Bee Adaptation Anatomy Activity

[Appreciation to science educator Mark Everson for the Bee Adaptation Activity below]

Adaptation: a special body part or behavior that animals use to survive in their special environment.

· Dark-colored fleece jacket- big enough for any child you want to dress up (the fuzzier, the better),

· 2 small plastic baskets with a string attachment- one for each leg (corbicula)

· 2 toothbrushes- one for each leg

· Large tube or turkey baster (proboscis)

· Sunglasses or insect-eye glasses (compound eyes)

· Empty plastic honey bear container or something similar (stomach)

· About 1 cup of yellow yarn, cut into very small pieces (1/8 inch) (pollen)

Bee Costume [dress them in this order:]

1- Bee’s have a hairy body, so that pollen will stick to them. Put on a fleece jacket and notice how fuzzy it is! Do you think things could stick to that?

2- Bee’s have special baskets on their legs to hold pollen and carry it back to the hive. Bees like to eat pollen, which is a yellow powder that flowers make! Attached small baskets (those green plastic baskets for strawberries work well) to each of their legs, using a separate shoe lace (not their’s!).

3- Bees have special brushes on their hind legs for collecting pollen. Stick toothbrushes inside their shoe laces or in the tops of their shoes.

4- Bees have a proboscis, or a tube-like mouth for sucking up nectar. Give the tube or turkey baster to student to hold up to their mouth.

5- Bees have large, compound eyes to see with. Give the child sunglasses (or compound-eye glasses) to represent a bee’s eyes.

6- Bees have a special stomach that they use to store nectar in, while they fly back to the hive. When they get back to the hive and honey comb, they spit up (vomit!) the nectar into a cell and it turns into honey. Give the student a honey bear to hold, representing this special stomach.

7- Bees eat pollen, which is a yellow powder that flowers make. Bees also move pollen from flower to flower, which helps the flower’s make seeds. SO, let’s see what this bee looks like if they collect pollen in their baskets (for eating) and are dusted with pollen on their hairy bodies. Hand the bee some yarn to place in their pollen baskets, and sprinkle some of the yarn on their fleece.

Present our new “Honey Bee” to the group and give them a cheer!

Review the different bee adaptations by asking different children to explain each part of the costume again.