What If There Were No Bees?

by Suzanne Slade, Carol Schwartz (Illustrator)

Grassland ecosystems can be found on nearly every continent. Countless animals and plants live in them. So what difference could the loss of one animal species make? Follow the chain reaction, and discover how important honey bees are.

Genres: Picture Books, Nonfiction, Science, Environment, Animals, Nature, Childrens

24 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2010

About the author

Sibert honoree author of more than 150 books for chlldren.

Reviews

[Chelsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"What If There Were No Bees?: A Book About the Grassland Ecosystem" by Suzanne Slade is an educational book that explores the vital role bees play in our environment, particularly in grassland ecosystems. The author presents the information in a way that's engaging and accessible for children, making complex concepts easy to grasp.

I liked that the illustrations are vibrant. Each page introduces important facts about bees and their interactions which is nice as a teaching tool.

This book would be an excellent to help create a sense of responsibility towards nature and highlights the importance of preserving these essential creatures.

[Monika · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoughtful, beautifully illustrated journey into the heart of the grassland ecosystem

What If There Were No Bees? offers a thoughtful and eye-opening exploration of the vital role bees play in the delicate balance of grassland ecosystems. Through clear, accessible language and engaging illustrations, Suzanne Slade and Carol Schwartz take readers on a journey that connects the dots between tiny pollinators and the larger web of life. The book encourages children to imagine the profound effects of bees disappearing - showing how plants, animals, and even humans depend on these industrious insects in ways we might overlook.
One of the most powerful aspects of this book is how it moves beyond just bees to show the broader food chain and ecosystem dynamics. It gently introduces the concept of cause and effect in nature, helping young readers grasp that every creature, no matter how small, has a meaningful part to play. For me, this approach resonates deeply as an illustrator and storyteller, reminding me how crucial it is to embed interconnectedness in my own work, where relationships between characters and environment build a richer narrative.
Visually, the illustrations balance realism with whimsy, making the grassland world come alive with vibrant colors and expressive details. This invites children not only to learn but to feel connected to the landscape and its inhabitants. The book ultimately inspires curiosity and respect for nature’s intricate systems, making it a valuable addition to any child’s library - especially on a day like World Bee Day, when celebrating pollinators feels more urgent than ever.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this incredibly information book on why bees are so important, the author takes us through a journey of all the ways bees help our world. From pollinating flowers and making honey, to the relationship bees have with nature's food chain, this book teaches children not only about bees, but the importance of keeping them alive and healthy on our planet forever. Without bees, our world wouldn't be what it is today.

I discovered this book in the beginning semesters at New Paltz for a text set, and I ended up using this book for a unit of study in the spring time during my fieldwork. I not only love the illustrations and the information this book has to offer, but the way it is delivered as well. It not only captures my attention each time I read it, but it was a favorite bookshelf item for my students after we read it in a whole group.

I would relate this book to would be "My Busy Green Garden." I made this connection because of the emphasis on the lifecycles, food chains, and overall harmony that all living things create when living together in one ecosystem in both of these books.

"Sometimes a plant or animal species is so important that without it, many other species could become extinct. It is called a keystone species. Bees are a keystone species."

[Sarah Childs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: This book teaches readers about grassland ecosystems and their significance. It follows the chain reaction of what would happen if a species, even as little as the honeybee, were to disappear from the ecosystem.

Review: This book contains a good amount of information about the grassland ecosystem which exists in almost every continent and what would happen if the honeybee disappeared. The book uses a variety of text features to educate young readers in an entertaining way.

Books to pair with: What If There Were No Gray Wolves? A Book About the Temperate Forest Ecosystem by Suzanne Buckingham Slade, and I Am a Bee by Rebecca McDonald

'Delicious' quote: "Don't be fooled by a bee's size. It's tiny compared to the foxes, skunks, and owls that share its grassland home. But bees do the work of giants! Bees spend countless hours darting from flower to flower to collect pollen and nectar."

[Ashley B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book talked about how bees are a keystone species and how without them lots of animals will be effected. This book encourages the reader to think about what the world would look like without bees. Yes they are small, but they are mighty. Without bees, there are no strawberries. The pictures in the book also have blacked out figures of animals and plants that would no longer be there if there were no bees in the world. The combination of the words and the graphics help the reader to understand and visualize how great the impact of no bees would be on the world. Very informative and would be a good discussion book.

[Emily Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

What if There Were No Bees? is a interesting picture book revolving around the roles bee play in the environment. This book does a great job of teaching younger readers about the importance of this species and helps explain how they are needed in the environment. Readers get to see what would happen without these crucial insects and receive a science lesson while reading. The brightly colored illustrations draw in attention and keep students interested while they are learning, even if they don't realize it. I think this book would be great for read aloud activities and would work best for students in grades 2nd to 4th.

[Olga Gula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published 2010
Genre: Informational
Theme: Save the bees, pollination, one small insect brings big change

This was a very informative book on all that bees do for our lives and goes through scenarios of what would occur if bees were extinct. There is a lot of big vocabulary words in this book so I would have to pause as we read to make sure students are following along with the vocab. I would read this book for earth day and teach about the importance of bees and perhaps even have the students plant a bee friendly flower that they can take home and put in their garden.

[Alycia Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great informational children’s literature piece. This book goes into detail about bees and how they live, as well as their importance to our world. This book is one of four Food Chain Reaction books. In the back of the book, a glossary can be found. I found this book to be quite informational and extremely interesting! It was neat to read a book on how something so small can affect the grassland ecosystem so tremendously.

[Jasmine Stocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This entire series is very informational about the effects of a food web and if part of that web wasn't in this world anymore. Each page is filled with very factual information, which includes the "it's critical" boxes on each page full of fun facts for students. The glossary in the back aids children who don't understand a word in the book. I loved the illustrations and how they made it more impactful by blacking out the creatures affected by the extinction of bees.

[Billy Noecker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was very interesting because it posed a very important question as well as giving us background information that many students might not realize. Most people would not realize just how important bees are to our ecosystem. This book does a great job of showing us the chain of events and the things we simply would not have if bees were to be extinct. It brings about very important ecological questions that young students are learning to understand.

[Megan Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book did a fantastic job describing what all bees do and what would happen if they were no longer around. I didn't even know that the smell of mice droppings could lead to bees leaving a hive. Even at 20 years old I still learned something from this short book about bees. The critical facts were also eye openers to help students understand how critical a bee's job is. I think this book would be a great way to introduce a new subject on bees, plants, pollination, or even ecosystems.

[Bekka Pierson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Informational - This book highlighted the importance of honey bees and how much they serve us as people. Just like us, they are apart of a food chain. They also have many preditors. They are known as a keystone species and are located on every continent excpt for Antartica! I could see this book being used in my classroom to stress the importance of bees in a science lesson on food chains or ecosystems! Genre: Informational

[Raquel Schmitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does a great job of explaining what bees do, the food chain and how they are endangered, and what would happen if bees went extinct. The bees are essential to growing foods such as fruits and vegetables. Farmers need bees to be successful. Other animals would have a hard time surviving also because of the decline in food. The book does a great job of explaining and outlining why bees are needed.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published 2010
This is an information book surrounding the topic of bees. It teaches about what would happen if bees became extinct. I think it was very informative and loved the illustrations. I think this would be great in the classroom. The only thing that would concern is some of the higher vocabulary words if this was read to younger students. I still think this would be perfect for read alouds. This would allow the students to learn more about bees and ecosystems.

[Morgan Hatfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good informational text to read to children, it teaches them how bees help our world and the main purpose for them. It helps capture the students attention as well as teaching them new things. This book shows insight to the problems that animals and plants face with the potential loss of the bees. This is an important concept for students to learn. This will also show the students how important these tiny species are to the ecosystem.

[Haley Weepie]

The book, "What If There Were No Bees?" gave several examples of how the world would be different without bees. This book mainly focused on the grassland ecosystem also. Some things in the world that would be impacted were plants, animals, and fruits. I think that this book would be beneficial to use in a science class or it could be used during a save the bees unit.

[Kaitlyn Kluesner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story explains simply why bees are important to our ecosystem. Many pictures are included to help people of all ages understand the importance. My favorite part of this book was on every page they had a little section called "It's Critical" where it shared little facts on how bees and ourselves play important roles in our ecosystem.

[Sierra Dirksen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before this book, I did not realize how important bees were. I though I would be fine without them. However, this book taught be that bees are important to us in many ways. Throughout the book, it is explained the different things that would go wrong without bees. It is a book that can teach both children and adults lessons.

[Makenzie Soeken · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book walks readers through the chain of events that would potentially occur if bees became extinct. Throughout the book readers learn that bees support all kinds of life, and are good for a lot more than just making sweet and delicious honey. Readers also learn that bees are native to every continent, so a world without bees would be a world in trouble!

[Kylee Champlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This informational book was very vibrant with pictures and grabs the readers attention with those illustrations as well as the important facts. It shows what the world would be like without honeybees. I thought this showed great examples of this while keeping the reader interested with a simple storyline.

[Samantha Hansel]

Informational- this book is great for teaching students about bees and what they do for the ecosystem. The book talks about how if there are no bees than humans would struggle to grow flowers and other things. The book could be used during a bee lesson and would intrigue the students with the pictures in the book.

[Sidney McQuade · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does a great job about sharing what our world would be like without bees. It also shares the extreme importance of bees and what they do. This would be a great teaching tool for students to be more aware and cautious of animal kingdoms and the chain reaction effect that takes place when one stops functioning properly or goes extinct.

[Kristin Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great informational book that shows that even though bees are small animals, they are very important to the ecosystem and they keep many things we see daily living. Children may change their view on bees and not kill them when they see them.

[Gabrielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had a lot of interesting facts about bees! It talks about the variety of plants and animals that bees affect. It also explains what animals and plants may not be here if it weren't for bees. This book has a glossary and I think that is extremely helpful especially for young readers!

[Ibrieal · Rating 3 out of 5]

What If There No Bees? is an informative book about bees. I would incorporate this book into a lesson about the ecosystem. I would have students draw their own bees and write facts they learned in the bee and we'll hang them up around the classroom.

[Jaden]

Informational

What If There Were No Bees? This book follows a chain about how tons of other animals who live all over the continent would be affected if there were no bees. Bees play a huge roll in many other plants and animals lives.

[Abigail Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed how this book provided a lot of new information about bees and how things used by farmers and other people affect them. I also enjoyed the "it's critical" facts at the bottom of the pages. For example, I didn't know that bees were a keystone species.

[Delaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Copyright: 2010
Genre: Informational
Themes: Ecosystems

I really liked this book on how it teaches about ecosystems and especially how important bees are. With past news about bee colonies collapsing this would be a good book to help teach about what students can do to help bees.

[Sydney]

Grade Level: all
Summary: A lesson on why bees are so important to our lives and the world around us
Review: This book is an important lesson as to why bees are so important, very informative.
Class uses:
-Teaching about ecosystems
-Teaching about bees

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good book to show children how important bees are in a simple way. Definitely a good read for kids!