Students in Year 4 kicked off the scientific enquiry program, with an incursion activity presented by Luke, most recently referred to by ABC Rural as “Australia’s top bee-grade student – a high school apiarist leading the charge to save the bees”.
Luke is a 16-year-old beekeeper/student who shared his passion for bees and the environment. He is an incredible role model who demonstrated a true passion and determination to save the bees as he explained the science of beekeeping.
Through an interactive presentation, Luke shared his “bee journey” and made children aware of the importance of bees in our environment and their important role in ensuring that we will be able to continue to enjoy the existence of many different types of fruit.
This was followed by a series of interactive activities which covered:
- the beekeeping suit, tools and functions
- identifying the different parts of a hive
- the life cycle of the bee
- spotting a Queen on a brood frame
- types of honey bees
- native bees
- mix and match bee facts.
The students, parents and teachers all learned something about these incredible creatures that God created. Here are some extracts of what some students had to say:
“My favourite thing was me dressing up as a bee keeper. Did you know the males are called drones? They get kicked out of the hive in winter.” (Taj S)
“It was amazing that I met Luke. He is an amazing 16-year-old beekeeper. Luke started beekeeping when he was only 14 and now he is 16. My favourite part was when I got to taste the honey and also drawing a bee which looked AMAZING!…” (Alyssa W)
“I was so impressed that Luke did this basically by himself! I really loved listening to all the facts about bees. My favourite interesting fact was probably that when the Queen bee is about four years old, the worker bees will either chew off the Queen’s wings, suffocate her in the corner or give her a ‘royal pinch’!” (Olivia A)
“Did you know that if all of the bees realise that the Queen bee is getting old or not laying enough eggs all of the bees will bite off her wings and kick her out, stinging her until she dies or suffocates. My favourite activity was when I had to draw a queen bee. It’s my favourite activity because I love drawing and I have never tried to draw a Queen bee before.” (Kaitlyn M)
“My favourite activity was when we passed around honey, pollen, nectar and wax. We also got to try some of Luke’s honey, which was DELICIOUS! I learned that when the queen bee stings people it does not lose its stinger because it looks like a needle.” (Rhiannon ME)