The Hole in the Hive

I recently had the great pleasure of visiting Hucknall National Church of England Primary School, where I gave a presentation about writing to the Year Four children.

The main theme of the morning was stories written from an animal’s viewpoint. Part of the session was a workshop, during which we wrote a story together about a honey bee called Buzz.

And here it is.

The Hole in the Hive

by Year 4, Hucknall National Church of England Primary School (with a little help from Graham Edwards)

Buzz woke up in a panic. If he didn’t get all the honey in the hive stored safely by nightfall, the Queen Bee would be cross. Tomorrow was the most important day of her reign – the day of her Golden Jubilee.

Outside, the storm that had started in the night was getting worse. Buzz hoped the skies would clear in time for the Jubilee.

Despite the weather, Buzz’s friend Zak led all the other bees out into the fields to collect the nectar. Buzz stayed in the hive to make sure the honey was safe. But there was a problem. Each time Buzz looked, there was less and less honey in the store.

When he investigated, Buzz found a hole in the hive. All the honey was running out! It was then that Buzz saw Bully.

‘Why are you stealing the Queen’s honey?’ said Buzz.

‘Can I help it if I’m hungry?’ said Bully, honey dripping from his mouth. He flew away laughing.

By now, the bees were returning from the fields. Buzz called a meeting.

‘Get some leaves,’ he said. ‘We’ve got to plug the hole in the hive.’

While the bees worked to mend the hole, thunder crashed in the sky. A bolt of lightning jabbed down out of nowhere. It was heading straight for Buzz. Zak flew in front of Buzz, saving his life. But the lightning zapped poor Zak to a crisp.

‘Save the honey, Buzz,’ said Zak. And he died.

A second bolt of lightning crashed down. This one hit the hive. Now there were two holes to deal with!

‘Come on!’ shouted Buzz. ‘We can’t let Zak die in vain!’

Suddenly, Buzz heard screams from the Queen’s chamber. While they’d been busy plugging the hole, Bully had sneaked up on the Queen. Buzz rushed in to find Bully snatching the crown off her head.

‘Stop!’ shouted Buzz.

The two bees fought, using their stings like swords. Bully jabbed at Buzz’s legs, but Buzz was too quick for him. Finally, Buzz poked Bully on the bottom. Bully flew away screaming, out into the storm. A third bolt of lightning shot from the sky and zapped him all the way over the horizon. He was never seen again.

The storm passed. The next day was bright and clear. The first thing the Queen did to celebrate was to reward Buzz with a golden pot of honey.

‘Thank you, Buzz,’ she said. ‘I name you Jubilee Bee.’

And, for the rest of that very special day, the whole hive was buzzing.

THE END

I hope you enjoyed the story of Buzz and the hole in the hive. If you’re one of the children who helped write it, well done! It just remains for me to thank Mr Barwell, Mrs Penniston and Mrs Youngman for letting me loose in their school, and special thanks to all the children who made it such a wonderful day.