How it works
These writing prompts about bees start inside the hive, where few bee stories go: a queen with no day off, a drone who wonders what he is for, a huddle on the coldest night of winter.
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Bee writing prompts that dance
Fifteen prompts are about the waggle dance alone, a figure-eight that gives the way to flowers. A run straight up the comb points toward the sun. Write it as a dance class, a contest for the crowd or a sports commentary.
Pollination in the fact lines
Thirty-five prompts carry a fact from Wikipedia or National Geographic Kids. The last group is fair to both sides: wheat, corn and rice are pollinated by wind or by themselves, and people in the Americas kept native bees before honey bees crossed the ocean in 1622.
- Watch one bee on a flower from a few steps back before a Day as a worker prompt. Note every stop it makes.
Questions and answers
What is a good writing prompt about a bee?
One with a job in it. A bee is sent for water on a hot day: write the trip to the edge of a pond and back. The fact under it says foragers really do this.
What is the waggle dance?
A figure-eight dance a honey bee does to tell others the direction and distance of flowers, water or a new nest site, Wikipedia's waggle dance article says. A longer waggle run means a farther target.
What do bees do in winter?
Honey bees crowd into a winter cluster around the queen and shiver to keep its center warm, taking turns on the cold outside, Wikipedia's honey bee article says. Stored honey and pollen feed them.
Do all bees live in hives?
No. Wikipedia's bee article says over 90 percent of bee species are solitary, such as mason bees and leafcutter bees. One prompt has a worker bee meet a bee who lives alone in a hole in the ground.