how many babies do they make in a week?
“You find bees catch them and when you find flowers get a lot for the bees you have. Don’t let them go and keep them until they die.”
These were some wise words from the thank you notes the fourth grade class at Daniel Webster Elementary School in Daly City sent me. I went in last friday and showed them some bees in an observation hive and let them eat fresh honey. They were stoked.
JR, you ever think about puttin down the beez and pickin up the kids? (Figuratively}
For some reason, it seems like that would be a good story.
Comment by poopies — April 2, 2009 @ 3:13 am
four years from now, one of those kids is going to see you passed out on the street with your flaccid member hanging out and wonder, “what happened to mr. bees?!” however, for now, you continue to be an inspiration.
Comment by mims — April 2, 2009 @ 5:46 am
If you’re asking Jon to become a teacher, I agree, it would be a good story. An even better story would be when Jon is called into the principal’s office to explain MRIP.
Comment by Lyle_s — April 2, 2009 @ 7:43 am
“thank you for showing us the bees?” Ha!!
Comment by Kathleen — April 2, 2009 @ 3:12 pm
it’s nice when the town robot explains the natural world to the local children.
Comment by n.d.p. — April 2, 2009 @ 9:45 pm
wait, this happened on April Fool’s Day?
Comment by n.d.p. — April 2, 2009 @ 9:46 pm
How come all the kids have a tan
Comment by poopies — April 3, 2009 @ 1:37 am
I swear too much to be a teacher. And don’t know what I’m talking about. But mostly I’m not a morning person. Maybe night scool for fourth graders would work. I could train the hopeless how to make it buying and selling on eBay. Never too young to learn how to survive.
Now poopies brings up a very New Hampshire observation. I believe there was only one white kid in that group of 90 students. NH has the exact opposite ratio of white people, so it may be a surprise. When I explain that honey bees come from Europe and are not native, it gets me thinking privately in my mind about race. I don’t know if the kids are too. And when they ask why some honey comb is white and some is dark, I worry I’ll imply the white comb is better. Or prettier. Or not good at dancing. To be honest, that brief glimpse of teaching made me realize how subtle it is to pass preferences on to very questioning minds.
“the white comb is called virgin comb because it’s never been used.”. Well, start again. I don’t want to explain virginity to fourth graders.
“The white comb hasn’t been used for storage yet. After a baby or honey has occupied the space the color begins to change, going from golden yellow all the way to dark black. So think of white comb having yet to serve a purpose.”
Maybe that wasn’t the way to go either. But you can see the eggshell vocabulary dance a white guy does in front of a group of kids from Philipino, African American, Mexican, Chinese and everywhere else but Canadian and European descent.
Comment by Rolston — April 4, 2009 @ 7:17 am
Most teachers don’t seem to have any hangups about pushing an agenda on their students. Get in there and edumacate those little buggers! Hmm, might not want to use the word bugger, though…
Comment by Lyle_S — April 5, 2009 @ 9:46 am