Getting hands on to learn about how the world works was just one part of a fun day for the students of Durrumbul Public School when Steve the Bee man spent the day teaching them about bees.
‘I had an awesome day with Steve, I’ve learnt a lot about native stingless social bees,’ Jasmine year five.
Steve, from The Australian Native Bee Company, was able to show the children how to split a hive that had been donated to Durrumbul by the Pocket School.
They spent the day learning about the Australian native stingless bee, Tetragonula Carbonaria, the significance of the bee in Indigenous culture, nest structure, life cycles, pests, the characteristics and anatomy, comparisons to the European bee, how pollination occurs and the roles they play in our world.
‘The students love their new native bees,’ said their teacher Mr Durkin.
‘They have been counting the number of bees that have been entering the hive with pollen on the hind legs. Students have been observing the bees all around the school grounds and noticing them collecting pollen from different plants.’
One of the highlights of the day was getting to try the native bees honey.
‘Steve gave us some of the pollen and honey, it tasted really different from normal honey,’ said Otis who is in year five.
