A Cell is like a Factory
How can a cell be like a factory???
• In a factory, you have many different tasks
being completed in the same building.
– Ex. The building supports/shelters the
workers, workers build goods, maintenance
crews clean up messes, shipping department
gets goods ready to leave the factory and so
on….
• A cell can be thought of as a "factory," with
different departments each performing
specialized tasks.
The Cell wall is like a…..
• a security Gate
– A security gate protects the factory and helps
keep it safe.
– A cell wall does the same thing for a plant
cell!
The cell membrane is like…
• Front doors
– The doors of a factory regulates what enters
and leaves the building
– A cell membrane does the same thing for
plant and animal cells!
The Nucleus is like…..
• THE BIG BOSS!! (CEO) The boss
controls all of the activity inside the cell
• The nucleus does the same thing for plant
and animal cells
Cytoplasm is like……….
• The factory floor. The floor of the factory
has all the workers, machines, equipment
on it
• Cytoplasm holds all of the organelles (cell
parts) in the plant and animal cells
Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) is
like…….
• An assembly line….(where the workers do
their work) Items move along a conveyer
belt to different parts of the plant
• ER moves items to different parts of the
cell in the same way!
Ribosomes are like….
• Workers on the assembly line…they are
responsible for building the goods in a
factory
• Ribosomes assemble (build) proteins
Vacuoles are like…..
• Break rooms- In a break room you have
storage for food items and places to get rid
of trash
• Vacuoles hold wastes and stores water in
plant and animal cells.
– Which cell has 1 large vacuole?
Lysosomes are like…..
• Maintenance/janitor crews……in a factory
these guys break down, clean up, and
repair items in and around the factory
• Lysosmes do the same thing in the cell
Mitochondria and Chloroplasts are
like…..
• Power Stations……the power station
supplies energy to the factory
• Mitochondria (animal cells) and
Chloroplasts (plant cells) do this for a cell!
Example
Your assignment
• You are going to design a factory that makes
something• You must include the organelles from the “a cell
is like a factory” worksheet
• The pictures used for the organelles must
represent their “job” as well as be specific to
your type of factory (if it is a ketchup factorythe “proteins” should be bottles of ketchup, etc.