Lesson video

Hi everybody.

I'm Mrs. Lomas.

I'm a primary school teacher that loves geography so I'm very, very excited to be learning all about geography today with you.

I have had a sneaky peek and this lesson, it's got something to do with food.

So I'm very excited because I love food.

So should we find out exactly what we're going to do today? So today we're going to be looking at foods from tropical rainforests.

Exciting.

By the end of today, you'll be able to list some tropical rainforest food products, describe the conditions necessary to grow them and explain how these products are exported around the world.

We have some key words in today's lesson.

They are rainforest product, trade.

So let's do my turn, your turn.

Are you ready? Rainforest product.

Trade.

Well done.

Let's see what those words mean, shall we? Rainforest products come from the resources found in the rainforest and include food, medicines, and furniture.

Trade is the buying and selling of goods and services between people, companies, and countries.

Today our lesson is split into three parts.

Where does our food come from? What foods are found in tropical rainforests? And what is trade? So let's start with where does our food come from? Some of the things we eat and drink come from the UK.

Some of them come from other parts of the world.

Which of these foods do you think come from the UK and which do you think come from other countries? And why do you think this? Pause the video, have a class discussion and then come back.

So, different foods grow better in different climates and environments.

Some food comes from the tropical climate zone.

The climate here is hot and humid with high rainfall.

Some food comes from the temperate climate zone, and the climate here has moderate temperatures and rainfall.

And here we have a map that shows the different climate zones.

And if we look at the key, we can see that temperate, deciduous forest.

So temperate climate zone is like the light turquoisey green and tropical rainforest is the dark green.

So if you can find the UK on your map, you can see what colour that is.

And that is temperate, deciduous forest.

And then the dark green is tropical rainforest.

So complete the missing words.

The climate in regions is hot and humid with high rainfall.

The climate in regions has moderate temperatures and rainfall.

Pause the video, have a go, and then come back and check your answers.

How did you get on? So the climate in tropical regions is hot and humid with high rainfall and the climate in temperate regions has moderate temperatures and rainfall.

So well done if you got that correct.

Okay.

Task one.

We are going to sort the items in the shopping bag into those you think were grown in tropical regions and those you think were grown in temperate regions.

Discuss the reasons for your choices.

So have a go, have a really good discussion, and then come back and we'll have a look at what was in my shopping bag and how they were sorted, okay? How did you do? So in my shopping bag, I had some broccoli, some porridge oats, some potatoes and an onion that were grown in a temperate climate zone.

And then from the tropical climate zone, I have pineapple, rice, banana, and I have chocolate because cacao beans, which are used to make chocolate, are grown in tropical areas.

And these are some of the reasons for my choices.

I've seen the country of origin on the packaging of some of these foods at home.

So my bananas had a little sticker on that told me where they were from.

I also know that bananas need a hot climate to grow.

And I know that my grandmother grows potatoes in her garden, so I know that they're temperate.

'Cause I know from that map that we live in a temperate climate zone.

Can you think of any other foods that are grown in tropical regions or temperate regions? Pause the video, gather your ideas, and then come back.

How did you get on? Could you think of more temperate ones because we live in a temperate area? Or did you actually manage to do more tropical ones? I wonder.

So we've had a look at where does our food come from? Now we're going to have a look at what foods are found in tropical rainforests.

The Amazon rainforest is a tropical rainforest.

Lots of foods grow in tropical rainforests.

So you can see, can't you? There are lots and lots and lots of different types of trees.

You can see the different greens, the different shape of leaves and the different heights.

And lots of those will actually be producing fruit, growing fruit or nuts or other things that is can be used to create our food.

So let's find out, shall we, what they are? Coffee plants can be grown under the shade of the rainforest canopy.

Chocolate is made using beans from the cacao trees and these trees grow in the understory of the rainforest.

So did you know that that's what coffee looks like before it's turned into the coffee that your parents might drink? Or some adults at home that might drink that? And who knew that that is what chocolate looks like to begin with? Most of the bananas we eat come from plantations, but banana plants also grow wild in the rainforest.

And Brazil nuts come from tall trees found in the rainforest canopy.

I was really shocked the first time I saw a picture of bananas growing in the wild.

I did not know they grew upwards.

I thought they would kind of hang downwards, you know? 'Cause when you pick up the bunch, don't you? You pick it up from the top and it hangs down.

I did not know bananas grow upwards.

And can you see there outta the bottom of the banana? It looks like there's a little flower.

So actually a little flower does come out of the banana flower of the bottom of your banana.

Except is it the bottom? If they grow that way up? In which case would that not be the top of the banana.

So do we open bananas from the bottom? Oh, that's a bit confusing, isn't it? (Mrs. Lomas laughs) Pineapples originated in South America but are now grown in tropical countries all over the world.

And pepper is a vine that can be found growing up and around trees in the rainforest.

And can you see the seeds there on the pepper tree? And can you see some of them look darker and more wrinkly? And they've dried out.

And when they've dried out, that's what you then grind up to make pepper.

So if any of you have an actual pepper grinder at home, you will find the peppercorns they're called.

So the full balls, the full seeds inside and it gets ground up into that powder.

I'm not saying go home and ruin your pepper and get it all over the kitchen.

You might want to ask an adult first before you look and make a mess.

I don't want to be getting a lot of angry phone calls from people with pepper all over their kitchen, okay? (Mrs. Lomas chuckles) So which of these foods come from a plant that can be found growing in tropical rainforests? There might be more than one.

Pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back and check.

How did you get on? Hopefully you said B and C.

So Brazil nuts and chocolate.

Which of these foods come from a plant that can be found growing in tropical rainforests? So now let's have a look at some more fruits and foods and pause the video, collect your answers and come back and check.

How did you get on? Hopefully you said A and D, pineapples and bananas.

Okay, so task two.

On your world map, locate and label the example country of source for each of the foods.

Mangoes grow in tropical regions in countries such as India.

So you need to find India and label it on your map.

Cocoa beans grow in tropical areas in countries such as Cote d'Ivoire, okay? And Brazil nuts grow in tropical regions in countries such as Bolivia.

Pineapples grow in tropical regions in countries such as the Philippines.

And coffee beans grow in tropical regions in countries such as Brazil.

Rice grows in tropical regions in countries such as Indonesia.

So you need to find those six countries and label them on your map.

And then also, what do you notice about where these countries are located? You can, you might want to discuss your answer or even write it on your map.

Have a go, come back, and we'll have a look at an example that I've done.

How did you get on? So hopefully, you found these countries here.

So let's start in South America where you've got Brazil and Bolivia.

And if we move over to Africa, we've got Cote d'Ivoire, which is on the coast.

The Cote is the French word for coast.

And then if we move across to Asia, we've got India and then across, further across more eastern into Asia, Philippines, and Indonesia.

And I noticed that all or large parts of these countries were located near the equator and between the tropics.

The countries were located in the continents of Africa, Asia, and South America.

So if you made a mistake or you missed a country off or you want to add in something that I noticed, that you also noticed and forgot to write down, now is your chance to do it.

Well done.

I want you to have a think.

How is climate change affecting where foods are grown? I want you to have a little think, pause the video, have a class discussion and then we'll move on.

Okay, so we've looked at where our food comes from.

We've looked at what foods are found in tropical rainforest.

Now we're going to look at what is trade.

So, trade is the exchange of goods and services.

You can have trade between people, you can have trade between countries.

Have you ever traded anything with someone? Pause the video, collect your ideas with the class and then come back.

How did you do? I would guess that some of you might have said Pokemon cards, maybe? Trading goods involves imports and exports.

Goods and services sent to be sold in other countries are called exports.

So they're leaving their country, so they're exiting their country.

So it's exports.

That's how I remember it anyway, it might help you.

Imports are goods and services bought by a country from elsewhere.

Steel is one of the UK's exports.

Can you think of something else the UK exports? Pause the video, have a class discussion, and then come back and we'll move on.

How did you get on? Let's see, shall we? So trade is an important way for countries and people to make money.

People and countries have been trading for thousands of years.

Why might a country import things from other countries? Pause the video, have a class discussion, and then come back when you're ready.

How did you get on? My first thought was, of course we have to import things from other countries because for foods, for example, they might not grow in a temperate climate.

Can you imagine if we didn't import cocoa beans to make chocolate? Oh, or pineapple for our fruit salads? Oh.

Did you come up with some other reasons as well? So let's have a look, shall we? There are different reasons why a country might import goods or services from other countries.

It might not be possible to grow, make, or provide them in a country.

Which is what I was thinking, wasn't it? Imports might actually be cheaper, and imports might be better quality.

Why do you think the UK imports bananas? Pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back.

How did you get on? We can't grow bananas can we, in our climate? Because they grow in a tropical climate and we live in a temperate area.

So let's do a check.

Bananas are one of the UK's main exports.

True or false? And justify your answer using either A, bananas grow in a tropical climate.

The UK has a temperate climate.

Or B, bananas grow well in the UK's temperate climate.

So true or false, and justify your answer with A or B.

Bananas are one of the UK's main exports.

Pause the video, gather your answers, and then come back when you're ready.

How did you get on? If you said that it was false because A, bananas grow in a tropical climate and the UK has a temperate climate, you would be correct.

Well done.

Goods are transported between places and countries in different ways, such as by ship, road, rail, and air.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of these different transport methods? I want you to pause the video, have a class discussion, and then come back when you're ready.

How did you get on? Did some of you think maybe it might be quite polluting to transport goods by air or by car, by road? Is there maybe one that is a more sustainable way a better way for the environment to transport it? Rainforest products are very important exports for countries in tropical regions.

Foods aren't the only products that come from tropical rainforests.

Rubber and wood are also important exports.

And that picture there is actually, it's a rubber tree and they're actually collecting the rubber.

So rubber, natural rubber is actually a type of tree sap.

So rubber trees, yes, there are rubber trees.

I know, mad isn't it? But there are rubber trees.

And what they do is this sustainable, traditional way of collecting natural rubber.

They will put a gash in the tree bark so that the sap runs out and they put a bowl at the bottom underneath to collect it and then they'll let the tree recover and they'll move the bowl around and put another gash in the tree.

So it actually allows the tree to survive.

It allows the tree to keep growing.

So there's no deforestation.

You might have rubber plantations or you might just have people that go out into the rainforest and find naturally growing rubber trees.

But yes, I did not know before I learned all about the rainforest, that rubber trees were a thing.

Who knew? (Mrs. Lomas laughs) So can you think of any other products that come from tropical rainforests? I want you to pause the video, make a list as a class and then come back.

How did you get on? Hopefully you had lots.

Okay, let's do a little check.

Name one way in which exports might be transported between countries.

So I want you to turn to your talk partner and tell them one way.

And they're going to tell you a different way than you said.

You can't say the same one.

So if your partner thinks of the same one as you, I'm afraid you're gonna have to think of another one.

Okay? Have a go.

Pause the video, come back and we'll check the answers.

How did you get on? They can go by sea, by boat, by road, so lorries, vans, by rail or by air, by planes.

Well done.

So task three.

You are going to find things that have been imported from other countries.

These might be food, items of clothing, electronic items or other things.

And you're going to write a list of the items and their countries of origin.

So you've got a table, you're gonna write down what the item is and the country of origin.

So it might be your pencil case is from Japan.

Okay? There will be a label somewhere on most things that tell you where it comes from.

Have a go.

Okay? See what you can find in your classroom and around the school if you're allowed.

Okay? And then come back.

And we'll have a look at some examples that I found.

Okay, how would you get on? So I found that the school, a school jumper that had been made in Bangladesh, I found some oranges for snack time that have been made in Spain or grown in Spain, and a football that had been made in Pakistan.

Did you find similar things, similar countries, or did you find lots of different things? So let's have a summary, shall we? We've been learning about foods from tropical rainforests.

Some food products grow in temperate climate zones while others grow in tropical climate zones.

Some food products are found in tropical rainforests and we can see there Brazil nuts, chocolate because of the cacao beans, pineapples, and bananas that grow upside down.

Or are we holding them upside down? (Mrs. Lomas laughs) Trade is the exchange of goods and services.

Rainforest food products are important export crops and are exported around the world.

Well done everybody for your really hard work today.

I found that really interesting.

I think it's fascinating to find out where our food comes from.

You might want to go home and have a look at some food labels as well to discover where all your food comes from in your cupboards and your fridge.

But please don't make a mess in your kitchens.

I don't wanna get in trouble, okay? Don't forget to do your exit quiz, just to double check if there's anything you need to recap before next lesson and I will see you ready for the next lesson.

Bye.