Ag in the Classroom 2014-2015
Each month a representative from the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension comes to meet with the students to share a day in the life of an Illinois farmer. The lessons focus on one of the "5 F's" in Ag: farming, fiber (textiles), food, forestry, or flowers. Our students love the lessons and, hopefully, have a better appreciation for the hard work that goes into the many different aspects of being a farmer.
September - baby goats
How can we top this one?
September's lesson brought two tiny visitors...Patty and Jovi. Patty and Jovi (named for 80's rockers Pat Benetar and Jon Bon Jovi) are 8 week old Boer Goats. Patty and Jovi's mother became ill and died, so this dynamic duo are bottle fed by a surrogate mommy. Our students learned they are not the only species called "kids" when they are youngsters, baby goats are too! Additionally, students were able to interact with the babies learning about their diets, susceptibility to germs, and how they progress in life. It's hard to say what their favorite part was...touching the horns and feeling how hard/sharp they are or watching them try to walk on the slick tile floor. All in all, the students loved their first experience with Ag in the Classroom.
September's lesson brought two tiny visitors...Patty and Jovi. Patty and Jovi (named for 80's rockers Pat Benetar and Jon Bon Jovi) are 8 week old Boer Goats. Patty and Jovi's mother became ill and died, so this dynamic duo are bottle fed by a surrogate mommy. Our students learned they are not the only species called "kids" when they are youngsters, baby goats are too! Additionally, students were able to interact with the babies learning about their diets, susceptibility to germs, and how they progress in life. It's hard to say what their favorite part was...touching the horns and feeling how hard/sharp they are or watching them try to walk on the slick tile floor. All in all, the students loved their first experience with Ag in the Classroom.
October - Pumpkins!
October brings the return of Autumn (or Fall) and pumpkins begin popping up everywhere! Mrs. Lamczyk brought our class a VERY large pumpkin full of seeds and fun. We listened to a story about how a pumpkin grows and got to see the inside of the pumpkin to pull out seeds for counting.
Can't wait for next month!!
November - Dairy Cows
Mrs. Lamczyk showed us video depicting life on a dairy farm. We saw how calves are fed, the significance of the information on their ear tags, how a cow is milked, and how milk is processed. She talked to us about the different kinds of cows and the different kinds of milk. She even brought us a treat! Even though we would have preferred the dairy product of ice cream, she brought us a glass of ice cold milk.
Mrs. Lamczyk showed us video depicting life on a dairy farm. We saw how calves are fed, the significance of the information on their ear tags, how a cow is milked, and how milk is processed. She talked to us about the different kinds of cows and the different kinds of milk. She even brought us a treat! Even though we would have preferred the dairy product of ice cream, she brought us a glass of ice cold milk.
December- Pigs
This month we took a look at the different varieties of pigs and learned some pig facts.
Did you know that pigs don't sweat? This is why they roll in the mud to try to cool themselves off.
Baby pigs weigh about 3-5 pounds at birth and their weight begins to double quickly!
We also learned about the different types of meat (pork) that come from pigs. Everyone decided bacon rocks!
January-Food Power
February-Beef cows
Want to play a little BEEFO? What's BEEFO?
It's BINGO with beef cows! Well, really its BINGO with products that come beef cows. Items such as gelatin, perfume, deodorant, tires, and many others are a products that contains some form of beef cow. We had an awesome time with BEEFO!
March - canceled due to snow day
April