Bees give Stratford Primary School pupils learning opportunities

The pupils at Stratford Primary School are buzzing about bees.

Excitement is swarming about bees at Stratford Primary School.

The school is an enviroschool, where there is an emphasis on sustainable living and pupils exploring the environment.

At the end of Term 4 last year, two hives arrived at the school donated by local beekeepers, Raul and Eniko Mateas-Orban.

Room 3 teacher Angela Hampton says the bees have provided learning opportunities for the pupils.

"When they arrived last year pupils from Room 3 took classes for tours. It helped build confidence for the pupils. It was great to see the less-confident pupils gain confidence by leading the tours."

Room 3 pupils are the beekeeper ambassadors. They regularly check on the bees and see what needs doing.

"While Room 3 are the ambassadors, it is a whole school effort. When a problem arises or if something is needed, different classes help."

Room 3 is currently making wasp traps and trying to locate a wasp nest close to the hives.

Mckenna Gerhoeffer (11) from Room 3 says the class has set up different types of traps.

"We've used lots of different recipes to see which is the most effective."

Amanda says the beehives have a great pay-off for the pupils.

"It's great to see the children learning about bees and how to deal with any problems that may arise. The engagement from the pupils is huge."

The pupils have been working on designing a label for the honey, which is almost ready for extraction.

"The profits will go back into funding the bees and towards our bigger vision - to build a bee enclosure, so learning about the bees can be shared with the community."

She says although the work with the bees is only starting, it has already had a large impact for the whole school.

"Room 14 is learning about floating and sinking so they can make feeders for the bees. The learning opportunities exceeded my expectations. There are a lot of unexpected things the children learn."

Enviroschools co-ordinator Marlene Lewis says the school is thankful for Raul and Eniko's donation.

"We're also really grateful for their continued support and help with the hives. The aim is to instil a love and respect of nature into the pupils."