Activity time: 10 minutes

Materials for Activity

• A copy of story, "Aesop's Fable of the Worker Bee, the Drone, and the Wasp"
• Optional: “The Worker Bee, the Drone, and the Wasp” coloring sheet, and crayons

Preparation for Activity

• Review the story so you can tell it to the group comfortably.
• Optional: Print the coloring sheet and copy for all participants. Place coloring sheets and crayons where children can use them when invited but will not be distracted beforehand.

Description of Activity

This story provides some detail about bees' roles in the hive and reinforces the idea of specific roles within a community (or family). Read or tell the story to the group. At the conclusion, you may ask:

• Which bees were the ones that built the hive in the story?
• Do you think the worker bees and the drones all lived together in the same hive? Were they similar to human brothers and sisters, or other members of a human family like ours? In what way?
• How did the wasp know that the worker bees were the real builders?

Including All Participants

Offer children the opportunity to color the illustration provided for “Aesop’s Fable of the Worker Bee, the Drone, and the Wasp” to engage different learning styles and to help children focus on or relate to the story. A coloring activity can be a "preview" of a story. It can work as a quiet activity to help children physically settle. You might use it afterward to help the group recall and respond to the story.