Don’t We Love Our Bees!

Last week didn’t go quite as planned. The kids caught a cold, then I caught it, and the house suddenly felt like one big box of tissues and sleepy eyes. But as any homeschooling parent knows, learning never really stops — it simply shifts shape. Instead of pushing through worksheets or strict schedules, we stepped into what I like to call a Wellness Week, and surprisingly, it turned into one of the most educational weeks we’ve had in a long time. Because even when you’re curled up under blankets with a cup of tea, curiosity stays alive. And this time, curiosity led us straight to the world of bees — nature’s tiny pharmacists.

🐝Learning About Bee Products While Fighting a Cold

Since our throats felt scratchy and our energy was low, we focused on natural remedies. Every morning, the kids took a spoonful of raw honey and a couple of sprays of propolis — the one we bought in Portugal at a local market. It helped soothe our throats and, of course, sparked endless questions:

What is propolis? Where does pollen go? How is honey actually made? Why is Manuka honey considered so powerful? So our cozy, snuggly week turned into a mini unit study on bees, and honestly, it was perfect timing.

🍯How Bees Make Honey (Explained Kid-Friendly but Detailed)

The kids discovered that honeybees are surprisingly organised little creatures. A worker bee visits flowers to collect nectar, storing it in a special pouch called a honey stomach. Inside this stomach, enzymes begin turning the nectar into simple sugars.

When the worker bee returns to the hive, she passes the nectar to another bee (yes, mouth-to-mouth!), who continues breaking it down. The bees then spread the nectar across the honeycomb cells like tiny bakers flattening dough. To thicken it, they fan their wings to evaporate extra water — and when it reaches the right consistency, the bees seal the cell with beeswax.

Honey is stored away like a winter pantry, ready to feed the colony through colder months. No wonder honey feels healing when we’re sick — it’s the ultimate natural superfood.

👑Meet the Queen Bee, Her Soldiers, and the Bee Family

We also talked about the queen bee, the star of the hive. She lays every egg — sometimes up to 2,000 a day — and releases special pheromones that keep the hive calm and functioning. Then there are the worker bees, all female, doing everything from feeding larvae, cleaning the hive, to collecting nectar and pollen. The drones, the male bees, have one purpose only: to mate with a queen. The kids couldn’t believe how specific and organised bee society is — like a tiny world full of roles and responsibilities.

🔄The Bee Life Cycle (Simple Breakdown)

To keep learning gentle but meaningful, we drew and labelled the bee life cycle:

1. Egg — a small grain of rice laid by the queen
2. Larva — fed royal jelly for the first few days
3. Pupa — wrapped in a cocoon, transforming inside
4. Adult Bee — worker, drone, or queen depending on feeding and genetics

The kids were fascinated by how quickly bees grow — far faster than humans — and how each stage prepares them for their specific role in the hive.

🍯👩‍🌾How Beekeepers Care for Hives and Extract Honey

We also explored the role of beekeepers, which added a practical element to our Wellness Week learning.

We learned that beekeepers:

• check the hive for pests and diseases
• ensure the queen is healthy and laying eggs
• give bees extra space when honey stores grow
• collect honey in late summer or early autumn

Honey extraction itself is like a science experiment: removing the wax caps, spinning the frames in an extractor, and watching honey pour out like liquid gold. The kids now think beekeeping is the coolest job on Earth.

🕯️Our Beeswax Workshop — Learning Through Hands-On Fun

By Saturday we were feeling well enough to attend a beeswax workshop, and it ended up being one of the highlights of the entire week. The children learned how beeswax can be used to make lip balms and hand creams, and how natural skincare supports wellness in a gentle, chemical-free way.

We talked about the benefits of beeswax:

• it locks in moisture
• it protects skin from dryness
• it contains natural antibacterial properties
• it smells warm and comforting
• it’s gentle on sensitive skin (even toddler skin!)

The kids can’t wait to recreate the recipe at home, and I’ll share it soon on the blog.

🚗🌿A Sunday Reset in Armagh

By Sunday, we all started feeling human again. So we took a little drive to Armagh — not too far, not too exhausting — and enjoyed a quiet walk around the city. Fresh air after a long week indoors felt like a warm hug for all of us. The day was simple, but sometimes simplicity heals more than anything else.

📚Back to Learning — Gently

This week we’re slowly returning to our regular homeschool rhythm. But I’m carrying something important from our Wellness Week:

• Learning happens everywhere — in rest, in nature, in illness, in curiosity, and especially in slowing down.
• Bees reminded us of the beauty of tiny details, the importance of community, and how every member of a family or hive plays their part.
• And honestly? I think the kids learned more in one restful week than they would have from a stack of worksheets.