In order to explain photosynthesis to my 6-9 year olds at my weekly workshop, I first thought of the picture idea - making each reactant and product of photosynthesis a picture. For instance the leaf is a food factory, then there's water (raindrop), light (sun) and carbon dioxide (which comes from people breathing or car exhausts) - easy pictures to draw, and the products being glucose (a form of sugar - therefore picture is sugar cube) and oxygen (again humans need this to breath).