Congratulations! You are about to improve pollinator habitats in your own space! Did you know that pollinators are responsible for one in three bites of food that you eat? Bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, beetles, and flies, to name a few, are responsible for so many delicious foods we enjoy. From chocolate and coffee to apples and watermelons, we need these vital creatures to pollinate 80% of all flowering species and 35% of the world’s crops! And you can do your part to help the pollinators with a few simple steps. View Resource to learn more! 

Did you know that honey bees dance? Or that they build their homes out of perfectly formed honeycomb? The Digital Hive Experience was created to educate about the inside of a beehive and our friends, the honey bees. Pair the Digital Hive Video with the companion Educator’s Guide! Included are a lesson plan mapped to the Common Core and NGSS, pre and post-assessments, discussion questions, and a KWL Chart for your students! Perfect for a classroom introduction or for programs that may not have live bees, we hope you enjoy your journey into the hive!

Earth Day Schools is a network of over 5,000 schools around the world that are working to build environmental literacy and civic engagement skills in the next generation. By signing up, your school will be added to the map and you will gain access to stories, resources, contest opportunities, tips, and ideas for Earth Day, and more. We would also love to share your amazing projects to inspire our network. Sign up as an Earth Day School to join the movement and send us your stories at education@earthday.org

Learn how to make a pollinator garden and use this planning worksheet to start planning one for your home or school from Earthday.org!

In the Education Resource Library, you will find a variety of tools to help your students learn about environmental issues and how to make a change in their communities! Use our beginner, intermediate, and advanced activities on insects to learn about bee behavior, habitat, and pollination. These fun and engaging activities will build students’ understanding of bees and help them protect them at school or at home. Feel free to use these activities as an introduction to Earth Challenge 2020 or stand-alone during a pollinator lesson.

Now is the time to teach others what we have learned about bees and their many benefits! And Shabazz Larkin has done just that in his delightful children’s book The Thing About Bees: A Love Letter. In this pre-recorded webinar, we discuss his passion for learning, his process for writing as well as simple things we can all do to save bees in our own backyards!

Did you know that broccoli, cauliflower, and artichokes make a lovely bouquet of flowers? The students will examine the functions of flowers and determine that some flowers are edible, even tasty! This K-2nd grade lesson includes background information, vocabulary words, step-by-step procedures, links to other lessons about plants, and plant lifecycle illustrations. 

Growing up in Maryland, Will Allen hated farming! After a career in professional basketball and working in a “white shirt job,” Will turned his attention to helping a Milwaukee community learn to grow their own food when he rediscovered a passion for working in the dirt. This book will inspire children and teachers to look at every pot or plot of dirt as a place to grow something.Grade Level: 3rd-5thLexile Level: AD630LGuided Reading Level: TGenre: Nonfiction

Ever wonder how food gets from the farm to the table? The Bee Cause Project has partnered with SC Ag in the Classroom to create this unique roadmap from the farm to a local food hub and finally to the table of a local restaurant. The Educator’s Guide provides Resources, Recommended Reading List, Activities, Discussion Questions, and the full recipe for Basic Kitchen’s Collard Roll with Yuzu Dipping Sauce! The video, The Journey of Food: From the Farm to the Table can be found on The Bee Cause Project YouTube Channel. 

Anyone in North America can join this special community research project to help scientists map fireflies! Ten minutes once a week in your own backyard or field can help scientists understand the numbers and patterns of these unique pollinators. There is a training video and sign up information on the website for you and your students to explore! 

Scout is a little honey bee with a big mission! She needs to find the last flowers of fall to get the sweet nectar that she and her sisters will turn into honey. With winter on the way, honey will provide the food to keep the hive alive until spring. But she’s got some pretty big obstacles coming her way!Lexile Level: AD840LGuided Reading Level: OGenre: Nonfiction

Students will observe the physical characteristics of flowers and explore the principles of pollination with this 3rd-5th grade lesson. From Bee Dancing to flower direction, this lesson will engage young minds and explore the miracle of flower reproduction with some amazing little pollinators! 

Want to know a secret? Flowers actually ‘talk’ to animals! This beautifully written and illustrated informational text is a delightful way to introduce the symbiotic relationship between plants and pollinators. Full of interesting facts and told from the perspective of a “prickly” cactus, this book will enlighten and entertain your audience.Grade Level: 2nd-5th Lexile Level: 570L Guided Reading Level: Q Genre: Informational Text

Learn how to make a pollinator garden and use the planning worksheet to start planning one for your home or school from Earthday.org!

The Great Sunflower Project is a great way to use Citizen Scientist's observations of bees nationwide to create an online map of the bee population with special attention given to sunflower pollinators. Your students can join the thousands of volunteers to gather pollinator information as part of this data collection. With the bee population in decline, students can actively assist in getting to the bottom of the causes of this environmental issue. There is an introductory video provided in English and Spanish by PBS, a Quick Start Guide, maps, opportunities to observe individual data, and loads of other resources to get your students outdoors and counting pollinators!

Bees are incredibly important to the production of almonds! In this 3rd-5th grade lesson, students will learn how almonds go from the farm to the table while distinguishing between facts and opinions about the growing season! This lesson includes background information, vocabulary words, video links, step-by-step procedures, and links to other valuable lessons. 

Did you know that honey bees dance? Or that they build their homes out of perfectly formed honeycomb? The Digital Hive Experience was created to educate about the inside of a beehive and our friends, the honey bees. Pair the Digital Hive Video with the companion Educator’s Guide! Included are a lesson plan mapped to the Common Core and NGSS, pre and post-assessments, discussion questions, and a KWL Chart for your students! Perfect for a classroom introduction or for programs that may not have live bees, we hope you enjoy your journey into the hive!

Did you know that honey bees can dance? Do you know why bees build honeycombs in the shape of a hexagon? Do you know how many eyes honey bees have? Bees live a secret life inside their hive...but NOW we can see what goes on in a live hive. The Bee Cause and its partners are on a mission to inspire children to learn about and protect these precious pollinators. That's why we've created the Digital Bee Hive Experience - to educate our community of learners about this vital ecosystem. 

This video is designed to highlight the resources and educational tools provided on the Sweet Virginia website. Each of the five lessons has a downloadable, printable document including high-resolution photographs, video suggestions, and original text.  Go to sweetvirginia.org for more information about their programs including the "Ask A Beekeeper" video links. 

This lesson from the National Agriculture in the Classroom Matrix is designed to teach students about the parts of honey bees, the stages of the lifecycle, and the role honey bees play in pollination. There are three activities including materials lists, vocabulary words, background connections, support documents, step-by-step procedures, and support videos.