Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration

What do cars, people,

plants, computers, and cell

phones all have in common?

​

Photosynthesis

​

ENERGY! They all need energy to work.

Cars - Gas

People - Food

Computers - Electricity

Phones - Batteries​

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Photosynthesis

​

Plants have the ability to

harness the energy of the

sun. They use the sun’s

energy and molecules they

take in to make their own

food in a process called

photosynthesis.

​

Photosynthesis

Sunlight​

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Water

In terms of “making food,” the ingredients that the plant uses are 1) sunlight, 2) water, and 3) carbon dioxide. The food-making takes place in the chloroplast of the plant cell, and the food that is made is glucose.

Carbon Dioxide

Roots draw water into the

plant, and the water travels

through vessels called

xylem to get to the leaves.

Next

Carbon dioxide, the gas

that people exhale, enters

into the leaf through

openings called stomata.​

First

The energy from sunlight

splits the water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen gas. The

oxygen is released from the leaf and exits through the stomata.

Inside the chloroplast,

chlorophyll (a green

substance) traps sunlight.

Then

The hydrogen gets combined with the carbon dioxide, making glucose​. The plant will keep the glucose for energy, and store the extra glucose as starch in its leaves, fruit, or roots.

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Last

Photosynthesis

All plants are producers, meaning they perform photosynthesis to make their own food, but some other organisms that are not plants can too. Algae are protists, meaning they​ have no true leaves, stems,

or roots, but they do have chlorophyll in chloroplasts for photosynthesis.

Why is this important?

Photosynthesis is critical for the survival of most organisms. You will find producers at the beginning of every food chain, creating energy for all organisms in the chain. Photosynthesis also returns oxygen to the atmosphere and removes carbon dioxide, which can be deadly in high concentrations.