New York Agriculture in the Classroom | June 2019
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Important Dates:

June 11-14- Meat Your Beef Tours (Various Locations)

June 18-21- National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference in Arkansas

August 22- Agriculture Career Day at the NYS Fair

August 26- Maple Day at the NYS Fair 

March 16-20- Agricultural Literacy Week
News
Announcing the 2020 
Agricultural Literacy Week Book
New York Agriculture in the Classroom is pleased to share that the title " Right This Very Minute:  A table-to-farm book about food and farming" by Lisl H. Detlefsen has been selected at the 2020 Agricultural Literacy Week book!

This book follows children through a day of meals, snacks, and desserts to explore what farmers are doing, "right this very minute". Featuring foods grown in New York, this book will answer their questions about how the food on their plates are produced.  

Agricultural Literacy week will take place March 16-20, 2020. Find out more information on our website
National Conference Scholarship Winners 
Announced!
Rice, bees, agricultural industry, diamonds, Temple Grandin, and more will be the focus of this year's National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference in Little Rock, Arkansas. New York Agriculture in the Classroom has dedicated scholarship funding to provide sixteen New York teachers the opportunity to attend the premier professional development conference about teaching through a lens of food and agriculture. The scholarship is valued at over $1,200 for each winner. Thirteen  classroom teachers and three Cornell Cooperative Extension educators were awarded scholarships. To view the full list of recipients or the press release, visit our  website
Schoolyard Sugaring Contest Winners Announced!
New York Agriculture in the Classroom and the New York State Maple Foundation are pleased to announce the winners of the second annual Schoolyard Sugaring: Maple Syrup Contest. In this contest, students and teachers were exposed to the time, patience, and science it takes to turn sap into syrup by participating in every step of the maple syrup production process from tapping the trees to bottling the syrup.  Fourty-four entries in three divisions were submitted for judging by a panel of maple producers and experts.  To view the winners and see the winning photographs, visit our website.
Agriculture Career Day at the Great New York State Fair
Are you or your students interested in learning more about the wide range and variety of careers available in agriculture. The New York State Fair will be your one-stop shop for learning all about the many places agriculture can take you on Thursday , August 22nd . This event is sponsored by the Department of Labor and New York Agriculture in the Classroom, with help from FFA chapters from across the state. Join us for a scavenger hunt and other fun activities throughout the day!
Maple Day at the Great New York State Fair
Mark you calendars for  Monday, August 26th  if you're interested in learning all about Maple Syrup! Across the New York State Fairgrounds displays, interactive activities, and tastings will be set up to share the experience of maple production. We will also be celebrating the winners of the annual Schoolyard Sugaring contest with an awards ceremony, co-sponsored by the New York State Maple Foundation. 
Food and Farm Experience
This year's FFX will be held on October 16-18, in Corning, NY, and will be packed with essential and useful information about agriculture. Participants will meet with industry experts, employers, and post-secondary educators. Organized tours will showcase a variety of stops along the journey from farm to fork and provide insights for the multitude of career opportunities available in the agricultural industry.   The participants for FFX are selected through a nomination/application process. A fillable pdf application and more information is available from www.nyfbfoundation.org . Deadline for submission is July 12, 2019

School Garden Grant Opportunity
Does your school have a school garden at the elementary or middle school level? The Emeril Lagasse Foundation is seeking applicants for a new  five-year grant program with money going toward maintaining and expanding existing school gardens, building out teaching kitchens and training teachers.  Interested schools should submit a letter of interest and then qualified schools will be sent additional application information. Letters of Interest are due August 1, 2019

Call for Applications- New York State Farm to School Institute 2019 - 2020
The 2019 - 2020 NYS Farm to School Institute offers a comprehensive learning opportunity for food service staff, educators, administrators, and community partners in New York schools to develop and refine their Farm to School programs, and to help bring more New York grown food into the cafeteria and the classroom. This inaugural state-specific Institute is an annual year-long training and continuing education program. Six New York school teams will participate in a three-day Summer Retreat in Rhinebeck, NY to kick-off the year followed by a one-day Fall gathering in the Hudson Valley. Apply here:  https://finys.org/institute

Teacher Resources
Beescape.org provides a tool for beekeepers, gardeners, growers and land managers to assess the quality of their landscapes for supporting managed honey bees and wild bees. This resource can be used to teach about bees and pollination or support a school apiary. 
KNOW: The Future of Farming
KNOW explores of the future of farming in a digital world. Big data, machine learning, smart-connected equipment, the Internet-of-Things and autonomous technologies allow us to understand fields and crops at the macro level -and all the way down to a single row in the middle of a massive field. This video is a great way to connect technology and agriculture for your students. 

Elementary Resources
Animal or Plant?
Nearly all of the food we eat each day comes from either a plant or an animal. In this lesson students will learn about the sources of different foods by differentiating between foods originating from plants and foods originating from animals. Students in Kindergarten through second grade will enjoy this lesson as they discuss where their foods come from. 

Tomato Trivia
Did you know the United States is ranked second in the production of tomatoes, after China? Using tomatoes as a theme, the K-2 students will practice their math and science skills of estimating, measuring, counting, graphing and sequencing in this lesson

Caring for the Land
In this lesson, students will explain why people have different opinions regarding soil management and identify cause and effect relationships relating to agriculture and the environment. Students in grades 3-5 will learn how farmers actively manage soil, water, plants, and animals. 
Horse and Rider
Students will explore the role that horses have played in culture and history by learning about draft horses in agriculture and mapping Pony Express stations across the state of Utah in this lesson

Middle School/ High School Resources
Aeroponic Engineering and Vertical Farming
Students will use the  Engineering Design Process  to develop and construct an aeroponic garden to grow a food crop in this lesson for grades 6-8. Students will develop and apply an understanding of plant anatomy and physiology related to plant growth and ultimately discuss the possibilities and limitations of using vertical farming to produce our food.
Eggs on the Menu
Students will learn the versatility, function, and nutritional benefit of eggs in a healthy diet, identify the function and role of eggs in a recipe, identify forms of technology used on an egg farm, and understand how eggs are classified by size. This lesson is recommended for students I grades 6-8. 
Fast-Food Footwork
In this lesson, students will explore how retail foodservice establishments ensure that food is safely stored, prepared, and served. Through inquiry they will also learn about local health regulations and how the 4 Cs of Food Safety apply to all aspects of foodservice.

Melons, Mitosis and Meiosis
Students will apply the steps of mitosis and meiosis to learn about the production of both seeded and seedless watermelon. Students will learn about the discovery of colchicine, which made seedless watermelon possible and use modeling clay and beans to model meiosis and mitosis. This lesson  can be paired with the Seedless Watermelon YouTube video which details how seedless fruits are grown.  
June Book Nook
Achoo! Why Pollen Counts
A picture book teaching children about pollen, the pollination process, and bees.  The story follows a baby bear who is allergic to pollen. He learns how pollen is used by other insects and animals such as spiders, butterflies, honey bees, hummingbirds, and more. This book can be added as an extension for lessons about flowers and pollination to help students see additional benefits and uses of pollen.
Corn in the Story of Agriculture
This book introduces readers to the five stages of corn as it makes its way from farm to table; production, processing, distribution, marketing and consumerism. Each stage is presented in an easy-to ready chapter that includes graphs and colorful pictures. Full of vocabulary, fun facts and corn activity ideas.
Agronomy - Grow with It!
Agronomy Grow with It!  explores the science of agriculture. Agronomy is the science we use to grow the crops that feed us, feed our livestock, and even fuel our cars. It's a science that tackles the big challenge of our future: How can we grow enough food to end world hunger and, at the same time, adapt to a changing climate and protect our environment? This book introduces you to 20 real agronomists who face that challenge every day.
New York Agriculture in the Classroom |  nyaitc@cornell.edu
  http://www.agclassroom.org/ny
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Cornell University
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