If your preschoolers are buzzing with energy and curiosity they can Be a Honey Bee with this pretend play activity. It’s the perfect way to channel both! In this hands-on exploration, little ones become busy honey bees, using turkey basters or droppers to collect “nectar” from flower stations and bring it back to their hive. Not only is it a blast, but it’s also a sweet introduction to teamwork, nature science, and how bees help our world bloom.
Table of Contents
Supplies for Be a Honey Bee
- Dollar Store Snack Trays (3-6)
- Plastic cups or Mason Jars
- 1 Large jar
- Food coloring drops
- Turkey Basters / Eye droppers
I got everything but the turkey basters and eye droppers from the Dollar Tree. The eye droppers you can get online. The turkey basters you can get at Walmart for less than $3 or if you need a bunch, you can get several turkey basteres online cheaper.
When I couldn’t initially find turkey basters, I got these squeeze bottles in the photo from the Dollar Tree. They come in a two pack. They work fairly well and similar to a turkey baster.
How to set up the game “Be a Honey Bee”
This game is best played outside.
Get a pitcher full of water. Use food coloring and dye the water to be nectar.
We stuck with just yellow, but you can use any food coloring colors you want. You can even color each jar a different color for a “flower.”
Set the divided snack trays around the yard, setting a jar/cup in the center so they look like giant flowers.
Fill each “flower” cup with the yellow water.
Set the large jar, which is the Bee Hive in a central place near the flowers.
How to Pretend Play “Be a Honey Bee”
Give everyone a turkey baster or eye dropper. This will be your nectar collector.
Make sure you know where the hive is. That’s the big jar where all the nectar will go!
Fly to a flower. Pick any flower you like. Each one has colorful “nectar” (that’s the water in the jar!).
Collect the nectar. Use your turkey baster or eyedropper to suck up some nectar so you can transport it back to the hive.
Buzz back to the hive. Carefully carry your nectar back to the hive and squeeze it into the big jar.
Repeat! Keep collecting nectar, working together with your bee friends, just like a real hive until all the nectar is gone from the flowers and filled up in the large jar.
Celebrate! When the hive is full, you’ve helped make honey. Great job, busy bees!
Make it a Race
Have 2 large jars, a hive for each team.
Break kids up into two teams and have them collect nectar and race back to their hive.
Whosever hive is the fullest at the end when all the nectar is gone from the flowers is the winner.
More Preschool Fun
Here’s a few I think you’ll love!
- Roll a Jack o Lantern Game
- Free Preschool Grocery Store Printable Game
- Roll A Cookie Game
- How to make a Pretend Play Nail Salon
- Make Your Own Blue’s Clues Paw Print Hunt
- Free Preschool Ice Cream Shop Printable Game
- How to Teach Math to Preschoolers
- How to teach Letter Recognition to Preschoolers
- Preschool Cookie Game
- Water Bottle Fun in 5 Ways
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