The B&B Highway project is a sustainability project aimed at making cities sanctuaries for pollinator species. Pollinators are critical for healthy ecosystem functioning however research shows they are in alarming decline. B&B stands for bed and breakfast for bees, bugs, birds and biodiversity. The project involves retrofitting existing school gardens to increase biodiversity and the establishment of a school native stingless beehive (please note these bees do not sting and there is no concern for students and staff with anaphylaxis).
Schools involved in the project will be contributing to a sanctuary ‘Highway’ for native stingless bees across Sydney, thereby contributing to the school’s environmental sustainability initiatives and credentials.
Students involved in the project will learn about the importance of pollinator species through an incursion science lesson. They will also take part in an ongoing citizen science project by monitoring the school’s native bee (and other pollinator) populations, thereby contributing to a state-wide pollinator data base.
The project is a partnership between Observatory Hill EEC and PlantingSeeds a non-profit community organisation.
B&B Highway - involves an approx. 2.5hr (half day) Stage 2-3 incursion focusing on Science and Technology content for 'Living World'. Students will take part in science based investigations in their classroom, and in school grounds, in order to collect data and information about living things, their external features, and how they are different to non-living things.
The schools involved so far have enthusiastically embraced the project with many teachers extending the project into prolonged units of work and integrating it into their STEM lessons, for example having students to design insect hotels.
Find out more about previous school's involvement with the project at: B&B Highway website
Find out more about the program, including costs, at: B&B Project Information Flyer (4.5KB)
Key Inquiry Questions
- How can we group living things?
- What are the similarities and differences between the life cycles of living things?
- How are environments and living things interdependent?
Key Syllabus Outcomes
Compares features and characteristics of living and non-living things ST2-4LW-S
Students will:
- collect data and identify patterns to group living things according to their external features, and distinguish them from non-living things (ACSSU044) SysT
- identify that living things have life cycles (ACSSU072)
- conduct an investigation into the life cycle of plants and/or animals (ACSSU072) SciT
- describe how living things depend on each other and the environment to survive, for example: bees and flowers, birds eat and disperse seeds (ACSSU073) SysT
Integrating the ‘Sustainability’ Cross Curriculum Priority is a feature of the program.
Skills Outcomes
Working scientifically - Planning and conducting investigations
- Plan scientific investigations with guidance
- Conduct scientific investigations to find answers to questions
- Use appropriate materials and equipment safety
- Collect and record accurate and honest observations using labelled observational drawings, basic formal measurements and digital technologies as appropriate
Working scientifically - Processing and analysing data
- Use a range of methods to represent data, including tables and column graphs
- Compare results with predictions
- Suggest possible reasons for findings
Working scientifically - Communicating
- Represent and communicate observations ideas and findings using formal and informal representations
Suggested Pre visit activities
Activities prior to the delivery of the program will help prepare students for the day as well as link the program to the class program. These could include:
- Visit MyLearning minibeasts (on the whiteboard) and learn more about invertebrates.
On the day activities
During the incursion, students will:
- an introduction to biodiversity, pollination, and pollinator habitat requirements
- An examination of different pollinators (insects mounted in perspex and under microscopes)
- Undertake a bug hunt with identification sheets and magnifying glasses,
- Plant native Australian pollinator pants in existing gardens beds, including an explanation of the qualities, needs, importance and benefits of native plants
- Participate in a presentation about the ecology of bees
- Collect data to practice identifying and tallying pollinator species, in order to effectively participate in an ongoing citizen science project
Follow up activities
- Participate in a citizen science project to document the number and variety of native pollinator species in the school.
- View the Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre Multi Touch e-book called Invertebrate Explorer to learn more about classifying invertebrates.
Incursion Program
Download the Teachers Checklist and Program to help with your incursion planning
Risk Assessment
Download the Risk Assessment Plan (70KB) to help with your excursion planning.