The $235 Billion Insect: Why Bees Hold the World Together

This lesson, The $235 Billion Insect: Why Bees Hold the World Together, teaches students how bees connect ecosystems, agriculture, food systems, and the global economy. Students learn how pollination allows many fruits, vegetables, and seeds to grow, and why bees provide an ecosystem service worth approximately $235 billion per year. The lesson also explains the major threats facing bee populations, including pesticides, habitat loss, climate change, and parasites like the Varroa mite. Students analyze how these threats interact, how bee decline could affect farmers, businesses, and consumers, and why protecting pollinators matters for food security and economic interdependence.

What’s Included:

• Student article
• Lesson objective
• Application questions
• Hypothesis builder
• Claim-Evidence-Reasoning activity
• Data table and analysis
• Reflection questions
• Short essay
• Multiple choice questions
• True / false questions
• Vocabulary practice
• Exit ticket
• Crossword puzzle
• Word search