The children might enjoy helping the bees to collect the pollen from the flowers in the following interactive game - https://www.bbc.co.uk/games/embed/g758zk3wbh?exitGameUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fcbeebies%2Fgames%2Fmargarets-marigolds-game For P1 (and older siblings) – talk about what they missed about school when they are not present and what they most look forward to when they return. Maybe they could create a message for the new P1 children –‘The best thing about Primary 1 is ….’ and draw a picture. Related to this is the play in the original series with the meanings of the Dutch word heer, which does mean gentleman, though it does not mean member of the nobility, which Bumble as American would not be. He is very rich and tries to live like a gentleman. Another meaning is lord, as in (absolute) ruler; as owner of his castle, he turns out to have been the lord of the land for almost the entire series in the last story. "Sir" rather obscures this essential part of the character as it rather suggests some noble title under lordship. An acceptable translation might be Oliver Bommel Esq. Introduce the story, ‘The Bumblebear’ by Nadia Shireen or listen to it being read here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6ZaSM6sNGw or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tvXFif3M1o

Sir Oliver B. Bumble was introduced in 1941, in the third Tom Puss story. Initially, he was only a supporting character, but he soon became a second protagonist. As Tom Puss was noble and heroic, later stories came to depend on the flawed and kind-hearted Oliver B. Bumble as an initiator of events. The final story, published in 1986, ends the story with Bumble marrying his neighbor, Miss Doddel, and settling down.Now it’s time for some honey of our own – time to make Bumblebear honey biscuits - https://www.booktrust.org.uk/globalassets/resources/time-to-read/2017/bumblebear-biscuits.pdf Discuss with the children the times of year that they have seen or noticed bees. What do the bees look like? What sounds do they make? To find out some more about bees and even why they sting – this clip might help - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6BFRcp2dFs In February 2007, the Dutch Programme Foundation began a 440-part radio drama based on the series, hosted by Radio 4. The series ended in December 2009. There have been rumors of a new film and animation series. If you are looking for a fun homework activity, invite the children to become bees? Let them explore the sound and movement of bees and maybe even create their own bumblebee dance. To help – play the music of Rimsky-Korsakov’s ‘Flight of the Bumblebee’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X14kC-sEH0I or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZO5KTJTwhE&list=RDxZO5KTJTwhE&start_radio=1 The children might enjoy sitting down to watch the story of ‘The Lost Bee’ while they have their Bumblebear biscuits - https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/stories/melody-the-lost-bee

Recap on the story of ‘Bumblebear’. Parents may want to read the story again with the children or invite the children to tell them the story, using their Bumblebear or Bumblebee puppets from last week’s activities. Bumble has two staunch admirers. The first is Miss Doddle, Bumble's Dulcinea and his prime source of fresh tea, courage and resolve in times of great emotional turmoil. She idolizes Bumble and thinks he's the smartest man in the world, even though Bumble is out of his depth more often than not. The second great admirer is the dwarf Kwetal who thinks Bumble has a big thinking-frame ("denkraam") and blindly trusts his judgment. He is the source of some weird gadgets which wreak havoc in Bumble's life or work as a deus ex machina to solve the problems which Bumble's ill-conceived grand designs have caused. Alligator (3) Chameleon (2) Dinosaur (6) Frog (36) Lizard (5) Snake (1) Turtle (8) OtherReptiles (1)Now it’s time for some art. Get a blank piece of paper and let the pen be the bumblebee. Remember not to lift the pen from the paper – where will it land? Now invite the children to colour the sections between the loops to make a funky art picture. Here’s what it might look like - https://lwvogue.com/abstract-art-project-for-kids/