New
New
Year 7

Pollination and human food security

I can describe the importance of pollination for food production.

New
New
Year 7

Pollination and human food security

I can describe the importance of pollination for food production.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. All consumers, including humans, depend on producers because they make all of the food for the rest of the food chain.
  2. Plants produce edible seeds and fruits after pollination (transfer pollen from the anthers of flowers to the stigma).
  3. Many plants depend on animals such as insects to pollinate them, and on animals such as birds to disperse their seeds.
  4. Because of food chains and pollination, producers and consumers are interdependent.
  5. Pollinators are important, ensuring there is food security for humans (having enough food to feed the human population).

Keywords

  • Producer - A producer is an organism that makes its own food.

  • Pollen - Grains of pollen carry genetic material between flowers to enable flowering plants to reproduce.

  • Pollination - Pollination is the process where pollen is transferred to the female organs of a plant, to enable seeds to be made.

  • Interdependent - Organisms are interdependent when they rely upon each other for their survival.

  • Food security - Food security is having enough food to feed the human population.

Common misconception

The interdependence of organisms within ecosystems arise from more than just feeding relationships.

This lesson demonstrates that feeding relationships are important and that producers often rely on consumers for reproduction.

Show pupils some food from the supermarket. For fruit and grains, ask pupils to think about where the crops grow and what pollinates the plants. For animal products, ask pupils to think about the food chain to show the link to producers.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
What role do animals take in a food chain?
producers
Correct answer: consumers
decomposers
plants
Q2.
A is the place where an organism lives.
Correct Answer: habitat
Q3.
Which of the following are examples of a microhabitat?
tropical rainforest
Correct answer: underneath a log
desert
polar ice caps
Correct answer: a temporary pool of water
Q4.
How many food chains are in the food web diagram below?
An image in a quiz
3
Correct answer: 4
5
6
7
Q5.
In the food web diagram how many primary consumers are there?
An image in a quiz
0
1
2
Correct answer: 3
4
Q6.
Starting with the producer, sort the organisms into a food chain.
1 - plant
2 - insect
3 - frog
4 - snake
5 - hawk

6 Questions

Q1.
An organism that makes its own food is called a ...
Correct Answer: producer, plant
Q2.
Which of the following statements about producers are correct?
Correct answer: Producers make all of the food for other organisms to eat
Producers are not important in providing food for humans
Producers are always at the end of a food chain diagram
Correct answer: There is always a producer in a food web diagram
Q3.
There are two main ways that plants can be pollinated. These are by the wind and by ...
Correct Answer: insects, bees, pollinators, animals
Q4.
Match the parts of a flower with their function:
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer:coloured petal,attracts insects

attracts insects

Correct Answer:stigma,is sticky to collect pollen

is sticky to collect pollen

Correct Answer:anther,makes pollen

makes pollen

Correct Answer:ovary,contains ovules that are fertilised to make seeds

contains ovules that are fertilised to make seeds

Q5.
Why is it important to conserve bees?
Bees make all of the food for the rest of the food chain.
Correct answer: Bees pollinate producers which produce food for the rest of the food chain
bees have stings which keep predators away from plants.
Q6.
Food security is...
providing humans with lots of different types of food from all over the world.
making sure that supermarkets have people in charge of security.
locking food away in case of emergencies, like floods or lockdowns.
Correct answer: having enough food to feed the human population.

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