found and purchased the clear plastic pipes
for the bee exit. Parents have even donated
replacement packages of bees and volun-
teered to pick them up for me from the bee
supply company. Parents frequently drop
by my classroom after school just to see
how the bees are doing.
The number of visitors to my classroom
and the length of their stay noticeably
increases when we have the bees. Teach-
ers from our younger classes often request
time to bring their classes to the science
room to see the beehive. even the teacher
in the room next to me, who carries an
epi-pen for her allergy to bee stings, enjoys
dropping by to see what is happening in
the hive. When giving campus tours to
prospective students and their parents, our
principal is always sure to show them our
beehive.
Hive care
The typical indoor observation hive is an
artificial habitat that requires frequent
maintenance if it is to be kept long-term.
Our new eight-frame
observation hive now has
the classroom door. This ensures that bees
clear entrance/exit tubes
leaving the hive are forced to make a sharp
for better viewing. A mirror left away from the classroom door. Most
behind the hive lets us
of the bees continue up and over the roof.
see the bees on the back.
Only when the outside door is open do we
Several sugar syrup/honey
have a lost bee or two enter the classroom.
feeder ports supply the bees
with extra food during times
Diligent supervision of the classroom
of low nectar flow.
and constant inspection of the observation
hive are a regular part of my safety rou-
tine. Students with bee sting allergies are
identified at the beginning of each school
year in keeping with school policy, and
our teachers have had epi-pen training.
Alleviating student fears and teaching stu-
dents appropriate behavior around bees is
another important part of the safety equa-
tion. To this day I am the only one who
has ever been stung by my classroom bees.
The response to the classroom hive
from parents and staff has been quite
supportive. Parents have donated time,
money, and supplies toward the project.
One parent used his woodworking skills to
build a large, eight-frame hive to replace
our small two-frame hive. Another parent
A wild swarm captured for our hive in April 2008.
page 2 • Connect © synergy learning • 800-769-6199 • March/april 2010

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