: firstly, it introduces a key English Language Learning concept in every lesson, linked with the lesson on sustainability; secondly, it dedicates a whole unit to communication inspired by the way bees have successfully mastered this art through all their senses. Activities are aimed at discovering the highly sophisticated ways bees have developed to pass on crucial information from generations to generations of bees. This provides a meaningful context for language learning as well as facilitating the understanding of the natural world through hands-on activities. We have a lot to learn from honey bees.The thousands of individuals in the hive have evolved to function with the consciousness of one organism, acting as a whole, yet each individual with its specific role and importance in the colony. Today, we’re not only inspired by them but are also called to preserve them. Bees are experiencing extreme pressures largely due to human activity. Moreover, bees are also responsible for pollinating more than a third of our food source. So, if bees are in danger, so are we.Yet another undeniable reason to incorporate the study of bees in Education. Just Bee invites students, teachers and parents to “be one with nature”, and everything else will follow, just as it does for the honey bee.

Scope and Sequence Just Bee is a Sustainable program, aligned with SDGs below is an overview of the four units. Lesson

Title

Lesson Focus

Activities

Student Book

Unit 1 Bee Biodiversity Lesson 1

To Bee or Not to Bee

Nature Concept The importance of biodiversity and interconnectedness of species Bees & Sustainability in Action The many symbols associated with bees and bees as the champions of biodiversity (SDG 15) English Language Learning Identifying homophones and applying them creatively

Bees: An Insect with Many Symbols Inventing Hieroglyphics to send ecological messages of maintaining biodiversity in the world. ELL: Homophones “To bee or not too bee” exploring and making nonsensical homophones

Lesson 2

Pollinators

Nature Concept The importance of pollinators Bees & Sustainability in Action Living in harmony with nature (SDG 15) English Language Learning Strengthening pollinator vocabulary with Spelling Bee game

Bees, Creatures that Live in Harmony with Nature Exploring different pollinators, especially pollinators ELL: Spelling Bee Collective game that involves spelling pollinator related vocabulary

Lesson 3

Garden Scouts

Nature Concept The environment is rich with a variety of vegetation Bees & Sustainability in Action Understanding the natural environment that surrounds you and collaborating to inspire efficient use of resources and responsible consumption (SDG 12) English Language Learning Enriching nature-based vocabulary

Bee Scouts Going on a Nature Walk to identify nectar and pollen producing plants ELL: Types of Vegetation Collective word bingo game using nature-related words, such as plants, trees, grasses, etc.

Lesson 4

From Flower to Fruit

Nature Concept The pollination processes Bees & Sustainability in Action Bees are responsible for pollinating the majority of the food we eat (SDG 2) English Language Learning Developing phonological awareness by replacing vowel sounds

A World of Bees Responsible for Feeding Us Pollination Hunt Activity which involves categorizing how fruit and vegetables get pollinated ELL: Phonological Awareness Singing “I like to eat apples & bananas” and replacing vowel sounds

Outing

Seeding Biodiversity

Applied Outdoors Concept The need to support biodiversity for the health of our planet (SDG 15)

Seeding Biodiversity Going out and spreading nectar-rich flowers by making and using seed bombs

Pollinators p. 4 Bee’s Anatomy p. 5

Lesson

Title

Lesson Focus

Activities

Student Book

Unit 2 Bee Social Lesson 1

Life in the Colony

Nature Concept Social insects and their characteristics Bees & Sustainability in Action The example of bees and the significance of every individual’s contribution to sustainability (SDG 11) English Language Learning Collective nouns

Living as One Family Completing pages 6 and 7 of the student book and Identifying the different types of bee and their roles ELL: A Swarm of Bees and Other Collective Nouns Furthering vocabulary by learning collective nouns

Life in the Colony p. 6-7

Lesson 2

The Waggle Dance

Nature Concept Dancing for Life Adoption of different forms of comCompleting page 8 of the student munication in the animal world and book to discover how bees see the the importance of visual cues world and page 9 with the figure 8 Bees & Sustainability in Action of a waggle dance Bees use the Waggle Dance as a form ELL: Total Physical Response and of non-verbal communication using the Hokey Pokey Waggle Dance body language Associating vocabulary with actions English Language Learning in the Hokey Pokey Waggle Dance Application of Total Physical Response creatively

The Waggle Dance p. 8-9

Lesson 3

The Sound of a Buzz

Nature Concept The use of auditory cues in communication Bees & Sustainability in Action Bees and their use of the buzzing sound of their wings for communication English Language Learning Extend vocabulary using onomatopoeia and its creative application

Lesson 4

Follow Your Nose

Nature Concept Long-Lasting Scented Olfactory communication as Communication long-lasting effective communication Exploring scents through a scent Bees & Sustainability in Action bingo and olfactory communication The ways bees use olfactory commuELL: Synonyms nication and the implications it could Developing vocabulary of scent have in our life related words with the use of (SDG 11) synonyms English Language Learning Synonyms related to scents

Outing

Meet the Community

Applied Outdoors Concept Drawing the parallel between social insects, especially bees, and Human communities (SDG 11)

Buzzing Frequencies: Buzzing Noise Maker Exploring the buzzing sound bees make flapping their wings by making a buzzing noise maker ELL: Bee Poetry and Onomatopoeia Extending vocabulary through the exploration of onomatopoeic words and applying them creatively to write simple poems

Meet the Community Strengthening a sense of community by meeting people in the neighborhood and understanding their roles and jobs

Scope and Sequence Lesson

Title

Lesson Focus

Activities

Student Book

Unit 3 Bee Architecture Lesson 1

The Hive

Nature Concept Animal adaptation to their habitats and their homes Bees & Sustainability in Action Honey bees live in hives, maximizing space (SDG 11) English Language Learning Learning about animals and their homes

Maximizing Space for the Colony Exploring different types of beehives and completing the activities in the student book ELL: Animal Homes Collective game matching and remembering animals and their homes

Lesson 2

Honeycombs and Shapes in Nature

Nature Concept Exploring geometric shapes in nature Bees & Sustainability in Action The hexagon, a shape found in beehives, is the most common and solid structure in nature (SDG 11) English Language Learning Developing vocabulary around geometric shapes

The Hexagon: The Shape that Leaves no Wasted Space Exploring the hexagon in the honeycomb and completing the activities on page 12 and 13 of the student book ELL: Shapes Applying vocabulary on shapes by playing a collective building game

Lesson 3

Body Ruled Measurements

Nature Concept The ingenious ways Humans and animals have found to measure things, distances and locations Bees & Sustainability in Action Bees are able to construct their hive through festooning English Language Learning Extending vocabulary to include types of measurements

Measuring Without Instruments Exploring measuring spaces and things with students’ bodies or body parts (hands, feet, thumbs, etc.) ELL: Types of Measurement Reviewing body parts and units of measurement

Lesson 4

Bee-Inspired Architecture

Nature Concept Reviewing some of the most skilled home builders of the animal kingdom Bees & Sustainability in Action Bees architectural feats are an inspiration for designing sustainable and efficient structures (SDG 11) English Language Learning Numeral prefix words

Award-Winning Bee Architecture Getting inspiration from bees to create a free-standing structure using toothpicks and wax ELL: Numeral Prefix Game where words that are derived from numerals are explored

Outing

BeeArchitecture Hunt

Applied Outdoors Concept Discovering bee-inspired architecture in students’ environment (SDG 11)

Bee-Architecture Hunt Going out and discovering hexagonal shaped structures in a town or city

The Hive p.10-11

Honeycombs and Other Shapes p.12-13

Lesson

Title

Lesson Focus

Activities

Student Book

Unit 4 Bee & Human Bee-ings Lesson 1

The Beekeepers Toolbox

Nature Concepts Beekeeping tools throughout time Bees & Sustainability in Action Beekeepers are important agents in ensuring a healthy bee population (SDG 15) and can provide decent jobs in agriculture (SDG 8) English Language Learning Making use of a language toolbox

Lesson 2

As Sweet As Honey

Nature Concept Honey, the Forever Food! Honey, a truly magical mixture Exploring honey by making a recipe Bees & Sustainability in Action to make Granola Honey as one of the only non-perishELL: Comparative Adjectives able foods in nature Extending vocabulary by creating (SDG 2) adjectives and creatively applying and it is a natural substance that is them to describe people or things good for you (SDG 3) English Language Learning Comparative Adjectives

Lesson 3

Mind Your Own Beeswax

Lesson 4

Busy Bees Doing Our Part

Outing

Visit a Bee Farm

Nature Concept Exploring other bee products like beeswax or propolis Bees & Sustainability in Action Beeswax as a natural, renewable product (SDG 12) English Language Learning Compound nouns

The Beekeeper and His/Her Tools Discovering and observing the changes in beekeeping throughout the ages and identifying beekeeping tools ELL: Language Toolbox Making and using language toolbox, including: a dictionary, using language apps and watching bee videos in English

Beeswax A Natural Renewable Product Making Madame Tussaud’s museum with wax figures ELL: Combing Words to make new ones Exploring compound nouns through games

Nature Concept Doing Our Part Bees are in trouble, and so are we Giving examples of actions students Bees & Sustainability in Action can take to support bees, such as Helping bees through our actions making a bee pond (SDG 15) ELL: Busy Bee and Other Animal and by applying Biophilic design conSayings necting environments that connect Playing a collective game which inpeople with nature we promote volves inventing more animal saying well-being (SDG 3) English Language Learning Extending vocabulary through animal sayings Applied Outdoors Concept Exploring a bee farm is a holistic educational experience (SDG 15)

Visit a Bee Farm Observing bees from close, exploring honey extraction and tasting as well as candle-making

The Beekeeper p. 14-15

Sustainable Education Teaching Strategies, Learning Tools, and Student Learning Goals Just Bee is an elementary school Sustainable Education program where the primary teaching goal is to teach for sustainability by nurturing a connection with Nature and a love for the environment through the study of bees. Every lesson provides students with the opportunity to be empowered to be leaders for change to positively impact the planet. Thanks to early education, Just Bee has an impact on students with the goal to foster positive formation of life-long behaviors, seeding the new generation of environmental citizenry. Just Bee is divided into 4 units: Bee Biodiversity, Bee Social, Bee Architects and Bees and Human Bee-ings taking each student on a learning journey in the discovery of bees as champions of sustainability. Every lesson opens with a scientific concept, linking our world to that of Nature. The second part of each lesson draws a parallel between the bee world and ours, thus allowing students to find innovative ways to take care of the environment and live more sustainably. In this section, students become acquainted with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and are provided with examples of how bees help the environment and enrich human life. The third goal of Just Bee is to develop English Language skills to provide a broader range of opportunities for global communication and collabo. Every lesson incorporates key English Language Learning (ELL) activities and has been carefully linked to the sustainable action introduced in the earlier part of the lesson, proving students with a framework to enhance their language skills. Finally, at the end of every unit, Just Bee also includes elements of Outdoor education to facilitate learning through direct experience through all the senses. Teachers invite students to go on a field trip whereby they get to experience key learnings from the lessons in real world settings: for example, meeting the community or increasing biodiversity in towns or cities to visiting a bee farm. Outdoor education encourages children to experience the outdoors as a living classroom that stimulate the imagination and provide a more meaningful context for learning. This section covers each one of these learning goals whilst providing Teachers with the background knowledge on the terms, definitions and origins of Sustainable Education.

Terms and Definitions Below is a list of terms to help navigate through concepts linked with Sustainability: The term Sustainable Development was first defined by the United Nations in 1987 and to date is the cornerstone principle in environmental and socioeconomic analysis and planning. It is clear from its definition that the ultimate goal is to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainability, on the other hand carries a much broader and more important concept as it lives outside a concept of “development.” It has no further end to itself except to exist in a complete state of balance. Sustainability is life, but it is also death, because even the dry, dead leaves that fall in autumn contain within them life for the earth. It is therefore linked to the cyclicality and balance of nature. Therefore, Nature, by definition, is sustainable. In nature, what is not sustainable has no room to exist.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 17 goals that were put forward by the United Nations in 2015 and received full adoption by all Member States, as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. To educate for sustainability, we must first nurture the sacred bond between children and nature, starting from early childhood, this way we can facilitate an emotional relationship between children and nature, and which, if given the adequate space and time, will occur spontaneously.

The Role of Sustainable Education The role of Sustainable Education has gained recognition as being crucial in children’s education.This role has been fueled by the public debate in recent years on environmental issues and the topic of sustainable development and sustainability. In addition to equipping students with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to create a sustainable future, incorporating sustainable education in elementary school has numerous benefits for students, society, and the environment. Firstly, it fosters environmental consciousness because of the introduction of environmental issues and their impact on the planet. By emphasizing the role of individuals and communities in creating sustainable societies, students can become active and engaged members of their communities, advocating for sustainable practices and promoting environmental stewardship. This promotes an understanding of the interconnectedness between human society, the economy, and the environment and advances an environmental consciousness that can lead to long term responsible and sustainable practices when students grow up to adulthood. Sustainable Education is also fantastic for developing critical thinking skills. It encourages students to question the status quo, it teaches them to evaluate information, analyze problems, and develop solutions based on evidence. These skills are transferable to many areas of life and will be essential for them in the future to tackle complex environmental problems. Teaching for sustainability has another advantage: it provides opportunities for interdisciplinary learning by combining science, social studies, math, language and the arts. It teaches students to make connections between different subjects, promoting a holistic understanding of the world and the environment. This type of learning can also enhance creativity and innovation. In addition, students are encouraged to make healthy choices, such as eating locally grown food and emphasizing the importance of clean air, water, and soil. These practices can lead to improved physical and mental health for individuals and communities. Just Bee takes students on the discovery of fundamental aspects of our life – from biodiversity, to how plants need pollinators to produce seeds, fruit and vegetables, to bees as social insects, bees as highly skilled engineers and architects to the way beekeeping done sustainably can help communities and improve our health. It equips students to be better decision-makers, innovators and resilient in the face of the many environmental challenges we’re faced with by providing students with the real world example of bees. By learning about how bees live in harmony in nature, students are drawn to them with a feeling of deep respect and a strong emotional bond. More importantly, students discover about their pivotal role in ensuring biodiversity and our survival on our planet. The next section covers Bees as champions of sustainability and how they are valued partners in helping us achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and a more sustainable life.

Bee-ing Champions of Sustainability and Education Bees make a fantastic role model when it comes to learning about sustainability. For one, they play a fundamental role in pollination enabling plants to reproduce and produce fruits, vegetables, and seeds. By teaching students about bees, teachers can highlight the importance of pollination and the role it plays in maintaining our sustainable food system. Unit 1 - Bee Biodiversity – highlights bees are part of a larger ecosystem, and their presence contributes to the biodiversity of our planet. Explaining how bees interact with other plants, animals, and insects in their habitat helps students understand the interconnectedness of species and the importance of maintaining a healthy balance in ecosystems. Unit 2 - Bee Social - covers the individual and collective actions of bees as social creatures. They provide an excellent example of how small individual actions can have a significant impact on sustainability. Students learn throughout the program, that by planting bee-friendly flowers, avoiding the use of harmful pesticides, and creating suitable habitats, individuals can support bee populations and contribute to a more sustainable environment. Teaching students about these actions empowers them to make a positive difference and reinforces the idea that everyone can contribute to a sustainable future. Bees also inspire curiosity and empathy as they are fascinating creatures that can captivate students’ attention.Their complex social structure, remarkable communication methods, a topic that is covered extensively in Unit 2, spark curiosity and encourage students to learn more about the natural world. Additionally, by understanding the challenges bees face, students develop empathy and a sense of responsibility towards protecting and conserving our environment. Unit 3 - Bee Architects - focuses on the design inspiration students can get from bees. In fact, bees exhibit remarkable architectural skills in constructing their hives. Their honeycombs are a marvel of efficiency, providing structural strength while optimizing space utilization. By studying bees’ architectural feats, students gain inspiration for designing sustainable and efficient structures themselves. They can learn about concepts such as optimal use of space, resource efficiency, and modular designs that can be applied to architectural projects. Another fascinating aspect that deepens Sustainable Education through the study of bee architecture, is the natural and sustainable materials, such as beeswax and propolis, that bees use to construct their hives. Teaching students about these natural materials and their properties can raise awareness about sustainable material choices in architectural design. Additionally, bees’ ability to regulate temperature and ventilation within their hives can inspire concepts of energy-efficient designs that minimize reliance on artificial cooling or heating systems. Finally, Unit 4, Bees and Human Bee-ings, covers the interaction between Humans and bees as well as the threats to bee populations. Bees are facing various challenges that impact their survival, that are primarily man-induced. Some of the challenges include habitat loss, pesticide use, climate change, and diseases.Teaching students about these threats raises awareness and encourages them to take action to protect bees and their habitats. It also provides an opportunity to discuss broader environmental issues and the importance of sustainable practices in our daily lives. Overall, bees offer an engaging and tangible example for teaching students about sustainability. By focusing on bees, you can introduce concepts like pollination, biodiversity, threats to ecosystems, and individual actions in a relatable and meaningful way, inspiring children to become environmentally conscious and make informed choices for a sustainable future. 14

Linking Bees to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Sustainable Action In 2015, 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were put forward by the United Nations and received full adoption by all Member States, as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.

According to the UN’s Development Program, bees need to be considered as powerful partners in achieving the SDGs. In fact, these little creatures specifically help meet five of the SDGs: promote biodiversity (Goal 15) and fight hunger (Goal 2). They provide decent jobs (Goal 8) in agriculture and other sectors, advancing Goal 1, no poverty. They maintain balance in our ecosystems, but these little helpers are under pressure from a variety of forces. Just Bee addresses the UN’s three dimensions of Society, Economy and Environment Sustainable Development, through the interplay of empathy, exploration and social action related to our environment within an educational framework that is transferable to the entire community. Every lesson has a mention to the way we can either partner with bees to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicated with an SDG icon or be inspired by them to live more sustainably, highlighted by a sustainability in action icon.

Here’s how Just Bee targets six of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals:

Quality education (Goal 4) by supporting a child’s social, emotional and cognitive development as well as his/her communication skills in English Language Learning. Providing hands-on activities based on Nature and bees connects education to real world examples. This re-orients education so that everyone, regardless of geography or economic conditions, has the opportunity to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and values that contribute to a sustainable future.

Eradicating Poverty (Goal 1) by providing quality education that promotes a more responsible consumption and appreciation for nature. Moreover, bees themselves, by acting as pollinators can provide decent jobs in agriculture and other sectors giving another outlet for the attainment of Goal 1.

Fight Hunger (Goal 2) and achieve Good Health and Well-Being (Goal 3) by focusing on healthy food choices through the consumption of honey (allergy permitting) and plant based foods that are pollinated by bees. This positively impacts our health and the environment because plant-based foods generally use less energy, land and water. Honey is a natural sweetener, and a healthier alternative to sugarcane, but it can also be used as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antibacterial agent. Bees action of pollinating 70% of the majority of food we eat makes them champions in fighting hunger!

Responsible Production and Consumption (Goal 12) by using the example of bees only producing materials that can be used and reused, such as wax produced from the excess carbs from honey, which is then used to build the hive and re-used if bees go hungry. Today, every year, an estimated 11.2 billion tonnes of solid waste is collected worldwide. Cities might look a lot different if we followed the lead from bees and used materials for construction that could be reused when not needed anymore. Life on Land (Goal 15) by learning about how bees are the most important agents in maintaining flowering plant diversity and supporting them with concrete action such as seeding pollinating plants in urban and rural areas. Moreover, Just Bee addresses the fact that bees are under extreme pressure due to habitat destruction, air pollution and the use of pesticides in agriculture. The program provides students with ways they can support bee populations around the world.

English Language Learning to Widen Global Communication and Collaboration

Just Bee incorporates key English Language Learning (ELL) activities into every lesson, thus allowing nonEnglish speaking students to gain access to a broader range of opportunities for global communication and collaboration. Each ELL learning goal has been carefully linked to the sustainable action introduced in the earlier part of the lesson, providing students with a framework to enhance their language skills. Language activities include: Total Physical Response (TPR), listening games, team games, card games, and group activities and collective games. The diversity in activities allows teachers to cater to different learning styles and preferences and can also be easily adapted to suit different language proficiency levels, making them inclusive and suitable for a mixed-ability classroom. Many of the activities are taught as collective games. Collective games are particularly beneficial because they allow active participation and engagement from all students, promoting engagement and motivation. Students are more likely to enjoy the learning process when they are actively involved in a fun and interactive activity. In addition, they provide a meaningful context for language practice.Through gameplay, students use English in a purposeful and authentic way, allowing them to reinforce their vocabulary, grammar, and communication skills. They learn and practice language naturally, in a relaxed non-threatening environment, without feeling the pressure of traditional classroom settings. In fact, they become more eager to participate, take risks, and learn from their experiences. Another very important aspect of the ELL games is strengthening of social interaction and collaboration among students. They encourage communication in English, as students need to express their thoughts, make requests, and negotiate with their peers during the game.This promotes the development of their speaking and listening skills while building their confidence in using the language. Games like the Spelling Bee, are designed to reinforce specific language concepts on pollinators. This game allows students to practice vocabulary, spelling and pronunciation in a dynamic and repetitive environment that helps consolidate what students have learned in a memorable and enjoyable way. Just Bee provides a meaningful context for language learning by facilitating the acquisition of knowledge and understanding of nature and the fascinating world of bees.This is a perfect platform for students to acquire new vocabulary and language structures related to the lesson’s topic. By immersing themselves in the context, students absorb language more effectively and retain it better. Moreover, concepts in English are enhanced through hands-on activities, whilst simultaneously learning how to use the target language in English. The target vocabulary spans from the bee world to biodiversity, nature and its lifecycles, but also non-subject specific language such as shapes, colors, units of measurement and size. Ultimately, the goal is to promote communication in English but also social interaction and enjoyment, making the learning process more effective, memorable, and enjoyable for young learners.

Applying Outdoor Education In addition to linking learning to SDGs and incorporating English Language Learning activities, Just Bee also includes elements of Outdoor education to facilitate learning through direct experience of all the senses. At the end of every unit, teachers invite students to go on a field trip whereby they get to experience key learnings from the lessons in real world settings: for example, meeting the community or increasing biodiversity in towns or cities to visiting a bee farm. Outdoor education originated in Scandinavian countries and today encapsulates activities carried out in natural settings, as well as educational pathways carried out in urban environments, such as parks, in which a direct and concrete relationship with the real world and the full involvement of the child are guaranteed (House of Commons - Education and Skills Committee, 2005). Outdoor education encourages students to experience the outdoors as a living classroom as these spaces stimulate the imagination are full of elements to be observed and manipulated. Through the outdoors, students learn to deal with complex concepts and silently equip themselves with important emotional and cognitive tools to deal with life’s unexpected events. This facilitates an interaction with natural elements, as well as the reworking, investigation and inquiry held indoors, within the classroom. In this way, a dialogue is established between the outdoor and indoor worlds, strengthening the relationship between student and environment.This dialogue is also reflected in the relationship between the child’s inner and outer life, with the aim of providing a holistic teaching approach.

The Dangers of Teaching “Sustainable Education” at a Young Age As has been outlined, Sustainable Education is widely accepted as being beneficial to early adopters. Today we can’t get away from environmental topics: from global warming to land misuse, to the preservation of ecosystems and the correlation between environment and health. It’s possible to convey the complexity and interdependence of global challenges to elementary aged students, as long as they are introduced very carefully. Otherwise, the risk is to stress them and create a resentment towards environmental responsibilities that adults aren’t even able to cope with. The best teaching occurs when the educators’ efforts are focused on accompanying the student on a journey of discovery, not on imparting knowledge. Discovery that nurtures wonder: allowing the ingeniousness of the bee world to build empathy between students before invoking knowledge and responsibility towards it. The activities in Just Bee combine art and science, play and theory, indoor and outdoor, individual and group work to convey the beauty of nature that surrounds us and speaks to continuously, even though we often do not see, hear, smell or taste Nature because we’re too distracted by “doing.” The invitation is to slow down our pace and observe the natural world that speaks to all our senses and imparts that much-needed tranquility. Only in this way, can this valuable teaching be passed on to the child in that is in all of us. Just Bee has the goal of supporting students’ understanding that each one of us, through our actions, can have a profound impact on our planet and the way things are run. Our actions and choices matter: from what we eat, to how we communicate, and construct our cities, they all have an impact on our planet

The Student Booklet The Just Bee student booklet is an integral part of the program and accompanies the students through their learning journey. Students build on their knowledge by collecting, recording, and sharing observations of the fascinating world of bees. The booklet follows the same Unit and Lesson progression as the Teacher’s Manual and contains activities that require students to apply and document their learnings from the lessons in various hands-on and creative ways.

Unit 1

Bee Biodiversity The unit of Bee Biodiversity highlights bees and their pivotal role as a part of a larger ecosystem. Their presence contributes to the biodiversity of our planet. In this Unit, students learn about how bees carry powerful symbols in the history of Humanity.Students learn about how they interact with other plants, animals, and insects in their habitat which provides the learning framework to understand the interconnectedness of species and the importance of maintaining a healthy balance in our ecosystems. Without Bees, we would not Be.

Lesson 1 To Bee or Not to Bee Insects are some of the smallest creatures in the animal kingdom and yet they are very important in maintaining an equilibrium in nature. An insect has six legs and generally has one or two pairs of wings, they have segmented bodies, jointed legs, and external skeletons (exoskeletons). Insects are part of a larger ecosystem, and their presence contributes to the biodiversity, the variety of plant and animal life, of our planet. In fact, many plants need insects, especially bees, for a variety of reasons but especially for pollination, the exchange of one flower’s pollen to another plant’s pollen (details of pollination are in Unit 1, Lesson 2). Insects and plants collaborate and are an example of how interconnected we are with all species. It is important to maintain a healthy balance in ecosystems.

Bees: An Insect With Many Symbols

Nature is a tremendous source of inspiration. Many of its creatures carry important meanings to us. For example, the honey bee is an insect with many symbols and has been domesticated by humans for thousands of years. They are a powerful symbol of community, continuance and regeneration. As the source of honey, they also represent sweetness, healing and magic. In Ancient Egypt, for example, the honey bee was associated with royalty and as early as 3500 BCE was as the hieroglyphic symbol of the King of Lower Egypt.Today it is the symbol of biodiversity, as the honey bee is considered to be the most important agent in the maintenance of flowering plant diversity. Hieroglyphics is a system of pictorial writing used on ancient Egyptian monuments. Below are hieroglyphics used to express concepts about honey bees.

King of Lower Egypt

Bee

Honey

Beekeeper

Wrinting with Pictures

Using the example of Ancient Egypt’s hieroglyphics, ask the students to make their own hieroglyphics expressing the concept that bees are very important in maintaining the biodiversity and equilibrium in nature. Ask the students to share their answers with the rest of the class.

English Language Learning: Homophones A homophone is two or more words that are pronounced the same way but have different meanings, derivations or spellings.A “bee” for example, is a homophone because it is pronounced in the same way as to “be”, but is spelt in a different way and has a completely different meaning. Here is a list of common homophones: ate vs. eight flower vs. flour hear vs. here see vs. sea son vs. sun to vs. two

Language Game

Ask your students to make nonsensical sentences switching homophones in a phrase or sentence. For example: “To bee or not to bee, that is the question” buzzying around as they’re asking the question or “Flour power!” (using an image of a bag of flour and a peace sign on it). Then ask your students to share their answers with the rest of the group.

Lesson 2 Pollinators Flowering plants and insects support one another in the most important of all living forms, propagation. Insects who are involved in this process are called pollinators because they go from flower to flower looking for sweet, nutritious nectar, and in the process, carry pollen from one flower to the next. When pollen from one flower gets deposited on the pistil of the same flower species, it gets pollinated and can generate fruit, seeds and/or new plants.

Bees, Creatures that live in Harmony with Nature Bees are a wonderful example of living creatures that take what they need to survive, pollen and nectar, without harming the beauty and vitality of their source of sustenance. There are more than 20,000 species of bees in the world. Bees fall into three social groups: solitary, social and kleptoparasitic (i.e. they take food or resources from other species). The majority of bee species are solitary, although the honey bee, the most important bee to us, is social and domesticated.These insects pollinate many of our crops and also produce honey by transforming the nectar they collect from flowers into honey. The world needs both wild bee species and honey bees for pollination. In fact, honey bee colonies supplement the work that their wild pollinator cousins perform. Today the biggest threat to bees are poisons and pesticides used in our crops. Student Book Activity

There are many pollinating insects. Examples are: bees – both solitary and honeybees, butterflies, ants, beetles and wasps. Ask your students to turn to page on 4 of the student book and observe the different types of pollinators. Complete the field with pollinators by adding them to the wildflowers. Then have them complete the bee on page 5.

English Language Learning: Spelling Bee For this activity, you will need: • Masking tape • List of spelling words A spelling bee is a competition in which children try to spell words correctly. Anyone who makes a mistake is out and the competition continues until only one person is left. Today you are going to run a spelling bee. Make a list of pollinators that you previously studied.Then divide the students into 3 teams. Clear a space in which each group can stand in a single file behind a line on a floor (made with masking tape). Call out the first word for the first player on Team 1 to spell. If the player spells the word correctly, he/she moves one step forward and the entire team moves forward. If he/she makes a mistake then she moves to the back of the line and the team does not move forward. Continue with other teams. The winning team is the first to reach the flower at the front of the classroom.

Lesson 3 Garden Scouts Our natural environment is rich with vegetation and many different elements: from grasses, to flowering bushes, to trees with pollen, waterholes and ponds, wood crevices, cavities, etc. It’s important to know which elements make up our natural environment.

Bee Scouts Within the beehive, honey bees have allocated the special task of investigating the outside world to bee scouts. These bees are older bees who are strong flyers and are familiar with the area, up to 4km from the hive! They scout the area and then come back and tell the other bees what to expect and where, this way they save their fellow worker bees time and energy in looking for food, as forager bees will know exactly where to go to find their source of sustenance. This is a fantastic example of bees’ efficient use of resources which can inspire responsible consumption and collaboration in achieving sustainability. Wouldn’t it be fantastic to have a Bee Scout showing you the way everyday?! Nature Walk Activity

Go on a nature walk. It is not necessary to go far, you can go to the school garden or a local park. The goal is to observe the vegetation that is surrounding you. Ask the students to map out flowering plants and trees and find out whether or not they produce nectar or pollen that bees like to collect. Here are a few examples of flowers bees like to collect nectar or pollen from: lavender, borage, sunflowers, eucalyptus, marigolds, dandelions, rosemary, poppy flowers, thyme and sage.

English Language Learning: Types of Vegetation For this activity, you will need: • The Nature Hunt activity page (p. 72) • Leaf Hunt activity page (p. 74) There are so many different types of vegetation and elements in a park or garden: trees, bushes, grasses, flowers, plants, logs, ponds, lakes, benches. Use the nature hunt guides as a bingo with students to identify elements you find on your walk. If playing in class, use the guides as a game of bingo to see how many words the students know. Start with the Nature Hunt guide and progressively make the game more difficult by using the Leaf Hunt activity page to see how many leaves the students know.

Lesson 4 From Flower to Fruit In order for plants to develop the seeds, fruit and vegetables we eat, they have to be pollinated. Pollination is the process whereby pollen from a flower’s anthers (the male part of the plant) rubs or drops onto a pollinator. The pollinator then takes this pollen to another flower, where the pollen sticks to the stigma (the female part) so that the fertilized flower can later yield seeds and fruit. Many of the fruit and vegetables we eat is thanks to pollinators.

A World of Bess Responsible for Feeding Us Flowers attract insects so they can be pollinated by them, and in turn produce fruit, that in time, will allow their seed to be spread. In fact, of the 1,400 crop plants grown around the world for food, almost 80% require pollination by animals – especially insects. And of the 100 crop species that provide 90% of the world’s food, 70 are pollinated by bees. Other pollinators include bumblebees that pollinate tomatoes, hornets pollinate pumpkins whereas avocados are pollinated by bees, flies and bats!

Pollination Hunt Activity

For this activity you will need: • The Vegetable Chart activity page (p. 76) Make a copy of the Vegetable Chart on page 76 and provide a copy to each student. Have them investigate how these vegetables get pollinated, indicating the insect they get pollinated by.You can use https://www.pollinator.org/pollinated-food for additional support.

English Language Learning: Phonological Awareness Phonological awareness is the ability to hear differences in the ways words sound or segmented. Students learning a new language need to hear the language before they can talk. Adding or substituting sounds in words helps students begin to focus on the sounds that make up their speech. In this fun little song about Apples and Bananas students will develop phonological awareness by replacing the vowels with vowel sounds. It can be so much fun to eat apples and bananas!

Eating Apples and Bananas Song Game

Sing the first verse of the song I Like to Eat Apples and Bananas, then review vowel sounds and let your students have fun singing the song by switching the vowel sounds. I Like To Eat Apples and Bananas I like to eat, eat, eat, Apples and bananas I like to eat, eat, eat, eat Apples and bananas Now try it with other vowel sounds /o, u/i/a/e I like to oat, oat, oat, oat Opples and bononos I like to oat, oat, oat, oat Opples, and bononos

Outing Seeding Biodiversity Seed Bombs

Urban areas often lack natural vegetation and green spaces, which are essential for supporting diverse plant and animal species. One way of addressing the lack of biodiversity is by using seed bombs. They can be used to introduce a variety of plant seeds into these areas, leading to the establishment of new habitats and increasing the overall biodiversity. Moreover, urban areas are often fragmented by roads, buildings, and other infrastructure, which disrupt the movement of plants and animals. Seed bombing can help create ecological corridors by connecting isolated patches of green spaces. These corridors enable the dispersal of seeds, pollinators, and wildlife, promoting genetic diversity and facilitating the exchange of resources between habitats. Seed bombs can contain different types of seeds. This activity will use seeds of nectar-rich flowers from native plant species that are well-suited to the local environment. By dispersing these seeds through seed bombs, students can restore and expand native habitats, providing food and shelter for local wildlife, especially bees. For this activity, you will need: • Compost • Seeds for nectar rich flowers • Peat • Water • One large mixing bowl or small bowls, 1 per group of students. To make a seed balls, mix in a large bowl: 5 parts compost, 1part seeds for nectar rich flowers and 1 part peat, with water until the mixture is soft enough to bind together and roll into balls. Ideally each student should make 3 to 4 seed balls each. If you live in a city or town, you may have noticed that it’s becoming harder and harder for bees to find nectar-rich flowers. Let your students know that they can make a difference in their neighborhood by seeding plants pollinators like to feed from. One way of doing this in the city is through seed balls. Seed balls were designed to enable seeds to be sown in hard to reach places, and in locations where a gardener is unable to spend long periods of time preparing the ground for conventional sowing. They are of great use to guerrilla gardeners who have ambitions to garden in abandoned sites or areas that aren’t being cared for. Sometimes the only way to find out which plants are pollinator friendly is by going to the local nursery. Find a nursery near you and take your students to observe which plants attract pollinators.

Unit 2

Bee Social In this Unit, students learn about the individual and collective actions of bees as social creatures. Bees inspire curiosity and empathy as they are fascinating creatures that captivate students’ attention. Their complex social structure, remarkable communication methods spark curiosity and encourage students to learn more about the natural world. Additionally, by understanding the challenges bees face, students develop empathy and a sense of responsibility towards protecting and conserving their and, consequently, our environment. Moreover, bees provide an excellent example of how small individual actions can have a significant impact on sustainability.

Lesson 1 Life in the Colony A social insect is a species of insect that lives in a colony and works together as a whole, has a division of labor and overlaps in generations. Each individual has its specific task, function, and behavior depending on its rank. Most colonies have a queen, workers and soldiers.The queen is responsible for keeping the group together and laying eggs, whereas the workers care for the eggs and larvae, collect food for other members of the colony, and construct and repair the nest, while the soldiers defend the colony against predators.

Living as One Family Honey bees are a great example of the way we could build sustainable cities and communities. They live in a colony in a hive. with up to 80,000 individuals per hive, essentially a small city! Every bee has a role in the colony, yet they could not survive as individuals on their own, because they live as a whole. They provide an excellent example of how small individual actions can have a significant impact on sustainability. This relates to the significance of every individual’s contribution to living in equilibrium in nature. Bees life in the colony is very structured depending on their rank, gender and age. Every colony has one queen. She is larger than the other bees, has a golden abdomen and usually has a dot on her thorax that beekeepers put on her so they can easily identify her in the hive. Her tasks are to keep the hive together using a special scent (pheromone) which the bees in the hive recognize, and lay eggs (up to 1,500 a day!). If the worker bees notice that the queen bee is getting old or not doing her job properly, they will make queen cells, nourish the larvae with royal jelly so that a new queen will be born and will replace the old one. The majority of the hive is made up of female worker bees who change “jobs” according to their age: from cleaning (0-14th day) to nursing and serving (4-12th day), fanning (12-18th day), nectar transfer (12-18th day), wax making (12-34th day), guarding (18-22nd day) and finally foraging (22-40th + day), i.e. looking for food. The male bees are called drones.There are few drones in the hive and their main job is to mate with a queen from another hive as well as keep the hive cool in warm weather by fanning their wings. Beekeepers can often tell it is swarming season when they find drones outside of the hive. Student Book Activity

Ask the students to turn to page 6 and 7 of the student activity book and spot the queen bee amongst all the other bees. Hint: she has a white dot on her thorax. Now organize your class into groups of 2 or 3 and discuss what other tasks they think the bees are performing in this picture and why. Do they think any task is more important than the other? Have the students explain their answers.

English Language Learning: A Swarm of Bees and other Collective Nouns Here are a few examples of Collective Nouns: A colony of bats A pack of wolves A school of fish A pride of lions A parliament of owls A pod of whales Ask the students to research their favorite animal and find out whether there is a collective noun for it. Then ask them to draw their collective noun, for example a swarm of bees in a meadow and share their answers with the class.

Lesson 2 The Waggle Dance Almost all animals have developed some form of communication in which there is an exchange of information between organisms. Animals have adopted a wide variety of communication methods to make sure that information can be exchanged, especially those living in large societies. In the animal kingdom, visual communication is the most common form of communication and is especially relied upon in species that have relatively good eyesight.

Dancing for Life As social animals who live in large societies, honey bees have developed intricate ways of communicating with each other using all their senses. Foraging bees communicate the location of nectar-rich flowers or a drinking hole through body language, in what is known as a waggle dance. Experienced bees use the angle of their body relative to the hive to tell the other bees the direction and approximate distance of whatever they are dancing for. Then the well-informed foraging bees know exactly where to find the flowers themselves. And if that wasn’t enough, when they’ve emptied a flower of its nectar, they leave a scented chemical trail letting other bees know that the flower is “empty”. What an ingenious way bees have found to communicate with one another. Can you imagine being able to communicate with one another without words, but through body language only?! There would be no need for dictionaries or translators! Body language is a significant aspect of non-verbal communication. Research suggests that a large portion of communication is conveyed through non-verbal cues. By learning to interpret and use body language effectively, like bees do, we could better understand the emotions, intentions, and attitudes of others, enhancing our overall communication skills.

Student Book Activity

Even though a bee’s vision can be quite good, their way of seeing the world is very different from ours and looks like a pixelated picture. This is because their two large eyes are actually made up of many small eyes that views each part of a giant image separately, just like a mosaic. Ask students to turn to page 8 and 9 of the student activity book, and complete the activities. Students discover how bees see the world on page 8 by completing the grid with the colors and then complete the drawing on page 9 with a figure 8 Waggle Dance performed by one of the bees to the other bees.

English Language Learning: Total Physical Response (TPR) TPR, a term coined by James J Asher, stands for Total Physical Response and refers to learning through performing the physical motion, the way children learn their native tongue.The HokeyPokey is a popular group dance in many English-speaking countries where dancers perform the movements they are singing about. It’s also a great bonding activity and can be done in a small to big group of people. Just another reminder that bees aren’t the only animals who communicate by dancing, we do too! The Hokey Pokey Waggle Dance

To do the Hokey Pokey Waggle Dance, stand in a circle with the group of dancers, leaving enough space in-between each person so that students can move without bumping into each other. Choose one student to stand in the middle. They are going to be the flower and everyone else standing around the person are the bees, who have found the flower and are doing a Hokey Pokey Waggle Dance. Look for the song in the internet so that you’re familiar with the tune and then follow the instructions as outlined in the song: When you put your left arm in Your left arm out In, out, in, out You shake it all about You do the Hokey Pokey And you turn around That’s what it’s all about Woah-oh, the Hokey Pokey Woah-oh, the Hokey Pokey Woah-oh, the Hokey Pokey Knees bent, arms stretched Every time you repeat the song with a different part of your body - right arm, left foot, right foot, right leg, left leg and whole self - switch the person out from the center of the circle.

Lesson 3 The Sound of a Buzz In Lesson 2, we learnt about the many ways animals communicate, in particular, the way bees communicate visually to their fellow bees. In this lesson, we’ll take a look at how bees use auditory communication. Auditory is the exchange of information that is received through hearing, for example: mating calls, alarm calls, echolocation, etc.

Buzzing Frequencies Have you ever heard a drone (the machine) flying above your head? It sounds just like a bee. This is because its propellers move around quickly and create the same buzzing sound bees wings do. Bees produce the buzzing sound by flapping their wings 200 times per second. They use this sound to communicate a variety of things, such as the arrival of a predator inside the hive or when they are planning to swarm. Interestingly, bees tend to vibrate at 150Hz but, during swarming it goes to 500Hz, a solfeggio frequency that promotes healing and balance. Oftentimes, skilled bee keepers use the buzzing sound they hear when they open the hive to detect the health status of the colony. For example, bees who have lost their queen bee will often have a softer, lower humming sound than a healthy, thriving colony. Frequencies aren’t typically used to communicate non-verbally in human communication, however in some situations where verbal communication is not feasible or effective, such as in certain sports or signaling between long distances, frequencies or specific sounds can be used as non-verbal cues. Examples include the use of whistles, horns, sirens, or specific sound patterns to convey messages or commands. Buzzing Noise Maker Activity

For this activity, you will need: • Large craft sticks (like a popsicle stick), one per student • Notecards, per student (the size of a postcard, not longer than the stick) • Scissors, one per student • Double-sided tape • Pieces of double sided sticky foam, per student • String the length of the student’s arm, one per student • Wide rubber band, one per student In this activity, students will make a Buzzing noise maker to experiment bees buzzing sounds. Buzzing sounds are created by allowing the air to flap through a cardboard at a very high speed. Have each student cut the two top corners off the long side of the card. Next, use a doublesided tape to stick the card, on the side where the corners were cut off, covering the width of the craft stick.Then take the sticky foam and place each foam on either side of the stick so that it is hanging over the edge of each side of the stick. Have the students take the string and fold over the remaining sticky foam of one side of the stick to firm the string to the stick, leaving 5cm of string at the top. Stretch the rubber band lengthwise down the center of the stick. Tie the ends of the string together. And now ask your students to spin the noise maker and listen for the buzzing sound it makes! 40

English Language Learning: Bee Poetry and Onomatopoeia Writing bee poetry, allows students to develop both their knowledge on bees as well as their language skills. Many of the words associated with bees are onomatopoeic, meaning that the word sounds like the concept it is conveying. For example: buzz (of an insect) means making a low continuous, humming sound and sounds just like the “buzzing” of a bee or pop (of a balloon, popcorn, cork, etc.) means to make a quick, explosive sound, just like pop-corn! Many poets use onomatopoeia as inspiration to write poems! Here is a poem written by Isaac Watts about Bees How doth the Little Busy Bee How doth the little busy bee Improve each shining hour, And gather honey all the day From every opening flower

Make Your Own Poem

Organize your class into pairs and ask them to write down bee-related vocabulary words they’ve learnt so far. Alternatively, you can start by using the list of words below with their rhymes: Bee - see, free, tree Buzz - fuzz, because, does Busy - dizzy, fizzy, sissy Fly - high, sky, why, eye Honey - runny, sunny, money Wings - sings, stings, brings Yellow - hello, fellow, mellow Black - back, sack, pack Hive - five, dive, thrive For those students who have more developed vocabulary, encourage them to first think of words and then think of their rhymes. Next ask the students to build their poem by making simple sentences with the words they found: Once I saw a bee Fly high to a tree… The goal is to encourage the students to explore the language in the bee word bank. Once every group has come up with a poem, ask them to share it with the rest of the group.

Lesson 4 Follow Your Nose Smelling, olfactory, communication is an exchange of information done through scent and taste. It has the advantage of transferring information long time after the animal has delivered its message and can convey a lot of detailed information simultaneously. Remember seeing that male dog urinating in strategic spots on the street? Well, he’s leaving a scented message that this is his territory, even after he’s long gone from that place.

Long-Lasting Scented Communication Honey bees use olfaction to locate food sources and navigate their surroundings as well as a means for communication. For example, the queen bee emits pheromones (scents) to manage the colony organization in her hive. Some worker bees use pheromones to show the way home to other members of the colony by fanning the hive entrance with the pheromone. Other alarm pheromones are used to recruit bees to defend the colony. Scents are also used by flowers to communicate with bees.They produce a unique scent to signal to pollinators, especially bees that they are rich with nectar and are ready for pollination. Olfactory communication could strengthen communities as it provides an additional means of communication. It could be used to convey complex messages, emotions, and information that may be challenging to express verbally, for example, in detecting substances that are hazardous, such as in detecting gas leaks or sweet scented locations as a place to collaborate. Scent Bingo

For this activity, you will need: • A variety of essential oils, for example lavender, thyme, lemon, geranium and orange blossom • One recycled/previously used and cleaned plastic bottle (0.5L) per child • Tap water Organize your students into groups of 3 or 4. Distribute the plastic bottles. Ask them to fill the bottles half way with tap water. Then hand out one essential oil per group and ask them to put a couple of drops of the essential oil in their bottles of water. Close the cap and mix. Repeat with a second bottle so that each group has two bottles with the same scent. Next collect all the bottles, and, one group at a time, ask students to smell the bottles and pair up the bottles with their matching scent. Then, ask them to identify the scents in the bottles. How many did they guess? Then discuss how these scents could be used to give messages and why.

English Language Learning: Synonyms A synonym is a word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word or phrase in the same language. Exploring synonyms can be a great way of developing students’ vocabulary in English. Smelling with Words Activity

Smell the scents from activity above and find words to describe them. Here are a few examples of words that can be used: smell, odor, aroma, fragrant, stink, fruity, flowery, zesty, scented, floral, peppery and sweet-smelling.

Outing Meet the Community

Social insects, such as bees, teach a valuable lesson of working together as a whole, one family. This lesson can be applied to exploring the roles of people in the community, as it can provide students with valuable learning experiences. It’s important for them to understand the roles of individuals within their community. It also helps children develop an understanding of the diverse individuals and occupations that contribute to their society. Moreover, exploring community roles provides children with real-world examples of how different individuals work together to create a functioning society. Students can see the practical application of various skills and understand the interdependence of community members. This knowledge enhances their understanding of teamwork, cooperation, and collaboration. It broadens their knowledge beyond their immediate surroundings, fostering empathy and respect for different professions and lifestyles. Take your students to explore the roles of people in your community. Have students prepare a list of questions to learn more about the people who live or work in the neighborhood. If interviewing people in a non-English speaking country, have the students ask the questions in English and then translate it into the person’s native language. Have the students document the people’s answers.

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Unit 3

Bee Architecture The Unit of Bee Architects is all about construction and the home. It focuses on the design inspiration students can get from bees. Bees exhibit remarkable architectural skills in constructing their hives. Their honeycombs are a marvel of efficiency, providing structural strength while optimizing space utilization. By studying bees’ architectural feats, students gain inspiration for designing sustainable and efficient structures themselves. They learn about concepts such as optimal use of space, resource efficiency, and modular designs that can be applied to architectural projects. In addition, this unit also covers the use of beeswax as a natural and sustainable material in the construction of their hives, raising awareness about sustainable material choices in architectural design. Additionally, bees’ ability to regulate temperature and ventilation within their hives can inspire concepts of energy-efficient designs that minimize reliance on artificial cooling or heating systems. Finally, students will also learn about units and methods of measurements that don’t involve any instruments!

Lesson 1 The Hive An animal’s environment, i.e. its habitat, must provide water, food, shelter, and space for it. Many animals have found ingenious ways to create a home where they can feel protected from predators, harsh weather, and other threats. Animal homes come in a variety of shapes and sizes and habitats from the ocean, to the prairie to the highest mountain.

Maximizing Space for the Colony Bees, wasps, and yellow jackets build homes called hives. These insects, especially honey bees, have found a way to live in very large numbers in a relatively small space.They make hives thanks to the beeswax that the scales in their bodies produce. Wax is a fantastic material for construction because it is dense, has a high melting point, can be flexible and is light. Thanks to the ingenious way bees have found to build their hives, it can host up to 80,000 individuals in a very small area, making it an excellent home for the colony. Finding more sustainable materials to build our buildings with would make a big difference to how we build our cities.

Student Book Activity

The relationship between humans and honey bees has existed for millennia, some say up to 30,000 years! Back then beehives looked very different and varied from log hives to skeps, dome structures woven into wicker baskets and covered in a thin layer of clay and hay to keep the bees cool in the summer and warm in the winter. In both the log and skep type bee hives, wax combs were built by the bees. Today, bees are kept in hives that have modular movable frames, which allows bee keepers to easily check up on the health of the colony and extract the honey from the honeycombs without destroying the honeycombs after extraction. Ask students to turn to page 10 and 11 of the student activity book and observe the different types of hives that have existed throughout the ages and cultures. Then, ask students to invent the type of home they think a colony of bees would enjoy most. Ask them to explain their answers.

English Language Learning: Animal Homes Animal homes vary incredibly and are influenced by many factors: from their habitat to the type of animal and their size. Here are some types of animal homes: Webs: spiders Hives: bees, wasps, and yellow jackets. Den: bears Cave: bats Burrows and holes: foxes and rabbits Nests: birds Hollow Logs: otters, skunks, and weasels Tree Hollows: squirrels and owls Coop: chicken

Animal Home Matching Game

For this activity, you will need: • Pencils and colored pencils • A4 sheet of paper, 1 per student Organize the students into pairs and ask each pair to draw an animal with its corresponding home, each on a piece of paper (one student draws the animal whereas the other draws its home). Next put all the drawings together, shuffle the papers and turn the pages downside up so that you can’t see the drawings. Create neat rows of papers. Run a group memory, matching game where every team has to take turns to turn two sheets of paper around at a time, matching the animal with its corresponding animal home.The team/pair who find and name the most number of animal/home pairs correctly wins!

Lesson 2 Honeycomb and Shapes in Nature Nature is filled with geometric shapes, including circles found in fruit, tree trunks and eyes, triangles in plants and hexagons in beehives. A hexagon has 6 sides and is a special shape. They are actually the most common geometric shape found in nature and can be found in beehives, crystals, plants and snowflakes too. Hexagonal patterns are common in nature due to their efficiency because the hexagon is the strongest shape known. If you want something to hold a lot of weight, use a hexagon!

The Hexagon: The Shape that Leaves No Wasted Space The hexagonal shape is a special because it best fills a plane with equal size units leaving no wasted space. Bees know this! Plus, it fits all other geometric shapes in it. This is why bees use hexagons in their honeycomb, which allows them to build a solid structure, with the least amount of wax and have the most space for their honey and young. Bees make the hexagonal shapes by chewing on pieces of wax until they are soft and moldable then, when adding the wax, they make circles in the wax and use their body heat to melt the wax into the shape of a perfect hexagon. Student Book Activity

Ask the students to turn to page 12 of the student book and observe the honeycomb.What do they notice about the cells? Have them share their answers. Next, turn to page 13 and ask the students to complete the page with the most number of hexagons and then add pollen, honey or bee brood (eggs, larvae and pupae) in the cells.

English Language Learning: Shapes Math can be seen everywhere including nature.The math of shapes is called geometry and deals mainly with lines, angles and shapes. The most common geometric shapes are: circles, squares, rectangles, hexagons, stars and triangles and can be described using the number of sides and angles it has, except the circle (it’s closed and round shaped and has no corners or edges). Building Instructions Game

For this activity, you will need: • A4 paper, one per student • Ruler, one per student • Pencil, one per student • Scissors Ask the students to draw their favorite shape on an A4 sheet of paper using a ruler and pencil, taking up most of the paper (be sure to get a variety of shapes.) Then ask them to cut it out. Next, have them describe their shape using the terms “number of sides” and “number of angles”. A triangle, for example, would be “a three-sided shape with three (interior) angles”. Then create a 2D construction using the shapes they made. Let students take turns in directing how shapes are positioned on the ground, using phrases like “put the triangle next to the square” or “place” the hexagons side by side to each other”. Each shape should be connected by the sides. Document the final shape that is created.

Lesson 3 Body Ruled Measurements Measuring our world is an essential part of the way we, Humans and animals, interact with it. Measuring is not always easy when measuring tools are not available. In Ancient times, we found clever ways to measure things by using body parts: the length of a foot, the width of a finger, and the distance of a step were all used as measurements. Animals have also found ingenious ways to measure distances and size as well. Bats and dolphins use echolocation to navigate and detect objects in their environment. This consists of emitting high-frequency sounds and listening for the echoes that bounce back, allowing them to determine the distance, size, and shape of objects. Whereas migratory animals, such as some insects, use magnetoreception to sense the Earth’s magnetic field and use it to navigate orient themselves in long-distance migrations.

Measuring Without Instruments Human’s aren’t the only ones who measure things. Bees do too! They do this by linking up together in a single line, in what looks like a chain, connected to each other by their legs. This is called festooning. The word “festoon” actually refers to party decorations, like garlands, that are linked together just as bees do. This way bees don’t need instruments, they can just use their bodies. They do this when building a new comb or repairing an old one to create a scaffolding as well as measuring the distance between the combs. Measuring Activity

When a measuring tape or ruler is not available, we can take inspiration from bees and use our bodies to measure distances. Ask students to measure the classroom using their bodies! They can measure doorways, classrooms, desks, etc.Which unit of measure is most reliable and why?

English Language Learning: Types of Measurement There are many types of measurements that were taken from body parts. Here are a few examples: • Inch: An inch was the width of a man’s thumb (it was changed to equal 3 grains of barley placed end to end lengthwise). • Hand: A hand was approximately 5 inches across (today it’s 4 inches and used to measure horses, from the ground to the horse’s shoulders). • Span: A span is the length of the hands stretched out (about 9 inches). • Foot: In Ancient times, 111/42 inches (today it’s 12 inches). • Yard: In Ancient times, the length of a man’s belt (today it is 36 inches). • Cubit: Used in Ancient Egypt, the distance from the elbow to the fingertips (today it’s about 18 inches). • Pace: Used in Ancient Rome, distance of the length of a double step, i.e. 5 feet. 1,000 paces made a mile

Measurements Activity

For this activity, you will need: • A4 sheet of paper, one per student • Pen or pencil, one per student • Ruler, one per student Review names of body parts (feet, hands, thumbs, waist, elbow, fingers, etc) . Then ask students to measure the width of their thumb to calculate “an inch”, the width of their hand to calculate “a hand”, the length of the hands stretched out to calculate a “span”, the length of their foot to calculate a “foot”, etc. See who has the closest value to the actual units of measure as seen above.

Lesson 4 Bee Inspired Architecture In Lesson 1, we explored the names of some of animal homes. But not all animals take the same amount of care in building their homes.These animals are some of the most skilled home builders of the animal kingdom: Weaver birds: a bird that weaves small twigs and hay into elaborate tear shaped nests Compass termites: a termite that builds large wedge-shaped mounds for nests Wasps: an insect that builds elaborate nests with paper-like material made from chewed wood Beavers: a mammal that build dam like structures on streams and small rivers, which have an impact on the habitats around them.

Award-Winning Bee Architecture The hexagonal structures in honey bee hives have awarded them as some of nature’s best architects. Their honeycombs are a marvel of efficiency, providing structural strength while optimizing space utilization. By studying bees’ architectural feats, students gain inspiration for designing sustainable and efficient structures.They can learn about concepts such as optimal use of space, resource efficiency, and modular designs that can be applied to architectural projects. Additionally, bees’ ability to regulate temperature and ventilation within their hives can inspire concepts of energy-efficient designs that minimize reliance on artificial cooling or heating systems. Below are some examples that showcase how the intricate and efficient architecture found in beehives has influenced and inspired human architectural design, leading to aesthetically interesting and environmentally responsive structures: 1. The Hive (Kew Gardens, London, UK): The Hive is a large-scale installation designed to mimic a beehive and is located at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The structure uses honeycomb-inspired patterns and lighting effects to raise awareness about the importance of bees and their role in pollination. 2. Honeycomb Towers (Guangzhou, China): These Honeycomb Towers in Guangzhou feature a honeycomb-like pattern on the building’s exterior. The hexagonal grid allows for natural ventilation and sunlight penetration while providing an aesthetic connection to the intricate structures found in beehives. 3. The Beehive (Wellington, New Zealand): The Beehive is the popular name for the executive wing of the New Zealand Parliament Buildings in Wellington. Its distinctive shape of the building resembles a series of stacked beehives. 4. Puerta América Hotel (Madrid, Spain):The Puerta América Hotel’s exterior incorporates a hexagonal pattern reminiscent of honeycombs, drawing inspiration from bee architecture. 5. City of Sciences and Arts (Valencia, Spain): The City of Sciences and Arts complex in Valencia includes several buildings with organic and biomimetic design features.The Hemisfèric, in particular, has a curved, ribbed roof that resembles a giant eye or insect exoskeleton, evoking a bee or other natural forms.

Hexagonal Shaped Buildings

For this activity, you will need: • Moldable beeswax, a small piece per student • Toothpicks, 50 or more per student Create your own bee-inspired buildings! Provide each student with some wax and 50 or more toothpicks each. Then ask them to make hexagonal shaped buildings by connecting the toothpicks together using small balls of wax in hexagonal shapes and build the strongest, tallest structure they can in 25 minutes. Ask them to name their structure.

English Language Learning: Numeral Prefix In English (and many other languages) number prefixes are derived from numerals and can be used to create new words. For example: • Uni – one, unicycle (one wheeled vehicle) • Bi – two, bicycle (two wheeled vehicle) • Tri – three, tricycle (three wheeled vehicle) • Quadri – four, quadruped (four legs) • Quin or penta – five, pentagon (five angles) • Sexa or hexa – six, hexagon (six angles) Words and Numbers Game

Review the names of the months of the year from January to December. Ask the students to let you know which months they think were created using numeral prefixes. For example December, November, etc. Have them explain their answers. Then look for more words that have numbers in them.

Outing Bee Architecture Hunt

Bee-inspired honeycomb structures can be found throughout towns and cities. Some buildings and structures incorporate honeycomb or hexagonal patterns in their design. Look for facades, windows, or interior design elements with hexagonal shapes. Also, some cities use decorative pavement patterns to enhance the aesthetics of pedestrian areas. Hexagonal pavers or tiles can be arranged in honeycomb-like patterns, creating an interesting visual effect on sidewalks, pathways, or public squares. Let’s not forget about parks either! Many play structures in urban parks or playgrounds feature hexagonal shapes. Climbing walls, nets, or platforms may be designed with hexagonal patterns, providing both functional and aesthetic appeal. Organize an outing to take your students to visit your city or town. Spot and document unusual architecture or structures that are inspired by bees.You’ll be surprised by how many you’ll spot if you keep your eyes open.

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Unit 4

Bees and Human-Beeings

Bee Biodiversity highlights bees and their role as a part of a larger ecosystem. Their presence contributes to the biodiversity of our planet. In this Unit, students learn about how bees carry powerful symbols in the history of Humanity. Students learn about how they interact with other plants, animals, and insects in their habitat which provides the learning framework to understand the interconnectedness of species and the importance of maintaining a healthy balance in our ecosystems. Without Bees, we would not Be.

Lesson 1 The Beekeeper’s Toolbox The tools, hives and the way beekeeping is done has changed significantly over the centuries. In the previous Unit, we learned about how beehives vary depending on when or where they are used. Today, the most important tools a beekeeper needs to do his/her job are: a bee veil, gloves, a smoker, a hive tool and, of course, a beehive box with removable honeycomb frames.

The Beekeeper and His/Her Tools The relationship between Humans and Bees dates back to many millennia. In the caves of Cueva de la Araña in Spain, is a drawing dating back to at least 8000 B.C.E with a lady who is clearly harvesting honey with one hand and has a smoker in the other. Ancient rock art from Southern Africa,Turkey, Bhutan, and Australia depict various aspects of bee hive life cycles, often with human figures attempting to access the hives. Today, beekeepers help ensure a healthy bee population. Moreover, when done sustainably, bee keeping can provide decent jobs in agriculture and other sectors, supporting decent work and economic growth. Student Book Activity

Ask the students to turn to page 14 and 15 of their student book. Observe the two types of beekeepers on page 14. Discuss the differences you notice between the two beekeepers and their hives. Next turn to page 15 and look at the tools. Ask the students to name the tools: gloves, hive tool, bee veil, boots and smoker. Discuss what they think each tool is used for.

English Language Learning: Language Toolbox “A good tradesperson never blames their tools and a bad tradesperson always blames their tools.” A toolbox is typically a metal or plastic box that contains tools that are needed to fix things in the home. However, it can also mean for a person to create a series of resources and tools needed to accomplish a goal. This activity involves creating a toolbox that students can use to support their language learning skills, just as beekeepers have tools to support their beekeeping activity. Making a Language Toolbox

For this activity, you will need: • Address book, one per student • Tablets or phones, language apps • Internet, video content (e.g.YouTube) 1. Make a dictionary: Ask students to create their own dictionary by using an address book with letters on it and adding all the new words they learnt in the address book, together with a definition of the word and/or its translation. 2. Use technology: download an interactive language app to support English language learning and see how students are progressing. 3. Watch video content in English: YouTube is a fantastic resource, use it! For example, check out the National Geographic page and look up Bee videos: https://www.youtube.com/@NatGeo to learn more about these fascinating creatures.

Lesson 2 As Sweet as Honey Honey is a sweet and gooey substance made by honey bees manipulating nectar they collect from flowers. It is produced by bees to nourish their bee colonies and is stored in honeycombs for when it is needed. Humans have been collecting honey for millennia. We know this thanks to the discovery that was made in Egypt. The Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, Tutankhamun’s tomb was found with jars of honey and was still edible after 3,000 years!

Honey, the Forever Food! Honey is considered to be one of the only foods that lasts forever! It is produced from the nectar of flowers and manipulated by bees, who add their enzymes to it and change the nectar’s composition into simple sugars. Bees fan the honey to remove the moisture and change the substance to a highly acidic environment which prevent bacteria from growing. Not only does it not need to be refrigerated but it requires very little energy to be harvested. In fact, there is very little beekeepers need to do to harvest honey: they simply extract it with a motorized or hand-crank honey extractor, filter it with a strain and then bottle it up. To top it up, honey is extremely good for you: it is a natural sweetener and also a natural antiinflammatory, antioxidant and antibacterial agent. Thank you bees! Granola and Yogurt Recipe

For this activity, you will need: • A large bowl • Spoon, 2-3 • Baking tray • Oven (you may have to prepare this at home). For the Granola • 500gr of rolled oats • 200gr mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, flax seed) • 200gr coconut oil or 3 tablespoons of olive oil • 200gr of raisins • 200gr of almonds • 4 tablespoons of honey • A pinch of salt. • Organic fresh yoghurt • Cups, one per child Before making this recipe, be sure to check for allergies amongst students. Start by preheating the oven to 100C. There’s nothing like a sweet treat with honey! Ask the students to mix all the ingredients for the granola together (all ingredients except the yoghurt). Then place it on a baking tray and flatten and press it down. When the oven is warm, place the baking tray in the oven for 15-20 minutes, making sure that the granola doesn’t get over cooked. Then, fill each student’s cup with fresh yoghurt, some honey and a few sprinkles of granola. Enjoy the treat! 62

English Language Learning: Comparative Adjectives When comparing two things, people or animals together with the same quality, in English we use comparative adjectives.This is formed in the following way: “as + adjective + as”. One common expression that is used to describe a food or a person is “as sweet as honey”. Comparative Adjectives Language Game

Ask your students to choose some of their favorite foods and then find an adjective to describe it. Next, create comparatives with people, foods and flavors or scents. For example, “as sour as a lemon” or “as bitter as chocolate” or “as smelly as cheese”.

Lesson 3 Mind Your Own Beeswax Honey is a sweet and gooey substance made by honey bees manipulating nectar they collect from flowers. It is produced by bees to nourish their bee colonies and is stored in honeycombs for when it is needed. Humans have been collecting honey for millennia. We know this thanks to the discovery that was made in Egypt. The Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, Tutankhamun’s tomb was found with jars of honey and was still edible after 3,000 years!

Beeswax, A Natural, Renewable Product Beeswax is a natural, renewable product and a sustainable alternative to synthetic, mineral oil-based waxes and other products. Beeswax is produced by honey bees to make the hexagonal shaped honeycombs that are used for storage of pollen and honey in addition to for raising the brood (eggs, larvae and pupa). In addition, it plays an important role in keeping the hive healthy and protected from external attacks. Beeswax is produced by worker honey bees from 8 glands in their abdomen, by converting the carbs from honey into liquid wax. Bees start to produce wax in the Spring when there is a high concentration of nectar and pollen surrounding the hive. Once secreted, the wax hardens when it hits the air and forms a wax scale. It is a fantastic example of a material that can change use - from construction material to food - when needed and never goes to waste. Fun fact! Each wax scale is like a tree, under a microscope you can see the different layers of wax much like you can see the rings on a tree!

Madame Tussauds Wax Figures

For this activity, you will need: • Moldable beeswax sticks, in variety of colors, a few pieces per student • Labels, for each beeswax statue • Optional: stands for the statues Beeswax is a fun substance to manipulate, not just for bees! It can be used to make all sorts of things: from sweet scented candles to eco-friendly figurines. In fact, there is a very famous museum in London called Madame Tussauds displaying statues made of wax of famous people. Most wax figures are made from paraffin wax, but some parts are made from beeswax! Today, students are going to make their own wax museum by molding animals and people from beeswax. Distribute pieces of beeswax amongst students and ask them to warm it up in their hands, so that it is easier to mold, just as bees do when they mold wax into hexagons. Then allow their creativity to run free! Once all students have made their statues, put them together and label them to finish your museum.

English Language Learning: Compound Nouns Compound nouns are words that consist of more than one word. They can be formed in many different ways. For example, by putting two nouns together – noun + noun, or adjective + noun, or noun + verb. Here are some examples: Noun + Noun: beeswax, bookworm, ladybird/ladybug, rainbow, beehive Adjective + Noun: blackberry, goldfish, blueberry Noun + Verb: butterfly, dragonfly, popcorn, rattlesnake, sunshine

Combining Words to Make New Ones

Explore other nature-inspired compound nouns with your students. Use words from the list above or look for new words. Then ask the students to invent their own compound nouns inspired by nature!

Lesson 4 Busy Bees Doing Our Part Bees are in danger and therefore so are we! This is largely due to human activities, which includes the use of pesticides, habitat destruction, nutrition deficit, air pollution, and more. Honey bees are amongst the most important of pollinators: of the 100 crop varieties that provide 90% of the world’s food, 71 are pollinated by bees!

Doing Our Part There are so many ways we can help bees. Bees are a natural part of our environment, and incorporating elements that support their habitat can align with the principles of biophilic design. Biophilic design aims to create environments that connect people with nature and promote well-being. Teaching students about the importance of integrating green spaces, pollinator-friendly gardens, bee ponds and bee habitats in architectural designs can foster an appreciation for the natural world and the importance of coexistence. By helping bees, we’re supporting a stronger biodiversity on our planet.

Make a Bee Pond

For this activity, you will need: • Small saucers, one per group • Stones, 3-4 per group • Corks, 1-2 per group • Water Organize students into groups of 4. Distribute the materials to each group. Then, ask each group to fill the saucer with pebbles and water, so bees have somewhere to land, and avoid them drowning, when they get some fresh water.They need water to drink but also to keep the hive cool in warm weather. Bees like “dirty” water so there’s no need to change the water for them, just add new water to the saucer when you see it’s low. Leave the saucers outside.Watch to see whether or not bees are able to find their way to the saucers.

English Language Learning: Busy Bee and Other Animal Sayings Nature has been a source of inspiration to us since the beginning of times, and oftentimes we use nature to describe people or situations. For example, a “busy bee” is an expression used to describe someone who enjoys doing lots of things and is always busy. Synonyms for a busy bee can be a doer, a beaver, a dynamo or a workhorse. Another nature-inspired expression, is “Like birds of a feather flock together” and means that people tend to go with others who have same tastes and similar interests or “It’s raining cats and dogs” to say it’s raining a lot! Animal Traits Language Game

Outing Visit a Bee Farm

Beekeepers are important people in our community. When practiced sustainably, they can have very the positive impacts on our communities, such as the pollination of our crops or the increase of biodiversity in our environment. A visit to a bee farm offers a holistic educational experience that combines science, nature, and environmental awareness. It helps students develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for bees, foster a sense of responsibility towards the environment and promote an interest in science and sustainability. Moreover, bee farms offer hands-on experiences that engage students in a tactile and sensory way.They can see bees up close, watch them forage for nectar, and witness their unique behavior. These direct interactions help students develop a deeper understanding of bees and the natural world. In addition, it may even help those students who may be afraid, overcome their fear of bees by providing an opportunity to observe bees in a controlled and safe environment. Finally, it will also give students the opportunity of seeing the different activities that stem from beekeeping. Activities at a bee farm include: • Seeing bees up close • Watching bees forage for nectar • Observing the complex social structure of the beehive • Learning about the life cycle of bees and the organization and hierarchy of the beehive • Exploring the process of honey production • Honey tasting • Candle-making If some of your students don’t feel comfortable around bees, you can plan on focusing on learning about bee-related products such as honey or wax. Many bee farms organize workshops like candle making or honey extracting and/or tasting.

IMPORTANT Be sure to check for allergies beforehand, especially of bee stings. Students who are severely allergic to beestings should not go to a bee farm.

Nature Hunt Guide

Sun

Rain

Cloud

Leaf

Flower

Ladybug

Stick

Earthworm

Sprout

Leaf Guide

Horse Chestnut

White Birch

Fig Tree

Olive

Ginko

Ivy

Holly

Poplar

White Oak

The Vegetable Chart

Zucchini

Rice

Raspberry

Corn

Pumpkin

Strawberry

Peas

Cauliflower

Tomato

Radish

Eggplant

Leak

Bibliography Ask a Biologist, The Way of the Waggle Dance, https://askabiologist.asu.edu/bee-dancegame Bolakhe, S. (2021). The Surprising Architecture in Bees’ Honeycombs. Scientific American. Cameron, S.A., & Sadd, B.M. (2020). Global Trends in Bumble Bee Health. Annual review of entomology, 65, 209-232. Center for Food Safety, Impacts on the Food Supply, https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org DeCoito I., Patchen, A., Knobloch N., and Esters L. (2021). Teaching and Learning in Urban Agricultural Community Contexts. Urban Agriculture. Springer. Engdahl, I. (2015). Early childhood education for sustainability: The OMEP world project. International Journal of Early Childhood, 47(3), 347–366. doi:10.1007/s13158-015-0149-6. Germanidou, S. (2020). The Ancient Lands of Honey: Middle East, Egypt, Greece. Friends of Asor https://www.asor.org Hagglund, S., & Pramling Samuelsson, I. (2009). Early childhood education and learning for sustainable development and citizenship. International Journal of Early Childhood, 41(2), 49–63. International Association of Agricultural Museums. How Has Beekeeping Changed Over Time? https://www.agriculturalmuseums.org Norton H. (2017). Honey, I Love You: Our 40,000 Year Relationship with the Humble Bee. The Guardian. OMEP. (2016). Resource Bank on Early Childhood Education and ESD. OMEP (World Organisation for Early Childhood Education). Retrieved from http://eceresourcebank.org/ Pollinator Live, A Distance Learning Adventure. https://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/index.php Pollinators, https://www.pollinator.org/pollinated-food Pramling Samuelsson I., and Park E. (2017). How to Educate Children for Sustainable

Bibliography Learning and for a Sustainable World, Springer. Rensvold J. (2021). Beeswax: The Building Blocks of The Hive. https://www.saratogateaandhoney.com Ritchie, H. (2021). How Much of the World’s Food Production is Dependent on Pollinators? Our World in Data https://ourworldindata.org Smith, M.L., Napp, N., and Petersen K.H. (2021). Imperfect Comb Construction Reveals the Architectural Abilities of Honeybees. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, Vol. 118; August 3, 2021 The House of Commons (2005). Education and Skills Committee Reports United Nations, Sustainable Development, https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/ student-resources United Nations, Sustainable Development Goals, https://www.un.org/en/sustainabledevelopment-goals United Nations Development Program, Buzzing with Life, https://bees.undp.org Vincent, D. (2021) How Bees Influence and Innovate Resilient Buildings. Best Bees https://bestbees.com

Author: Angelica Manca Layout: Sesame Paste Louay Daoust