After school on Tuesday 28th September, Ponteland High School was a hive of activity as students and teachers prepared for the first ‘Bee Showcase’ event to share the amazing bee curriculum which started in Year 6 and continues into Year 7.
More than 150 visitors arrived to see Year 7 Science, Geography, Art, Technology and Maths: to explore what the students were learning and how they were using their knowledge acquired in Year 6. Year 7 students told visitors about the Fibonacci sequence, the problem of asian hornets, monoprinting techniques, concept design bug hotels and the viscosity of honey!
Moreover, a number of Year 7 students articulated their primary experiences and shared what they had learned in preparation for the high school project. This included a live zoom call with beekeepers in the Scilly Isles, visits from local beekeepers, testing different types of honey, trying on bee suits and working with an artist in residence.
The exhibition culminated in an installation of collage hexagons which showed how the feeder primary schools all came together to create a united honeycomb.
Parents and teachers were buzzing after their visit: “It was a fantastic showcase, the work from the children was outstanding…”, “You should be very proud of your Year 7 students - behaviour was impeccable with lots of information and smiles too!” and “I couldn’t believe it was year 6/7 work! I know so much now about Bees!”
