1 out of every 3 bites of food that we eat is made possible through the work of pollinators. Plants need pollination to reproduce, and 75-95% of plants require the help of pollinators to get the job done. Pollinators come in every shape and size, and are found all over the world. But they have one thing in common: they are all facing decline due to numerous environmental factors. Now is the time to be talking about pollinators and how to help protect them!
Video Resources
Enhanced Learning Activities
Elementary
- Grades K-2 Worksheet for Conservation Pack Video/Episode 16
- Grades 3-5 Worksheet for Conservation Pack Video/Episode 16
- Pollinator Buzzzy Activity Book (University of Illinois) (Grades K-2)
- Bees vs. Frogs (Grades K-5)
- Pollen Relay Race (Grades K-5)
Middle School
- Plants and Animals: Partnership in Pollination Activity Guide (Smithsonian in Your Classroom) (Grades 4-9)
High School
- Predators and Pollinators: Smells of Danger (University of California-San Diego)
Additional Resources on POLLINATORS
- Bats: The Unsung Heroes of Plant Pollination (Bat Conservation International)
- Bee Basics: An Introduction to Our Native Bees (USDA Forest Service + Pollinator Partnership)
- Plant.Grow.Fly (Blank Park Zoo)
- ButterBike
- The Economic Challenge Posed by Declining Pollinator Populations (The White House)
- Honey Bee Health and Colony Collapse Disorder (USDA-ARS)
- Farming with Pollinators (The Xerces Society)
- Iowa Department of Natural Resources Pollinator Page
- Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium
- Making Room for Native Pollinators (United States Golf Association and The Xerces Society)
- Monarch Butterflies (Learn About Nature)
- Monarch Joint Venture
- Monarch Watch
- Pollinator LIVE: A Distance Learning Adventure
- Pollinator Press LLC (free downloadable posters)
- North American Butterfly Association
- Pollinator Partnership Learning Center
- Protecting Bees and Other Pollinators from Pesticides (USEPA)
- USDA – Natural Resources Conservation Service Insects & Pollinators Page
- U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Pollinators Page
- U.S. Forest Service Pollinators Page