Flat Aggie Takes on Agricultural Education

Flat Aggie took a visit to Manhattan, Kansas to Kansas Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom (KFAC). KFAC is a non-profit organization with the mission to “connect classrooms to Kansas agriculture.” To do this, KFAC provides resources to teachers to help students learn more about agriculture and better integrate agriculture into the classroom. 

 

To get the day started, Flat Aggie visited the KFAC website to look at all the resources that they offer for FREE to educators. After looking at lesson plans, Kansas Kids Connection magazines and other materials, Flat Aggie decided she was interested in learning and educating others about the different crops in Kansas.

We wanted to show Flat Aggie some of the lesson plans that involve crops. She got to read about our Corn Calculations, Poptastic Grain Sorghum and Wheat Germination Necklace lesson plans and pick one to complete today. Flat Aggie was really interested in the Wheat Germination Necklace lesson because it shows how wheat germinates and she got a cool necklace to wear. Aggie created a kernel kid necklace that allows her to watch the wheat germinate and grow.

Next, Flat Aggie wanted to learn more about the resources KFAC has about Kansas Crops. She found a Soybean Plant Part labeling poster where she could test her knowledge of the soybean plant and learn more about each part.

While Flat Aggie was waiting for us to print her a ton of resources to take home, she started reading our “Beyond the Beef Barn” Kansas Kids Connection magazine. She learned how beef is taken from pasture to plate as well as all of the fun products she uses every day that are made from beef. 

 

            After learning all about Kansas crops and beef, Flat Aggie learned a little about KFAC’s Agri-tag. The Agri-tag is a specialty tag that anyone can buy to put on their vehicles to support Kansas Agriculture. People with Agri-tags are helping support the future of Kansas agriculture by making sure teachers have access to free resources provided by KFAC.

After a long day of learning about Kansas agriculture, Flat Aggie was excited to head home and share all of the great resources KFAC has to offer with all of her friends. She is excited to share all the ways that we can bring agriculture to the classroom!

Flat Aggie Learns About Soil Testing

I made the trip to North Central Kansas today, where spring has finally arrived! With spring comes farmers looking to getting their fields ready for the upcoming planting season. I tagged along with farmer Stephen to learn more about soil testing and what goes into keeping the soil healthy to grow food.

Did you know farmers can test their soil to find out just what it needs to grow healthy crops? That is just what we did! The first step in this process is to collect a soil sample. Farmer Stephen and his son Kyan took me out to the field. They used a long stick called a probe to collect the soil sample.

 They stuck the probe in the ground, twisted it, and pulled it out to get the sample.

 


They then put the soil into a bucket. They took several samples from the field.

Once the samples were collected, we were off to the local Agronomy sales center to deliver our soil samples. We put the soil into little bags and labeled them so they can be sent to the soil lab to be tested.  The soil lab will test the nutrients in the soil and the soil PH, so that Farmer Stephen knows what kind of fertilizer the fields need.

Here is what the results will look like!

I learned that the soil acts like a bank for the nutrients. When crops grow and are harvested, they take some of those nutrients, which then need to be replenished. That is why farmers add fertilizer to their fields. Farmers are making sure their soil is healthy to grow healthy and nutritious food for you to eat!  Farmers take pride in being great stewards of their land. They like to make sure that they apply the fertilizer using 4R principles. That means they apply the fertilizer at the right time, right rate, right place and right source. The right time means they apply the fertilizer at the time that the plant can use the nutrients. The right rate means they apply the amount of fertilizer that the plants need and don’t give it too much or too little. Right place means they apply it where the plants can use it, meaning close to the roots. The right source means that the correct type of fertilizer is being used.

After learning all about the soil and the 4Rs, I got to go take a ride in the sprayer. Wow, it was big!  I learned about all the cool gadgets like this GPS system. Did you know GPS could actually help a farmer? The soil test results come back with the location of the samples and can be put into a computer program, which can show what part of the field needs what amount and type of fertilizer. The program acts like a prescription for how much fertilizer needs to be applied and where. That prescription is then loaded into the GPS, so that the farmers can make sure the fertilizer is being applied where it is needed.

It was a great day learning about the importance of soil and how fertilizer can help keep the soil healthy. It was crazy to learn about all the technology that helps farmer Stephen keep his soil healthy and play his role in feeding the world!

Teachers can find FREE soil science curriculum meeting Next Generation Science Standards at our website www.nutrientsforlife.org

Flat Aggie Discovers Ag Communication Careers

For our last visit with Aggie, we got to see a different part of agriculture. We all know about ranchers and farmers, but what about those who help these farmers and ranchers get their story out to the world? What about those who are behind getting to explain what those careers are all about? There are all sorts of jobs in agriculture! You don’t even have to be on the farm. Aggie got to learn all about a whole different section of the agriculture industry: agricultural communication. Kansas Wheat is a great example of what a person can do in agricultural communications.

The people out here in the tractors need somebody to support them and promote what they do to other people. So we put Flat Aggie to work and had her interview one of our farmers.

Aggie was able to use one of the computers to get to work. She took the information from her interview with the farmer and will make it into a full story so more people can get to know about the people who feed the world.

Next, Aggie needed to put together some important facts about wheat into a pretty booklet. This helps people learn more about the food they eat. In the booklet, it will feature the story she wrote about the farmer.

Aggie got to take some photos while on the farm. This will look great in her little booklet, but first she needs to adjust the lighting and change the photo into a format that can be used. Looking great Aggie! You have a good eye!

Aggie wants to include some information about what is happening in politics related to agriculture, trade and other factors that can affect wheat farmers. She turns to the news and-hey- with a career in communications she could be the one giving the report!

Aggie finished up her booklet and was very happy with how it looks. She sent it to have it edited and printed so her friends can read and learn all about wheat. Thanks to communicators like Aggie, now people will know more about the food they eat and the people who grow the food.

And don’t forget, no matter what you’re interested in, there’s a career in agriculture just for you? Do you like computers and technology? You can be a programmer that works on cutting-edge precision agriculture tools. Want to be a lawyer? You can specialize in ag law or even talk to folks on Capitol Hill about farm issues! Like art, design or writing? You can be just like Aggie and be an ag communicator.