This is an easy cut and paste paper craft for young children to assemble during the summer. It has a pair of leaves and a pair of bumblebees.
The leaves and the bees are both "mirror images" of each other -- in other words, they are identical just "flipped". This can lead to a fun discussion about how reflections in the mirror look "reversed" or "flipped" (ask the children to hold something up in the mirror and ask them to describe what they notice about it). For children who can recognize their letters, a handwritten "B" or their name printed out would work well as the "reversed image" effect is very obvious when you hold printing up to a mirror.
The craft also works well for a "B is for Branch/B is for Bumblebee" alphabet lesson.
You may also like:
- something to color with (black and white version)
- Optional: blue construction paper for a background (B is for Blue)
- Print out the template of choice.
- Color the template pieces if using the black and white version of the craft.
- Cut out the template pieces.
- Glue the summer branch together; optionally, you can glue all the pieces onto a blue construction paper background:
- Glue the beehive onto the branch (so the hive sits over top of the branch)
- Glue the bumblebees around the beehive
- Glue the leaves onto the branch
- Refer to the image at the top of this instruction page if you get stuck.
- Note: The children might not assemble the project exactly the way I envisioned it. That's ok!! Let them put the pieces together in whatever way inspires them.
- Optional: If using a blue background, you can decorate further with cotton ball clouds and a few more hand drawn bumblebees.
- Close the template window after printing to return to this screen.
- Set page margins to zero if you have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE, PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers).