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A to Z Activity Booklet
Explore agriculture and food through the alphabet. Through engaging facts and fun activities, youth will develop their agriculture and food vocabulary.
Art in Agriculture
This theme-based approach to visual art curriculum is an opportunity for students to learn about New Brunswick’s agricultural industry while being creative and strategizing with the elements and principles of art.
Career Profiles in Agriculture- Research and Development
Showcasing how research and development supports farmers, we travelled to Shippagan, NB to visit Valores to learn about what they do to support their local farmers. There are many different types of careers in agriculture, research and development is one important one.
Composting with Worms
Welcome to the Composting with Worms Activity Kit! Get ready to dive into the fascinating world of vermicomposting with a variety of engaging activities suitable for all grade levels. From interactive games and hands-on exploration to comprehensive lesson plans, this kit offers a comprehensive learning experience covering topics that fit into social studies, science, and more! Perfectly paired with our upcoming virtual field trip on May 7th, let's dig in and explore the magic of composting with worms together!"
Fresh Stories
The new BC-AITC Fresh Stories provide education and activities related to BC grown fruits and vegetables (such as plums, kiwifruit, peaches, blueberries, tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers) and milk products for kindergarten to grade 9 students.
Kareero
Kareero is a one-of-a-kind interactive interest assessment tool. Through the in-app development of a school gardening program, Kareero tracks your choices and actions to reveal your interest areas. Used in conjunction with Agriculture in the Classroom Canada’s thinkAG website, Kareero helps you explore careers that match your interests.
Real Farm Lives: Turnips, Carrots and Potatoes
Drawing from CropLife’s Real Farm Lives videos, which follows the McKennas, a multigenerational Prince Edward Island farm family, these interactive and engaging resources on carrots, turnips and potatoes aim to help Grade 10 and 11 students explore the value of Canada’s agriculture and food system. The resource includes a lesson plan on each of the featured vegetables, including a presentation and recipe.
Seedy Scavenger Hunt
Take your students outside on an outdoor scavenger hunt to find as many different types of seeds as they can! Prior to the scavenger hunt students will learn about seeds, seed germination, and varying ways that seeds are dispersed throughout the environment. The lesson ends with a creative activity that has students imagine a seed growing into a plant.
Worm Garden Teacher Guide
This guide includes everything you need to know to maintain a healthy, and happy Worm Garden as well as K-6 curriculum linked resources to use in your classroom!
#MyFoodChoice
The #MyFoodChoice resource is an inquiry based resource where students will lead their own research, to answer the question of "How can I make informed food choices?" Through the five lessons students will develop critical thinking skills by utilizing interactive student sheets, engaging videos, and more.
30 Favourite K-12 Agriculture & Food Resources
To celebrate BCAITC's 30 years of bringing agriculture and food education to BC classrooms, we've compiled a list of our 30 Favourite K-12 Agriculture and Food Resources! It includes most downloaded, top teachers' picks, and fun nostalgic lessons, unit plans, activities, storybooks, GIS applications, and more. Try them in your classroom today!
30 Favourite K-7 Agriculture Books
Since 1992, BCAITC has been bringing agriculture and food education to BC’s K-12 students! In celebration of our 30 years, we’ve rounded up our favourite K-12 books about agriculture and food. Happy reading!
30 School Garden Tips
In celebration of our 30 years, we've put together these 30 school garden tips. Discover ways to make your garden shine and cultivate success!
8 Dimensions of Wellness
What is Wellness? What does Wellness mean to you? Why is it important to learn about health? How do we practice wellness everyday in our lives? Wellness is an active effort a person makes to work towards reaching the best state of well-being and health possible for themselves. Wellness incorporates many different elements of well-being that are all connected. Read "8 Dimensions of Wellness" to learn more.
A Cow's Tale
Join Please, a Holstein dairy calf, as she grows up on Cowsville Dairy Farm. Please’s story answers your primary students’ questions about the fresh milk they’re drinking. Told in 13 chapters and including seasonal classroom activities and decorations this is the story of milk from moo to you.
A Guide To Aquaculture in Ontario
This resource allows for grade 7-12 students to explore and learn about Ontario's aquaculture industry, potential careers available as well as how to start an aquaculture business. What is fish farming, why is it important and how are fish produced? Learn more about Aquaculture in Ontario with this Teacher Guide that was designed with the support of and in collaboration with the Ontario Aquaculture Association.
A Scavenger Hunt Through BC's Agriculture Commodities
This virtual scavenger hunt lesson plan will help students learn about BC's agriculture commodities and the Agriculture Land Reserve through the online interactive Grow BC GIS map.
A Wetland Adventure
A fun experience is going on a wetland field trip and learning about wetland ecosystems by studying life in a local pond, slough, marsh, fen or bog. These areas are often found on a local farm, and farmers must avoid these areas for protection of the wetland, and also because it is too difficult to use them for agricultural purposes. Through your classroom studies, and studies in the field, you will learn about organisms that live in, on and around wetlands and about adaptations that suit pond organisms to their environment. Through observation and research, you will also learn about the interactions among wetland organisms and about the role of each organism as part of a food web. The role of human action in affecting wetland habitats and populations is also something you will study.
Ag Bites: Preserves
Preserving refers to the different ways you can keep your food from spoiling! Canning is one such method. The canning process is when you place food in a jar and then heat it at high temperatures until it becomes airtight and any undesirable bacteria or micro-organisms are killed. Learn how you can make apple compote and pickles through the canning preserving method!
Ag in Saskatchewan Game Show
A competitive and interactive quiz game that tests your student's knowledge about agriculture. With beginner, intermediate, and expert levels it can be used for a variety of different age levels.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - Trailer - Taylor Selig - AgScape Executive Director
In the trailer episode of Feeding Innovation podcast, we interview- ourselves! Host Jordan Sloggett talks to AgScape Executive Director Taylor Selig about our vision for this podcast, why we're choosing to launch a show that interviews innovators in the world of agriculture and food education.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 01 - Tristan Hertzog, Chef and Teacher
In the first episode of the AgScape Feeding Innovation Podcast, we talk to teacher and professional chef Tristan Hertzog. Tristan shares his passion for imparting the importance of understanding where your ingredients come from, and how that understanding makes his students better chefs, and more informed participants in Ontario's food system.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 02 - Katherine Jones, Growing Chefs Ontario
In the second episode of the AgScape Feeding Innovation Podcast, we talk to Chef and Educator Katherine Jones of Growing Chefs Ontario. Katherine talks about how Growing Chefs Ontario is changing the way we learn about and develop healthy relationships with food. Growing Chefs! Ontario is a registered charity based in London, Ontario that unites chefs, growers, educators and community members in children’s food education projects.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 03 - Kaitlin Packer, Agriculture Writer
In this episode of Feeding Innovation Podcast, we speak to Agriculture Writer Kaitlin Packer. Kaitlin shares about her experience of realizing that writing was her passion, and discovering a creative career in agriculture and farming was for her. We also talk about how opinions around food and agriculture differ between rural and urban communities. How emerging technologies like social media can both be a bridge, and widen that gap, depending on how they're used.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 04 - Randy Swain, Ontario Teacher
Randy Swain, Ontario Teacher joins us this episode to talk about how he built a unique, experiential learning agriculture & food based program at his school. He explains how teachers can take advantage of grant opportunities and collaborate to build similar programs. Randy has been teaching for 16 years, and started the Food For Thought Program 8 years ago.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 05 - Perry Wilson, FCC Vice President
In this week’s episode of Feeding Innovation, we are talking to Perry Wilson, Vice President of Farm Credit Canada. Perry is here to discuss the creation of FCC’s Agriculture More Than Ever Program and all things agriculture education. Unlike many people that come to work for FCC, Perry started out in the automotive industry before changing directions. Initially, he obtained a degree in Metallurgical Engineering. After a while, he went back to school and studied business. By working for an agricultural lender for 3 years, he landed a role at FCC. FCC is an institution wholly dedicated to agricultural businesses while others have departments that specialize in it. Agriculture More Than Ever is a program that Perry has been heavily involved in since its inception. It has been designed to change perceptions of the Canadian agriculture industry and highlight its importance and multi-faceted nature. Canada is a leading agricultural producer in the world, but needs to take further advantage of opportunities within the country. The industry needs new, innovative people to re-invigorate it. The tech sector is creating more and more opportunities within agriculture and it’s often something people don’t consider. Agriculture is a complex industry. Markets, weather, disease, and regulatory issues all affect how the industry runs. Not to mention unforeseen things like a global pandemic. Today, there are fewer farmers, and overcoming barriers is essential to continue to grow the industry. Foster curiosity in yourself and your community.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 06 - Madeline Rodrigue, Farm & Food Care Ontario
Joining us on Feeding Innovation this week is Madeline Rodrigue who, at the time of this interview, worked at Farm & Food Care Ontario. Madeline speaks to their mission at Farm & Food Care Ontario, what they're doing to accomplish that mission, as well as some of the joint programs AgScape and Farm & Food Care Ontario work on together. Madeline discusses her education and her career experiences that led her to Farm & Food Care Ontario. We also talk about our organizations shared goals of bridging rural and urban communities together, so that everyone has a connection and understanding to our food, and the people who grow it.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 07 - Nigel Carlisle - Award Winning Ontario Teacher
This episode of the Feeding Innovation podcast we're speaking to Nigel Carlisle -an Ontario Secondary school teacher living in Cornwall, Ontario. A few weeks after recording this conversation, Nigel was the recipient of the Award for Teaching Excellence in Agriculture and Food Education. Nigel discusses the creative and unique ways he incorporates teaching agriculture and food into his classes including a green industry and technology. His goal as an educator is to make an impact on how lessons are taught, encouraging hands-on experience over tests and textbooks. This past school year, Nigel brought robotics into his lessons. Automation and robotics is a booming innovation that the food and agriculture sector is exploring. To demonstrate that to his students and create awareness, Nigel took a unique approach in combining classroom robotics with modern farming, creating lessons that built a buzz in his students that wouldn’t have happened otherwise. If you're an educator looking to bring similar activities and lessons to your classrooms, Nigel shares advice and steps to follow. For Nigel, this kind of learning is undoubtedly the future, as kids are already learning computer code on their own time, and it is increasingly incorporated into curriculums.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 08- Owen Roberts - Agriculture Journalist & Educator
In today’s episode we sit down with Owen Roberts, an instructor and faculty member at the University of Illinois in the Agricultural Leadership and Communications Program. Owen joins us to discuss his career and why communication is key in agriculture. Growing up in Mitchell’s Bay, Owen’s father was a conservation officer, and his mother’s family were farmers. The town was a renowned hunting and fishing spot, and his family would sell their produce there. He worked on farms in the area and saw the produce side of the industry close up. From there, he studied journalism in university and bounced around the country working for different papers. When an opportunity came up to work in the agriculture section of an Alberta paper, he was hesitant, but it turned out to be a goldmine of stories. Agricultural research was booming and he went on to write for the University of Guelph, communicating about the research that was underway. It went from a 1-year contract to a 33-year career. In this conversation we touch on many subjects, including how the pandemic has opened the publics’ eyes to the complexities of the food supply chain and inflation. The agriculture sector is full of great stories and it is necessary to get those stories out there in a way that connects with the public.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 09 - Darren Anderson - Co-founder and CEO of Vive Crop Protection
Joining us on this episode is Darren Anderson, who is co-founder and CEO of Vive Crop Protection. Darren talks to us about his path from science to agriculture and biotech business owner, and how students can prepare for a career in entrepreneurship. Vive Crop Protection makes more sustainable and effective pesticides for growers, enabling them to get the best results from the products they use. Darren wasn’t always on the path to agriculture and entrepreneurship, but while at university he was influenced by speakers at his school who would come and discuss how they used their science background for entrepreneurship. The most important thing is to not be afraid of failure. Failure is the only way to learn. To help spread this message, Darren began a tutoring business to aid students. As a business owner, Darren does need to hire, and he needs to hire people with a wide range of skills. Chemists in different specializations, regulatory scientists, and safety personnel are all sought-after roles that wouldn’t normally be thought of. Darren talks about the value of failure in building a career, building teams and the skillsets those teams need, and the soft people skills essential to running a modern company.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 10 - Mike Schreiner - Leader of the Green Party of Ontario and MPP for Guelph
Joining us on this episode is Mike Schreiner, the Leader of the Green Party of Ontario and a member of the Provincial Parliament for Guelph. Mike is here not to talk politics, but to discuss his lifelong passion for food and agriculture. Before politics, Mike was an entrepreneur and advocate for the local food movement. Mike grew up on a cash crop farm, raising crops and cattle. He worked from 7 am to 7 pm almost every day, and to entertain himself he would practice political speeches by himself. This led to a lifelong interest in politics and brought him to the Green Party, along with his food-based entrepreneurship. He wanted to help build the sustainable food movement in Ontario and knew policy change could only come from within. Since he began his political journey, the perception of food and agriculture has shifted. Mike wants to spread the connection between farmers and consumers. There’s a greater appreciation for where food comes from and how it’s produced. Social media, for all its downsides, is a great tool for farmers and producers to show people how their environments operate. When it comes to bridging the rural/urban divide, a leader can help by educating. It’s about communicating why some farmers do things one way over the other and what the market needs. Even during the pandemic, projects like backyard gardens and community gardens were valuable tools to educate. It’s also important to publicize the loss of farmland and how important it is to protect it. With the disappearance of farmland comes food shortages and price increases. It’s something that needs to be preserved.
AgScape Feeding Innovation - 11 - Graham Hill - Food For Life
Joining us on this episode is Graham Hill from the non-profit Food for Life. The organization’s mission is to rescue food, impact lives, and give everyone access to healthy food. They aim to cut food waste, and Graham is here to discuss his career pathway and the organization's work to rescue and distribute fresh food to neighbours in need through community partnerships. Graham has a varied background, initially being a scuba diving instructor. He then became involved in charity before going to school to obtain a post-grad degree in Fundraising and Volunteer management. After working for various organizations involved with health, he came to work at the food bank, which evolved into his role at Food for Life. Staying true to your values is essential to working in the non-profit sector. Sometimes it means stepping out of your comfort zone to grow. For Graham, he wanted to create an impact on the world. What problems do you want to solve? Look for a culture that fits you. Billions of dollars worth of food go to waste every year. There is unavoidable food waste and avoidable food waste. Avoidable waste comes about with things like expiry dates, slightly misshapen, or discolored vegetables. Food for Life takes food that’s rejected and picks it up, sharing it with other charities and people. Just this last year they rescued 5 million pounds of food. If you are considering working for a non-profit but aren’t sure in what capacity, there are many aspects to an organization, from transport to accounting, and a wide range of skills are in demand. When it comes to the effects of the pandemic, it’s clear that it had a huge impact on organizations and recipients in the sector. Accessibility is key as life evolves.
AgTech
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. This issue we chose to explore agricultural technology because it will help us reach new levels of efficiency. These innovations make it possible to grow and raise enough food for an increasing population, achieve sustainability, and save farmers time and money during production.
Agri-Trekking Across Ontario, Vol. 2
Agri-Trekking Across Ontario is an interactive, gamified resource that connects grade 7 and 8 students with agriculture, environmental initiatives and local food! This innovative teaching tool comes complete with a Teacher's Guide, educational facts, quizzes and games. *For optimal experience, please use the Google Chrome browser.
Agriculture Bingo
Are you going on a road trip? Learn about agriculture in Manitoba as you drive through the province with these fun bingo cards! Look for the items on your bingo card, colour them, and get five spaces in a row to win!
Agriculture Careers
1 in 9 jobs in Canada is in the agriculture and food sector. Employment opportunities in this sector are increasing. There are endless opportunities in this sector that would allow you to make a difference in your chosen career: feed the growing population, protect the environment, animal care, and many more. Check out just some of the amazing careers that are available in the agriculture industry!
Agriculture Flipbooks
Flip, flip, flip – students can colour, cut, and staple these booklets, then flip them and watch them become magically animated! Watch the bean sprout and grow, see how potatoes grow, or watch how soil is formed.
Agriculture News Watch
Students will undertake a series of assignments to acquaint themselves with current events and issues in agriculture. This lesson requires the collection of agricultural issues to study. Topics can include issues such as food security, FNMI stewardship, and many others.
Agriculture Trivia
Test your students' knowledge of some of Manitoba's foundational crops and animals with this interactive online trivia game. All the answers can be found in our Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture Virtual Resource Hub. The Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture is made possible thanks to generous support from our 2022 Presenting Sponsor, Peak of the Market.
Agriculture and Renewable Energy
Learners explore the topic of renewable energy with a focus on agriculture and biogas. Understand how biodigesters operate on farms with the background information that is provided. Includes a simple experiment than can be done as a class or individually by each learner.
Agriculture and the Environment Soil
Soil is the foundation for all life and every farm needs good, fertile soil to produce healthy crops. While soil only covers 10% of our Earth’s surface, most people don’t realize how important to life it is. Soil is a living, breathing world that supports all life on earth. Healthy soil is made up from approximately 45% minerals (clay, silt and sand), 25% air, 25% water and 5% organic matter (decomposing animals and plants). All of these ingredients, together with climate, affect the soil composition and how well the soil produces.
Agriculture and the Environment Water
Over two-thirds of the Earth’s surface is covered by water. The human body is 75 per cent water. Water is one of the most vital resources for life on Earth. Farmers have a vital role in protecting water quality. As with any resource, pollution can be a major problem. Water pollution is no different. There are many different types and sources of pollutants. When rain or melted snow move over the ground, they pick up and carry away pollutants, which end up in waterways. Agriculture works to prevent this with conservation techniques. But even with preventative measures, water can still become polluted. So, it is important for farmers to do water quality tests. It is also important to understand the importance of water filtration. Filtration is the use of a physical barrier or a chemical and/or biological process that removes the impurities from the water. Just as many people use filtration systems in their homes for their drinking water, farmers use filters to remove pathogens that can cause viruses and sediment that can damage irrigation systems, plants or animals. Your local municipal water treatment plants use filters to remove dissolved particles like dust, parasites, bacteria, viruses and chemicals.
Agriculture e-Learning Labs
These interactive, online learning labs cover a variety of topics, including: Environment, Food, Food Waste, Technology and Innovation, Careers and more! Have fun exploring these agriculture and food-related topics.
Agriculture in Canada Infographics
These infographics will help students discover the various crops and livestock that are grown in Canada, define arable land and the various types of soil in Ontario as well as help students discover government influences on agriculture at all 3 levels. They will also help students learn about inputs that improve production, and the effect of climate on what we grow and food distribution.
Agriculture is Everywhere
Students will learn about and identify various products and by-products that come from different plants and animals. Students will further discuss the importance of biodiversity in plants and animals to humans.
Agriculture: The Heart of Saskatchewan
An agriculture resource including 21 lesson plans, student activities, and teacher and student informational handouts. Complete with pictures, this cross-curricular resource is a fantastic learning tool for the Grade Four Social Studies Unit!
Alberta Safe Tractor Operation and Hitching Guide (Instructor Manual)
This manual has been developed to assist Instructors to teach young operators, aged 14 years and up, the\ knowledge and skills necessary to operate agricultural tractors and implements properly and safely in Alberta. It has been developed to utilize the Alberta Safe Tractor Operation and Hitching Guide, Student Manual, as a primary resource. The Instructor knowledge, as well as tractor and implement operator manuals are the other primary resources. Operator manuals are very important, as they provide very specific information on the tractors and implements. Supplemental information could include other written documents, demonstrations, safety videos, and guest speakers. The experience and skills obtained from this course do not provide a specific certification. After completion of the course, the young operator is expected to be supervised by a competent person. This training manual includes checklists to document the knowledge and skills of the youth. The documentation will be an important resource to assist the supervisor to provide informed decisions regarding the assignment of appropriate tractors and implements, the appropriate tasks, and the level of on-going supervision.
Alberta Safe Tractor Operation and Hitching Guide (Student Manual)
This Alberta Safe Tractor Operation and Hitching Guide (the Guide) is primarily written to introduce Alberta youth to the operation of tractors for agricultural purposes. It will also be useful for other new tractor operators providing they understand that it is focused on educating youth. The Guide does not provide enough information to fully train or authorize anyone to be a competent tractor operator. Resources such as Tractor and Implement Operator’s Manuals, the training, supervision, and oversight of a competent person, and any applicable regulations would be useful. Also, formal tractor training following applicable standards that includes actual hands-on operation, oversight, and supervision by a competent person would be necessary.
Alex's First Seed
Worms play a very important role in maintaining healthy soil so that we can grow healthy food. Get to know Alex the worm in this fun, educational book to learn all about this topic!
All About Farmhand Dogs
In this handout, students will learn how four-legged friends help farmers manage their farm sites. Learn about three types of farmhand dogs- herding dogs, watchdogs, and guard dogs. Find BC-grown product dog biscuit recipes as a bonus inside!
All About Soil
Learn all about the characteristics and applications of soil, and have your students plant a garden into nursery pots in your classroom. Then, watch your plants grow and make observations over the next six weeks.
An Exploration of Beef Farming in Ontario
Touching on various subject areas from health and physical education to social studies, science, careers, and technology this resource aims to provide an overview of the practices involved in the production of Beef in Ontario from farm to table.
An Exploration of Dry Bean Farming in Ontario
Touching on various subject areas from health and physical education to social studies, science, geography, and careers, this resource aims to provide an overview of the practices involved in the production and distribution of dry beans in Ontario from farm to table.
An Exploration of Egg Farming in Ontario
This comprehensive resource includes a Teacher’s Guide, providing an overview of egg farming in Ontario, as well as three interdisciplinary lesson plans targeting grades K-3, grades 4-6 and grades 7-8. Many different and relevant themes such as the farm-to-table process of egg farming (K-3), the nutrients of eggs as a part of a healthy diet (4-6) and careers linked to the egg farming industry (7-8) are covered in the lesson plans provided.
An Exploration of Genomics in Agriculture and Food
This Teacher's Guide, for grades 7-12, allows students and teachers to explore the world of genomics in agriculture and food. Teachers can use the Teacher's Guide to expand their knowledge of genomics, then couple that with 3 interactive lesson plans that use coding, experiments, Ontario-focused case studies, career exploration and much more. These lesson plans also help students understand genomics in agriculture and food related to the context of animal welfare, food security and climate change. Pair this teachers's guide with a recording of a live event with Michael Dorrington, a geneticist at Ontario Genomics.
An Exploration of Pig Farming in Ontario
This comprehensive resource includes a Teacher’s Guide, providing an overview of pork farming in Ontario, as well as three interdisciplinary lesson plans targeting grades 5&6, grades 7 & 8 and grades 9 &10. Many different and relevant themes such as Animal Health & Welfare (Nutrition & Careers) (5-6), Animal Health & Welfare (Technology & Careers) (7-8) and Animal Health & Welfare (Sustainability & Careers) (9-10) are covered in the lesson plans provided.
Animal Health and Welfare Infographics
These infographics provide an introduction to the elements of responsible animal care, statistics about livestock farming in Canada, and the methods used to keep farm animals healthy.
Animal Needs
Students will identify the needs of animals and compare it to their own needs for shelter, food and water. Students will design and label a barn or home for a specific animal to ensure its survival. Students will create a collage illustrating the sections of Canada’s Food Guide to serve as a reminder of the need for a balanced diet for humans.
Apples of British Columbia
Students will develop a deeper understanding of the most valuable edible horticulture crop in British Columbia - apples. Lessons explore the importance of knowing where food comes from, nutritional values, consumer concerns, and even apple tasting!
Aquaculture in the Classroom
Take a quick dive into aquaculture as it relates to the Maritimes region. Students will explore the concepts of design and computational thinking as they relate to tackling ocean challenges and innovations. This resource will inspire curiosity and engagement in the great ocean.
Automation in AG
Working with either Edison or Microbit systems, students will gain an understanding of the importance of automation in agriculture while working together to complete a series of fun coding activities. Note: This resource is designed to compliment the Edison and Microbit courses offered through SaskCode. Edison and Microbit systems are not supplied by AITC-SK.
BC at the Table
These BC at the Table educator guides provide an introduction to student inquiry about BC's food system and how we produce, process, distribute, and acquire local food. Learn specifically about dairy, grains, produce, and salmon. The Cross-Curricular Connections document provides an overview of the curriculum connections to BC's food system and includes a matrix linking BC's food story by subject, grade, gig ideas, competencies, and content.
Beef Farming
Pair this virtual field trip with the activity kit to take a closer look at a beef farm in Ontario! Join Megan as she shows you around her cow-calf pair farm and tells you all about how she cares for the animals. This printable activity kit includes an assortment of activities that you can do with your class. There are activities appropriate for grades K-8, just pick the one you like and print it off!
Beekeeping FAQ
In collaboration with Farm & Food Care Ontario, this is a compilation of commonly asked questions, answers and facts related to beekeeping.
Before the Plate
Before the Plate is a documentary that attempts to close the gap between the urban consumer and farming in Canada. Follow young farmers and industry experts to learn what a modern Canadian farm operation looks like, and discuss the most pressing questions consumers have about their food. Be sure to check out the comprehensive, curriculum-linked Student Guide we have created to supplement the viewing of this documentary.
BioEnergy: Products, Processes and Career Opportunities
This resource takes a closer look at bioenergy in the agri-food sector and provides information on career opportunities and post-secondary education programs related to the industry. Suggested student activities link to curriculum in Chemistry, Biology, Environmental Science, Science and Green Industries.
Biodiversity and Water
Biodiversity and Water takes Grade 8 students on a journey through the ways in which biodiversity in general, and agrobiodiversity in particular, play significant roles in maintaining our water resources so that they can be used by humans, animals and plants.
Biogas
Students will discover a valuable alternate energy resource. Students will create their own biogas generator, thus exploring the chemical reactions that occur during the breakdown of organic matter.
Biological Warfare
Students will produce tobacco and observe and interpret the use of tobacco as a biological method of controlling plant pests. This lesson highlights the importance of enhancing plant growth through the use of biological (natural) methods of pest control.
Biomass Lesson Plan and Experiment
Biomass is the only renewable source of carbon and includes agriculture resources such as wood, straw, manure, and food waste. These resources can be converted into many useful materials like fuel, heat, electricity, and chemicals. Check out this lesson plan for a fun science experiment and to learn more about biomass and its connection to the environment and economy.
Biotech Basics
Some of the topics briefly discussed in this booklet include the history of biotechnology, improvement of consumer health, and the safety record of biotechnology. This booklet also includes a glossary of terms commonly used when discussing biotechnology. Developed by Council for Biotechnology Information.
Biotech Takes on Malaria
This information pamphlet explores biotech's take on malaria; it provides a basic outline of the effects and concerns regarding the disease, and how it is being fought through biotech and genomic approaches.
Biotechnology Infographics
These infographics provide definitions of plant biotechnology and explores the research and assessment required to get a genetically engineered crop to market. Also included are stories, controversies, and breakthroughs in biotechnology.
Bison Farming
Take your students on a virtual trip to a Bison Farm! Download the activity kit and pick and choose from an assortment of activities that you can do with your class to learn more about the bison and their history. There are activities appropriate for grades K-8.
Blossom's Big Job
Read this storybook and get to know Blossom, a busy honey bee who is on a mission to pollinate her flowers until they mature into fruit. Learn about the role bees play in environment, including collecting nectar for their hive and pollinating flowers.
Bridge to Business Volume 1: FCC Knowledge Insider on Globalization
This resource is the inaugural edition of the AgScape Bridge to Business program. Through this program, leading edge business publications are translated into valuable activities for Ontario students. As youth approach the end of high school, it is important for them to be familiar with the world of business and the pertinent social issues which relate to our society, economy and environment. OAFE Bridge to Business focuses on issues beyond the classroom and provides “real world connections for students”.
Bridge to Business Volume 2: Best Food Facts: Genetically Modified Organisms
This is the second Volume of the Bridge to Business series. The topic of focus is Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Four lessons encourage students in Grades 9 to 12 to think critically about GMOs and their relationship with environment, social factors, food security and consumer choice. Each lesson examines content from www.BestFoodFacts.org and http://allaboutfood.aitc.ca. Links to Science & Technology and Food & Nutrition courses.
Built on Agriculture
Built on Agriculture is a four-part documentary series that pays tribute to the people who settled the plains of Manitoba and what they achieved. Part 1 -The Selkirk Settlers: Lord Selkirk’s compassion for the Scottish crofters helped seed the Canadian prairies with a population that helped retain the land for Canada. They faced many struggles surviving the early decades and becoming successful farmers. Because of their success the prairies were then settled by waves of immigrant farmers attracted by free land and fueled by the Canadian Government’s support for the railroad. Teachers, please note — During the discussion of the battle in June of 1816 between men from the North West Company and the Selkirk settlers (15:48 – 16:10 in the video) Dr. Jack Bumstead uses the term ‘mixed bloods’ to describe the men from the North West Company. While this term was commonly used in the past, it is no longer acceptable. You may want to use this instance as a teachable moment and have a discussion with you students about how language evolves with greater cultural awareness and as part of the work of reconciliation. Part 2 - The Institutions: The Grain Exchange, grain pools, private grain companies and The Canadian Wheat Board all contributed to agriculture growth in Manitoba and western Canada. Women played a major role in establishing agriculture growth and a healthy farm family. Part 3 - The Farmers: Five Manitoba farmers are profiled to give insight into the hardships and variety of modern-day farming. Noted experts comment on the concerns and the opportunities that are part of the modern farmer’s world. Just what is the future of the family farm? Part 4 - Feeding the World: Industry trends, consumer trends, technology, equipment, and climate all will contribute to the future of agriculture in the next century. What has food science contributed? What are science, business and government working toward in the future to produce better, healthier food in larger quantities? Part 1 - The Selkirk Settlers and Part 3 - The Farmers have both been recognized with Regional Emmy nominations.
Business and Economics of Food Infographics
These infographics will allows students to explore agriculture and food from a business perspective. Students will learn about four different types of businesses along with 4 different types of economic business sectors.
CAP Apple - Taking care of our soil
Why is it important for us to take care of the Earth's soil? Soil is vital for farmers to grow food, but only a tiny fraction of the Earth's surface has productive land. Taking care of our soil is key to feeding everyone on our planet!
COVID-19 & Canada's Dairy Industry
Why was milk being dumped in parts of Canada when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit? Have your students look beyond the headlines to think critically about how and why COVID-19 is affecting the many sectors of the Canadian dairy industry.
COVID-19 & Canada's Food Supply
How did COVID-19 affect Canada’s agriculture system and food supply? Listen to CBC Radio One: The Current with Matt Galloway – “Securing Canada’s Food Supply” and use the worksheet provided to assess students' understanding.
Camp AgScape, Interactive Gamified Website
There is no better pathway for students to ignite their curiosity of food and farming than with Camp AgScape, a free immersive and fun online experience for youth from age 5 to 18. The program is a fully accessible, self-paced web platform which includes highly interactive, meaningful, and gamified educational activities to support parents, teachers and students. Included is a Teacher's Guide, a comprehensive five-day programming guide for four age groups (5-8, 9-12, 13-15, 16-18). Themes include plant science, innovation, STEM, animal science, nutrition, environment, healthy eating and more! Ideal for classrooms, camps or home learning.
Canada's Agriculture Day Farm Doodle Activity
Here's a fun activity to celebrate Canada's Agriculture Day! Download this farm doodle activity page and share with your students. Thank you to Agriculture More Than Ever for this wonderful resource. Things you can do with this page: Colour the faces, find the animals that match, circle the two things that aren’t animals. Things to talk about: What noises do each of these animals make? Which animals have feathers? Which animals are your favourite? Why is that? Why do you think the sun and cloud are included?
Canada's Food Guide Activity Bank
Use the 2019 Canada Food Guide to explore topics such as health, nutrition, and agriculture production through a variety of activities designed to help students think critically about food.
Canadian & World Studies
A secondary resource about careers in the agri-food industry. This resource has been developed as a teaching tool for grades 11 and 12 and is linked to the Ontario Canadian and World Studies curriculum.
Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month: Animal Science
This resource addresses curriculum expectations in Grade 9-12 Science and English and provides students with an opportunity to evaluate research articles on the topic of animal science. Students will use critical literacy to analyze articles, apply appropriate research skills to deepen knowledge and communicate the results of their inquiries effectively.
Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month: Critical Literacy in Agriculture
Celebrate Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month with this activity resource package for Grades 9-12 which focuses on hot topics in agriculture and encourages students to analyze and think critically about media messages and information.
Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month: Food Science
This resource addresses curriculum expectations in Grade 9-12 Science and English and provides students with an opportunity to evaluate research articles on the topic of food science. Students will use critical literacy to analyze articles, apply appropriate research skills to deepen knowledge and communicate the results of their inquiries effectively.
Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month: Plant Science
This resource addresses curriculum expectations in Grade 9-12 Science and English and provides students with an opportunity to evaluate research articles on the topic of plant science. Students will use critical literacy to analyze articles, apply appropriate research skills to deepen knowledge and communicate the results of their inquiries effectively.
Career Pathways in Agriculture
This double sided document is a great tool for guidance counselors, parents, and students alike. The colour coding of the education requirements of the highlighted careers makes this an easy to read addition to any school, home or corporate resource library.
Careers Infographic
This infographic outlines current statistics for jobs in the agriculture sector in Canada. It displays multiple career pathways and the vast amount of opportunity in the agriculture sector.
Cattle
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits. our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
Celebrate Farming & Ranching
Create a collage to celebrate farming and ranching in Alberta! The great thing about creating a collage is there are NO RULES! It’s all about using what you have to create something new. You can create a simple splash of images on the page, or arrange your collage to make a farm or ranch scene. It’s up to you!
Celebrating Liberation with a Promise
In this resource, students will have the opportunity to explore, observe and examine tulip bulbs. Lessons include planting bulbs, learning about the history of tulip farmers in the Netherlands, collecting data and studying the plant's growth cycle.
Challenging Conditions
Challenging Conditions - Exploring the Lives of Subsistence Farmers in the Developing World is an activity that invites students to explore what life is like for subsistence farmers in the developing world by introducing them to a character and various aspects of his/her life. The activity emphasizes quality of life and the effects of issues such as hunger, health, conflict, gender dynamics, environment and climate change. Related media: Program puts students in shoes of subsistence farmers (The Western Producer) The complete kit contains a teacher guide and all materials needed. Download the kit in French and English.
Cheese FAQ
In collaboration with Farm & Food Care Ontario, this is a compilation of commonly asked questions, answers and, facts related to cheese.
Chicken Farm Tour Lesson
Join third-generation Manitoba chicken farmer, Rachel, for a virtual tour of her family-owned and operated broiler chicken farm, provided courtesy of Manitoba Chicken Producers. Discover how Rachel cares for her chickens and the technology used to provide the chickens with nutritious food, clean water, safe shelter, living space, and health care. Download the lesson plan, connected to the grade 4 curriculum. Choose to do one or all of the suggested activities with your class after attending the tour. We've included a K-W-L worksheet, a crossword, and a math activity for you to either print or send to students electronically. All worksheets are fillable PDFs if your students are able to fill them out electronically.
Chicken: A Class Act
Chicken today is more nutritious and delicious than ever! Chicken farmers in Canada are dedicated to producing chicken of the highest safety and quality. This educational resource explores chicken production in Canada and consists of a video a learning workbook and a poster!
Christmas Tree Farm
Learn more about Christmas Tree Farming with our Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip at Chickadee Christmas Tree Farm! Pair this experience with our Tree Farm Activity Kit, the perfect resource to learn about evergreen trees! Designed to complement our virtual food and farm field trip, this downloadable kit offers a versatile range of activities. From engaging crafts, educational lessons, to fun games, these activities can be used for multiple subjects. With this kit, students can dive into the world of tree farming and have fun while learning. Make this season unforgettable with our Tree Farm Activity Kit!
Climate Change Infographics
These infographics will help students explore climate change and how it relates to agriculture, the various opportunities and challenges as well as adaptation and mitigation strategies. They will also help students explore the vulnerability of agriculture in relation to climate change, areas/types of sensitivity, innovations as well as food safety and security.
Climate Change: Meeting the Challenge
Climate Change! One of the many topics that affects each of us, and yet what are the CHALLENGES, IMPACTS, and ACTIONS? In addressing the topic, this resource will support teachers as they guide students in exploring Climate, Where We Live, Our Health, Our Water, Farms, Forests, and Our Natural Heritage.
Coffee Farm Activity Kit
Download this activity kit to provide your students with an in depth look at the coffee growing process. You can pick and choose the activities that work for you class. From tracking your Starbucks coffee to playing a matching game, there will be something for everyone!
Common Ground: The Strawberry Project
Use this activity handbook to enhance learning around Common Ground: The Strawberry Project. The Strawberry Project was created to nurture relationships among students across the province and develop a greater understanding of native plant species. Note: The game must be downloaded from the internet link in order for all the game functions to work in the PowerPoint.
Conditioned Soil
Students will plant a variety of grain seeds in different soils. The grains will be exposed to a variety of weather conditions relevant in farming today. Students will explore the question: How does soil and weather affect crop production?
Connecting the Canada Food Guide to Local Agriculture
This activity will familiarize students with Canada's Food Guide (2019) and the food messages presented in it. Students will also research local farms and food products, and use this information to create their own plate snapshot.
Conventional & Organic Agriculture Infographics
These infographics will help students define conventional and organic farming practices, various pests and the challenges they can cause, the difference between natural and synthetic chemicals as well as approaches to pest management. They will also help students explore the use of pesticides, residue limits, nutrients in conventional and organic foods as well as environmental impacts.
Cooking Up Chicken
Students will learn about topics including food safety, food preparation, cooking, food security, chicken production, marketing, and more! This resource includes recipes, student worksheets, lab activities, handouts, and marking rubrics.
Cooking Up Chicken At Home
Adapted from our popular Food Studies resource, Cooking Up Chicken, these activities guide the home cook in preparing delicious chicken dishes while learning about health and safety, chicken as a global commodity, chicken production in Saskatchewan, and the nutritional benefits of chicken.
Cooking with Pulses
This resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will plan the steps required to create a pulse-based meal or snack, prepare, and eat a pulse-based meal or snack and promote the benefits (nutritional or otherwise) of their chosen meal.
Cool Beans
Students will learn about the growth, production, and nutritional value of an Ontario local food, specifically beans. Students will be able to identify different kinds of beans and will learn about art and creation of mosaics by through using beans.
Corn and Black Bean Salsa
How far did your corn and bean salsa travel? Use the recipe included to make an easy and delicious salsa and then find out just how far those ingredients travelled to get to your classroom. This activity is a great way to engage students in a hands-on activity and get them to think about the importance of shopping local.
Corrosion
Students will discover the amount of chemistry involved in soil colour, touching upon a number of methods which are used to protect against corrosion or rusting. Developed by Agriculture Education, Prince Albert Island.
Cowboy Poetry Fun Festival
Cowboy poetry is distinctive both in its culturally specific subject matter and its traditional use of rhyme and meter. While the range of emotional landscapes explored in cowboy poetry are the traditional province of poetry—from joy to grief, from humour to spirituality—the particulars derive from the American West: horses, cattle, fire, prairie storms, mythic figures of cowboys and ranchers, and the sublime wilderness.
Cowspiracy: An Alternative View
Are you showing your students the film Cowspiracy? Use these resources to provide different viewpoints, encourage critical thinking, foster media literacy, and stimulate meaningful debates between your students.
Create-a-Plant
In this activity, students are invited to view a selection of seeds, then use their imaginations to guess what the future plant will look like. They are encouraged to choose a name for their plant and brainstorm the features that make this plant special. The worksheet offers places for the students to either illustrate their ideas, or write descriptions, depending on their interest and abilities.
Creating Safe Play Areas
This document has been developed as a resource for safety professionals, farm and rural community leaders, and farm owners who want to understand important features of safe play areas for children who live on or visit farms, ranches, orchards or other agricultural settings. Developed by National Farm Medicine Center.
Creating the Perfect Soil
Students will design a method to improve the productivity of a soil. They will then carry out their experiment, assessing and evaluating its success over a two week period. Developed by Alberta Agriculture Education Program.
Cultivate Your Career
As you look to the future, you may want to start preparing for the countless exciting pathways that lie ahead. There are many careers available to you as you plan for your future, including jobs that didn’t even exist ten years ago! It’s a dynamic and changing world, but the agriculture and agri-food industry have been adapting alongside a technology-driven and globalizing world. Have you ever thought of a career in ag? Agriculture is an essential part of the world around us, whether you’re stewarding the land, educating consumers, or feeding the world. It’s a diverse and welcoming field full of opportunity. What you know about agriculture may only scratch the surface, when many more opportunities await, so we invite you to dig deeper and explore this amazing industry! Align your values, investigate your options, find post-secondary programs, and prepare to apply and fund your adventure.
Dairy Museum Activity Kit
Access the Dairy Activity Kit, to download and print off a range of resources to prepare for the virtual field trip and further understand the fascinating world of dairy. Have fun using the colouring page, maze, science experiment and more!
Design a Dairy Cow Habitat
Farm animals live in very specific habitats. This worksheet will help students identify all the components, food, water, living space, cover/shelter of a Canadian dairy cow habitat. Then students can use their creative abilities to design a dairy cow habitat that meets the needs of Manitoba dairy cows. The teacher guide provides a lesson plan with a worksheet, assessment ideas and a rubric. This is a great companion resource for Follow the Dairy Farmers video and Kahoot!
Designing Healthy Ice Pops
Students are given the task to create a healthy ice pop, and then design a marketing plan to sell them in the school cafeteria. In this project, students will learn about nutrition and design principals through interviews, research, evaluation, and presentation.
Dirt: Secrets in the Soil
Designed for 4th grade students. This DVD contains a six-segment program that brings the fundamental lessons of soil science from the countryside into the classroom in a way that is sure to keep students entertained and motivated. Includes segments on soil texturizing and soil layers.
Discovery of Canola
Canola was created using traditional plant breeding methods at the University of Manitoba by Canadian plant scientists Dr. Baldur Stefansson and Dr. Keith Downey. The name Canola comes from Can as in Canada and ola as in oil and was trademarked in 1978. Over the decades canola has grown to be, along with wheat, one of the two most grown crops in Manitoba and across the prairies. This short 1:25 minute video celebrates canola, its discovery, contribution to a healthy diet and impact here at home and around the world.
Dive into Aquaculture!
In this lesson, students will dive into learning about the species of animals in Canada’s aquaculture industry and learn more about aquaculture. They will also use their design skills to construct a model of a nursery facility.
Eat Local?
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the impact of buying locally grown food on the environment and their personal health. Students will be able to identify how far a food product has travelled.
Edible Garden: Flower Bulbs to Plant in Autumn
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: Growing Beans
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: Growing Garlic
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: Growing Onions
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: Growing Tomatoes
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Attract Beneficial Insects
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Clean Up in the Fall
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deal with Cutworms
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deal with Heat and Drought
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deal with Powdery Mildew
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deal with Slugs
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deter Cats and Dogs
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deter Deer
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deter Rabbits
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Deter Voles and Mice
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Fertilize
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Grow in Containers
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Harvest Root and Tuber Vegetables
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Harvest Small Fruit
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Harvest Tree Fruit
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Make Compost
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Protect from Early Frost
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Protect from Hail Damage
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Transplant Seedlings
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Water
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: How to Weed
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: Saving Seeds
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: When to Harvest Cool-Season Vegetables
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: When to Harvest Small Fruit
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: When to Harvest Vegetables
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Edible Garden: When to Harvest Warm-Season Vegetables
Ag for Life is proud to support school garden programs. Check out our garden-related resources for garden lesson ideas, a guide to starting your school garden, student journals and more! For more gardening tips and tricks, follow our Alberta School Garden Group on Facebook.
Educational Learning Quizzes on Quizizz
AITC-SK is on Quizizz, a free platform that provides gamified quizzes for every subject to play in class and at home. Check out our collection of Grades K - 12 quizzes on topics such as food, agriculture and soil! Also included are farm-themed math quizzes specifically linked to the Grades 2 - 8 curriculum. An interactive way to supplement your classroom teachings!
End Food Waste
Have you ever thrown out an apple because it was bruised or scraped your leftovers from dinner into the trash? When food is thrown away instead of eaten it is called food waste. Food waste is a BIG problem facing our world today. Learn more about food waste with this hands-on activity book.
Environmental Initiatives Infographics
These infographics highlight programs such as the Environmental Farm Plan, Species at Risk Farm Incentive Program and Water Resource Adaptation and Management Initiative and their impact on environmental sustainability. Students will explore agriculture and food with a focus on environmental initiatives. Students can learn about issues, improvements and initiatives within the agriculture industry, transportation as well as corporate and social responsibility.
Equipment Innovations in Agriculture Infographic
This infographic lists examples of new technologies and equipment (e.g. robotics, unmanned aerial vehicles, telematics) which are being used in agriculture.
Evaluating Internet Sources: Focus on Agriculture and Food
This resource encourages students to think critically about the internet sources they are consuming with a specific focus on agriculture and food related internet media sources.
Explore Saskatchewan Agriculture Website
This new website is kid-friendly, engaging website that will bring the story of agriculture to life through highly interactive information, colourful illustrations, real-life photos, informative text, quizzes, teacher lessons and more! Students will discover the Past, Present, Evolution and Future of agriculture in Saskatchewan.
Exploring Sustainability of the Manitoba Pork Industry
Students can explore the sustainability of the Manitoba pork industry using these six, short, 2-minute videos which cover the environmental, social, and economic aspects of sustainably farming pigs, as well as animal welfare practices and the use of technology on a pig farm. The six videos are: Environmental Stewardship Give Me Shelter Barn Life GPS Technology on the Farm The Nutrient Cycle Waste Not. Want Not. Students can use the Video Analysis Sheet to help them gather and critically think about the information shared in the videos. Then, using the Share the Knowledge worksheet, students can choose to present it, write it, draw it, or gamify it to inform others about what they have learned.
Extraordinary Egg Teacher Guide
The Extraordinary Egg is an information booklet which offers students in Grades 7 to 12 an understanding of the egg industry, egg production and the nutritional contribution of eggs to our diet.
Factual Food Advertising
Students will analyze a variety of food advertisements and conduct research to uncover the information that food advertisements exclude or misconstrue. Students will then use the knowledge they gain to create their own informative and factual food advertisements.
Fall Ag-Activity Pack
Looking for fun and educational autumn agriculture and food activities? Check out our new Fall Ag-Activity Pack - filled with gardening ideas, games, crafts, recipes, and puzzles for grade 2-7 students! Enjoy!
Fall Ag-tivity Book
Calling all little explorers! Get ready for a fantastic autumn adventure with our Fall Activity Book specially designed for young nature enthusiasts. Inside, you'll find a world of farm-fresh fun, colourful puzzles, and simple yet delicious recipes that even the tiniest hands can help create.
Fall Sprout 2021
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Fall Sprout 2022
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Farm Animals & Me
This resource is designed to relate the concepts associated with animal growth, development and care to the curriculum expectations for Grade 1 Science & Technology. Students will identify and compare the characteristics of humans and selected farm animals.
Farm Monster Activity Book
Have you ever seen a monster living on a farm? What did it look like? What did it eat? What does it do all day and where does it sleep? This Farm Monsters Activity Book lets your students draw, colour, and use their imaginations as they create their very own monster farm. Kiddos will have the opportunity to practice basic skills, such as reading, counting, and fostering creativity while developing a love for the farm.
Farm Safety Walkabout
Farm Safety Walkabout will be helpful for farm families and new worker/employer situations. It is written in general terms so you can apply it to your specific family and farm setting. The RATIONALE section at the top of each page will give parents and/or employers’ important information or reasons for the activities and questions. 1. Gather your family or new employees together when there is plenty of time to complete this activity. Allow approximately one and a half to two hours. 2. The walkabout will start in your home and then take you outside to several areas of concern: the farm yard, farm buildings, and farm machinery. 3. As you complete the walkabout in each of these areas fill in the CHECKLIST in the guidebook. 4. Next complete the ACTIVITIES and SAFETY DISCUSSIONS. These will get the whole family involved.
Farm to Plate: Recipes & Stories
Your students will love watching videos featuring real Manitoba farm families, courtesy of Great Tastes of Manitoba. Then, using one of the ingredients found on the farm, they'll use the supplied recipe to make a dish. We've included live links to videos in each of the recipe sheets, making these ideal for at home remote learning. They can also be used in human ecology class or any other class where you might make a meal together. There are also links to snapAG fact sheets to take their agriculture education to the next level!
Farm to Table
Farm to Table - Students explore the basic steps involved in planting, growing and harvesting a plant commodity or in raising, growing and finishing an animal commodity in Alberta, and identify how the finished product is incorporated into a recipe.
FarmFood360° in the Classroom
Tour a farm or processing facility from the comfort of your couch! FarmFood360° is a series of virtual farm and processing facility tours throughout Canada. Students can test their knowledge at the end of each tour.
Feed Your Future
As you look to the future, you may want to start preparing for the countless exciting pathways that lie ahead. There are many careers available to you as you plan for your future, including jobs that didn’t even exist ten years ago! It’s a dynamic and changing world, but the agriculture and agri-food industry have been adapting alongside a technology-driven and globalizing world. Have you ever thought of a STEM career in ag? Agriculture is an essential part of the world around us, whether you’re stewarding the land, educating consumers, or feeding the world. It’s a diverse and welcoming field full of opportunity. What you know about agriculture may only scratch the surface, when many more opportunities await, so we invite you to dig deeper and explore this amazing industry! Investigate your options, find post-secondary programs, build your resume, and get hired.
Feeding Canada: Exploring Our Food System (Maritimes)
This teaching resource featuring Canadian farmers, veterinarians, and researchers provides grades 7–12 classes with a fun and helpful overview of the Canadian food cycle in six videos. Students apply their learning and reflect on how their food is produced.
Feeding the World & Protecting the Environment
Learn all about fertilizer's important role in crop production! Through case studies and labs, students will then explore the relationship between fertilizers, the environment, and federal regulations, such as the Clean Water Act.
Fertilizer 101
Every plant needs nutrients to grow, from corn in Ontario, to peaches in British Columbia, to potatoes in Prince Edward Island, and canola in Saskatchewan. In this lesson students will learn about three important nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
Fields of Home StoryScape
Fields of Home is a StoryScapes mini-unit based on an adaptation of the Storyline strategy. Storyline is a teaching method that encourages students to build and explore understandings and deepen their appreciation and knowledge of topics or concepts.
Finance on the Farm
In this activity, students will put themselves in the shoes of an agriculture or horticulture owner/operator who is looking to purchase a piece of equipment. Students will perform research to inform their decision to buy, and complete authentic documents required by Farm Credit Canada when applying for a loan. Ultimately, students will learn about weighing the costs and benefits when making a big investment and be prepared to apply for a loan through a financial institution.
Focus on Forests
Forests are one of Saskatchewan’s most valuable assets. Over fifty per cent of the province’s total land area is covered by forest. Forests provide critically important habitat for wildlife and represent a part of our culture, history and economy. They provide the materials and resources for many industries in Saskatchewan and are a place for recreation. For many people, they are a source of spiritual well-being. This revised edition of Focus on Forests contains many valuable and interesting lesson plans for your students.
Follow the Beef Farmer Farm Tour
Go on a tour of Stepler Farms near Miami, Manitoba without leaving the classroom. Students will: • Discover where their food comes from and how it is produced. • Learn how Andre: o Provides all the components; food, water, living space, shelter and more, to create a great habitat for the beef cows. o Discover how the beef cow is well adapted to live in Manitoba. • Identify the nutrients provided by beef and its place on the Canada Food Guide plate. • Identify some of the careers involved in producing sustainable, safe, and nutritious beef. The Livestream recording includes the video and a Q&A with Stefan. A Kahoot and All About Beef Student Activity Booklet are included as fun, interactive assessment activities.
Follow the Canola Farmer Video Farm Tour
Go on a tour of a Will Bergman’s Manitoba canola farm without leaving the classroom. Students will: • Discover where their food comes from and how it is produced. • Learn about the life cycle of canola and the conditions needed to grow a healthy canola crop. • Identify what food comes from canola. • Describe the role of fats in our diet. • Discover why Manitoba’s natural resources are ideal for canola farming. The Livestream recording includes the video and a Q&A with Will. This is a great companion resource for the Canola Crush Kit and the Make Your Own Salad Dressing Using Canola Oil! resource.
Follow the Dairy Farmer Farm Tour
Go on a tour of Signer Farm near Kleefeld, Manitoba without leaving the classroom. Students will: • Discover where their food comes from and how it is produced. • Learn how Stefan: o provides all the components; food, water, living space, shelter and more, to create a great habitat for the dairy cows. o Uses technology to monitor and provide for the health and well-being of the cows. • Identify the nutrients provided by milk and the foods we make from milk. The Livestream recording includes the video and a Q&A with Stefan. A Kahoot is included as a fun, interactive assessment activity. This is a great companion resource for the Design a Dairy Cow Habitat resource.
Follow the Food Kit - Exploring Food Loss & Food Waste
Food is wasted and lost every day, around the world, but do we understand the impact of that on food security, the economy, and the environment? Follow the Food – Exploring Food Loss and Food Waste is a hands-on, inquiry-based resource to help students gain a better appreciation as to the value of food, the resources that go into making it, how the agriculture and food industry in Manitoba reduces food loss and waste and the role schools and students can play in reducing food waste. This resource was provided to teachers as part of CALM 2023. With your order, you will receive a: 1.Book: grade-appropriate and focused on building agricultural literacy (FR/EN) 2. Activities: -Food Loss & Waste. Follow food from farm to plate and beyond with your students, learning about the impact of food waste and loss on food security and the environment. Discover what farmers and those in the agriculture industry do to reduce food loss and waste along this journey and explore food waste reduction at home and school. -Balloons go Bananas. Conduct an experiment with food waste to mimic landfill conditions, learning how food waste produces greenhouse gases when it decomposes. Students will discover alternative methods to dispose of food in environmentally-friendly ways. 3. Teacher Guide: instructions and curricular connections to help you use the activities in your lessons. This resource is being restocked. Check out our other resource kits!
Follow the Hog Farmers Farm Tour
Go on a tour of two Manitoba hog farms without leaving the classroom. Students will: • discover where their food comes from and how it is produced. • Learn how Andrea Elias and Craig Sawatzky: o provide all the components; food, water, living space, shelter and more, to create a great habitat for their hogs. o Use technology to monitor and provide for the health and well-being of the hogs • Identify some of the careers involved in producing sustainable, safe, and nutritious pork for Manitobans and people around the world. The Livestream recording includes the video and a Q&A with Andrea and Craig.
Follow the Wheat Farmer Video Farm Tour
Go on a tour of a Jason Rempel’s Manitoba wheat farm without leaving the classroom. Students will: • Discover where their food comes from and how it is produced. • Learn about the life cycle of wheat and the conditions needed to grow a healthy wheat crop. • Identify what food and nutrients come from wheat. • Discover why Manitoba’s natural resources are ideal for canola farming. • Discover how a combine harvester, and all the simple machines in it, work to harvest grain. The Livestream recording includes the video and a Q&A with Jason. This is a great companion resource for the Simple Machines are Everywhere on the Farm worksheet.
Food Around the World
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grade 2-4 Health & Physical Education and Social Studies. Students will identify a community around the world and describe the types of food products grown or raised there, compare the food grown in a global community to the food grown in Canada, and demonstrate understanding of the journey food products take to get to Canada.
Food Choices and Sustainability
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will examine the various factors that contribute to a sustainable food system and apply critical thinking when making food choices through an informative card game. For use with the Food Choices and Sustainability Infographic. Ontario curriculum links include grade 7 Science and History & Geography.
Food Choices and Sustainability Infographic
This infographic complements the Food Choices and Sustainability lesson, or can be used as a standalone resource. It examines the various factors that contribute to a sustainable food system.
Food Evolution Teacher Guide
The Food Evolution Manitoba Teacher Guide is designed to accompany the viewing of the 2016 documentary Food Evolution. The activities are designed to have students learn: -information about GMOs -how science is used and misused to support an argument -how to determine credible and non-credible sources of scientific information -to critically think about the media’s role in the GMO debate -to be more discerning consumers of information The guide provides: Classroom resources specifically for Manitoba teachers and students The Manitoba curriculum connections for these resources
Food Gratitude Activity Sheet
Students can show their gratitude for BC’s food and workers. They are encouraged to colour, write thank you messages to food workers, and/or draw their favourite locally grown food on the Food Gratitude sheet. Then, they can show off completed sheets in their windows, on their fridges, or in another prominent area of their homes. Students can upload the completed Food Gratitude sheets to social media with the hashtag #FoodGratitudeBC to also show support.
Food Gratitude Project
Help your students show support for those working in our food supply chain with this activity sheet. Students will think about the essential workers that continue to work every day to provide safe and healthy food to Canadians and either draw a picture or write a message to them.
Food Inc. Video Analysis
This lesson plan helps students analyze the movie "Food Inc.", which shows one viewpoint of animal agriculture. The perspective of the video producer is not one shared by many livestock producers. These thought-provoking questions will help your students to think critically about this movie. "Food Inc." can be found on Prime Video and Hulu.
Food Inc: An Alternate View
If you are showing your students the film Food Inc., here are some resources to use in the classroom to provide different viewpoints, encourage critical thinking, foster media literacy and stimulate debates. This resource sheet includes links to American and Canadian sources of information, video, and text that deal with the issues covered in the movie.
Food Loss and Waste
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. In our third issue of Nourishing Minds, we chose to explore food loss and waste because it is recognized as a serious threat to food security, the economy and the environment. We want to see a world where businesses, governments and individuals come together to maintain a strong sustainable food value chain.
Food Safety
Students will identify what food safety is and identify examples of why it is important in a variety of situations. They will demonstrate their understanding by creating a visual representation illustrating steps to ensure food safety in their daily lives. Students will then investigate and create a list of healthy snacks from around the world and identify if these items require safe food handling. Finally, students will also learn how farmers are important when talking about food safety by how our food is produced.
Food Safety Infographics
These infographics will help students explore healthy and safety issues surround food supply and production as well as help students explore food safety in relation to climate change, developing countries, and the connection between food safety and food security.
Food Security
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will recognise that the availability of food varies across the world. They will develop an understanding of the UN WFP school feeding programme and discuss and evaluate the benefits of such a programme for hungry children. Students will consider the role of pulses in improving the food security of a community. Ontario curriculum links include grade 6 Social Science and Health.
Food Security Infographics
These infographics will help students understand the 4 elements of food security, who experiences food security, possibly solutions as well as career opportunities. They will also help students explore food security on both a global and local scale as well as outline some issues within the agri-food system that contribute to the global food crisis.
Food Sustainability Tips from Chef Randle
Celebrate Earth Week with this handout that provides food sustainability tips from BCAITC Chef Trevor Randle on how to cook with a planet-friendly mindset. It includes eco-friendly best practices in relation to purchasing, food prep, cooking, serving, and clean-up.
Food and Beverage Career Exploration
AgScape is proud to partner with FoodGrads to share a resource focused on expanding the knowledge and learning about potential careers in the food and beverage industry.
Food and Nutrition Career Resource
This resource has been developed as a teaching tool for grades 11 and 12 covering careers related to the agri-food industry. It is linked to the Ontario Social Sciences and Humanities Curriculum (2013) and focuses on grades 11 and 12. Specific courses include Food and Culture (university/college and workplace preparation), Nutrition and Health (university and college preparation) and Food and Healthy Living (workplace preparation).
Food for our Nation, Our World
Students use a writing assignment to develop decision-making processes outlining their role in food production in Canada. This resource covers a number of Agriculture related topics including soil nutrients/chemical and organic fertilizers, pest control, and environmental issues.
Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture Virtual Resource Hub
The Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture Virtual Resource Hub is a series of interactive courses and information sheets that invite you and your students to explore the different crops grown and animals raised in Manitoba. Making the connection between food and where it comes from can lead to healthier eating choices and a better appreciation for agriculture and it's role in feeding the world. The Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture resources help students connect what they eat to the crops and animals needed to produce those foods, and ultimately, the people involved in getting food to their plate.
Foundations of Saskatchewan Agriculture - Animals
A series of interactive courses and information sheets that explore the different crops grown and animals raised in Saskatchewan. Each PDF download includes an in-depth document that provides the teacher with background information and a summary document offers bite-sized and illustrated information for students. The interactive courses engage students in learning. Be sure to also visit 'Foundations of Saskatchewan Agriculture - Grains'.
Foundations of Saskatchewan Agriculture - Grains
A series of interactive courses and information sheets that explore the different crops grown and animals raised in Saskatchewan. Each PDF download includes an in-depth document that provides the teacher with background information and a summary document offers bite-sized and illustrated information for students. The interactive courses engage students in learning. Be sure to also visit 'Foundations of Saskatchewan Agriculture - Animals'.
From Farm to Food Cookbook
From Farm to Food is a cookbook that CropLife Canada and Canadian dieticians created to travel through each season with comforting recipes, all while learning about agriculture in Canada.
From Rural to Urban
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grade 3-4 Social Studies. Students will identify seven different communities and some products and services available in each community as well as an understanding of the relationship between geography and features of the community.
Fruit and Veggies Everyday!
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grade 2 Health & Physical Education. Students will identify examples of food groups using Canada’s Food Guide. Students will acquire an understanding of food portioning, the importance of fruits and vegetables, along with learn about healthy eating.
Gathering Information About Wild and Cultivated Plants
Use this lesson plan in conjunction with the book 'A Day with Yayah' to enhance learning around cultivated and wild plants a develop a greater understanding of native plant species. Use the lesson with the Cultivated Plant Cards and Wild Plant Cards.
Get the Dirt on Soil
Check out this book for discovery into the subject of soil science. Explore topics like the properties of soil, nutrients, and soil testing through puzzles, quizzes, and more! Also, get to know an agriculture engineer by reading an exclusive interview.
Goats
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits, our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
Got Milk? Exploring Manitoba's Dairy Industry
Bring a Manitoba dairy farm experience to your students without leaving your classroom. Students can view the video of Signer Farms, Kleefeld, Manitoba to discover what dairy cows need to stay safe and healthy, including life processes, nutrition needs, building features, and more. Reinforce the learning with curriculum linked worksheets, activities and a word search.
Gratitude Journal
Get ready to kick off a new year! This journal was created as a space to get your ideas down on paper, to dream, goal set, and get creative! In this journal each month, you will be invited to set an intention. You will then write out three goals and clearly outline how you can move towards achieving your goals. Each month you can check in with the progress of your goals. Are you moving closer towards them? Does something need to change in order to reach your goals? This journal is intended to be a space for you to get clear on what is important to YOU! To support you in your growth game!
Green Energy
This resource explores various types of renewable energy production including solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and hydropower. Includes interesting facts, career opportunities and an interview with someone who works in the industry. Accompanying Teacher's Guide suggests various related activities for the classroom.
Grow BC
Grow BC is a great resource designed for teachers of all grades to show their students the diversity of our province’s commodities and the importance of BC’s agriculture to individuals and whole communities. Use the interactive GIS Map, and read the stories about BC commodities!
Grow With Agriculture (Classroom Agriculture Program)
In this Classroom Agriculture Program (CAP) video, you'll join Emily and Nigel as they explore the ins and outs of agriculture from farm to fork. It's an adventure you won't soon forget!
Growing Careers: Career Profile Associate Editor/Web Editor
Meet David Manly, Associate Editor of Canadian Poultry Magazine and Web Editor of the Agriculture Portal at Annex Business Media! In his role, David monitors social media to keep up to date with press releases and new information. He tries to balance his time between the two roles evenly, which isn't always easy. A Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science or related field is required. As a web editor you can work independently, for a company, public relations firm or with a software development group. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: (Sod) Harvest Specialist
Meet James Dickie, a Harvest Specialist at Zander Sod Company! In his role, James is responsible for harvesting the sod, and loading up the trucks. In August they begin seeding. A high school diploma is required to be a harvest specialist but an Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in a relevant or supplementary field such as Agribusiness, Plant Science, or Agriculture would be helpful. Certifications such as a CDL or pesticide applicator licenses are also often desired. Sod Harvest Specialists may work independently on their own farm or they may work for large farms and agricultural companies that produce crops and crop-related products.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Agri-Business Team Leader
Meet Frances Hibbert, an Agri-Business Team Leader at Trillium Mutual Insurance Company! In her role, Frances supervises people who accommodate farmer's insurance needs. She answers questions they may not know the answer to and ensure that operations are running smoothly. To become an Agri-Business Team Leader you will need a Bachelor's degree in a Business related program i.e.. Economics, Communications, Administration, Accounting etc. Agricultural lending banks and agricultural insurance companies typically hire for this role. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Agribusiness Specialist
Meet Mike Brine, Agribusiness Specialist at Trillium Mutual Insurance Company! Mike is responsible for providing agricultural information to all of the company's stakeholders, including the company and broker force. A Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Education, Agricultural Communications, or another agriculture-related field is required. A passion for the industry and understanding of agricultural practices is a must. Agriculture advocacy and literacy specialists can work in a variety of roles, especially in organizations like the American Farm Bureau, National FFA, checkoff programs, and Agriculture in the Classroom. Some companies and even farms hire people in this capacity. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Agriculture Property Claims Adjuster
Meet Jason Borth, an Agriculture Property Claims Adjuster for Trillium Mutual Insurance Company! In his role, Jason responds to claims from farmers. If the claim involves a death, Jason is involved in doing an autopsy on the claim and determining the cause of death. If some farm machinery is broken, he makes appointments with the client and works with them to repair it. In order to become a Claims Adjuster, you must have a high school diploma or GED equivalent. Some employers prefer an associate’s or Bachelor’s degree, but it is not required for claims adjuster licensing. Typically insurance companies hire claim adjusters. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Agronomist - Emerging Leaders Program (ELP)
Meet Erin Eagen, an Agronomist at DuPont Pioneer! As an Area Agronomist, Erin works with local farmers to decide which seed is best suited for the land. She also collaborates with the Sales Department to educate the dealers and diagnose problems. To become an Agronomist it is wise to seek an education in Agricultural Science and gain experience in crop inputs. Agronomists work for medium to large-scale farms, crop and seed production companies, crop protection companies, government agencies, research firms, environmental organizations, and colleges or universities. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Area Agronomist
Meet Aric Bos, and Area Agronomist for Dupont Pioneer! As an Area Agronomist, Aric works with local farmers to decide which seed is best suited for the land. He also collaborates with the sales department to educate the dealers and diagnose problems. To become an Area Agronomist, it is wise to seek an education in Agricultural Science and gain experience in crop inputs. Agronomists work for medium to large-scale farms, crop and seed production companies, crop protection companies, government agencies, research firms, environmental organizations, and colleges or universities. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Artificial Insemination (AI) Technician
Meet Drew Tyler, an Artificial Insemination Technician at EastGen! In his role, Drew travels to farms to breed cattle, breeding 15-30 cows per day. He works with dairy producers from multiple farms, helping them with their operations. To become an Artificial Insemination Technician, you will need a high school diploma. Also, a degree in Animal, Poultry or Equine Sciences would be beneficial but not necessary. Most AI Technicians are self-employed, but some larger companies may hire them as well. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Assistant Professor/ Soybean Breeder
Meet Milad Eskandari, an Assistant Professor and Soybean Breeder at Ridgetown College, University of Guelph! In his role as an Assistant Professor, Milad is responsible for developing course outlines and presentations for students. In regards to his research, Milad collaborates with farmers and growers to determine what problems they are experiencing, and determining solutions through research. To become a professor or researcher in this industry, you will need a Master’s Degree or PhD in Plant Breeding, Biotechnology, Plant Pathology, Agronomy, Crop Science, Soil Science, Biology or a related field is preferred to become a Plant Scientist/Field Agronomist. A Bachelor’s degree in similar fields may be considered with some companies. Typical employers include seed companies, crop protection companies, research firms, governmental organizations, environmental organizations, and colleges or universities. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Associate Vice President Ipsos Forward Research
Meet Colin Siren, Vice President, Agriculture, Food and Animal Health Division at Ipsos Reid. Colin is responsible for meeting with clients and presenting results at events. He is also involved in product development and analyzing consumer behavior. It is not a requirement but it may be beneficial for an Associate Vice President to have an Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Vice Presidents can be employed by essentially any type of company or organization both large and small. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Beef Support Specialist
Meet Jeannine Hamilton, the Beef Support Specialist at Semex! In her role, Jeannine works with many different departments as well as national and international breeders. She also inspects the meat products to ensure that health and safety standards are met. To become a Beef Support Specialist, a high school diploma is typically required, although some positions require an associate's or Bachelor's degree. Typical employers include, but are not limited to, food production companies and government inspection agencies. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Business Unit Manager
Meet John McDougall, a Business Unit Manager for Semex! As a Business Unit Manager, John is responsible for managing international sales and development. To do so, he regularly communicates with distributors and customers in different parts of the world including, Australia, Europe and Mexico! To become a Business Unit Manager, you will need a Bachelor's degree in a Business related program i.e. Economics, Communications, Administration, Accounting etc. Typical employers include any companies with international customers i.e. food production companies, suppliers, commodity buyers. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Canadian Business Manager
Meet Anton Reijmers, a Canadian Business Manager for Grober Nutrition! In his role, he focuses on the sales department and ensures customer needs are met. Specifically, he is involved in nutritional products for animals. Anton also works with the research department to develop new products. To become a Business Unit Manager, you will need a Bachelor's degree in a Business related program i.e. Economics, Communications, Administration, Accounting etc. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Communications & Membership Manager
Meet Agatha Podgorski, the Communications and Membership Manager at Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance! In her role, she communicates with many different stakeholders regarding what her company does and what culinary tourism is. She does a lot of writing to communicate these messages also. Agatha went to journalism school, but the majority of people who become managers have received a Bachelor's degree in Communications, Marketing, Business, or Public Relations. Someone in this role would likely work for companies and organizations both large and small. You may also work for a marketing agency and work with a variety of companies overseeing their communication strategies. Some communications specialists freelance for different companies and are self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Communications Coordinator Publications
Meet Rachel Telford, Communications Coordinator Publications at Grain Farmers of Ontario! In her role, Rachel edits the magazine. In doing so, she coordinates writers for the magazine and also writes her self. A Bachelor’s degree in Communication, Journalism or Agriculture Communications. Strong computer and Microsoft Office (Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint) skills. Photography and basic video skills are a plus. There are many trade publications that are agriculture specific that would prefer to hire someone with an agriculture background. Some newspapers have writers who are agriculture reporters and companies often have communications personnel who write for their brochures, websites, and press releases. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Customer Services Representative
Meet Tracey Bolton, Customer Services Representative at Farm Credit Canada. Tracey is responsible for working with customers involving mortgage registrations, property titles, problem solving and much more! To become a customer service representative you will need an Associates degree in Agricultural Business or related field. Typical employers include food production companies, equipment sales companies, chemical companies, co-ops, seed production companies, retail businesses, animal health companies, and financial services companies. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Digital Marketing and Seed Innovation Training Coordinator
Meet Katherine Lacina, the Digital Marketing and Seed Innovation Training Coordinator at Pride Seeds! In her role, Katherine is responsible for developing media content and data for the website. She is also focused on training dealers when it comes to new products, so she often travelling around the Ontario and Quebec. A Bachelor's degree in Agriculture Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration is required to become a Digital Marketing Coordinator. Seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies typically employ Digital Marketing Coordinators. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director of Global Business Development and Technology
Meet Kathryn Doan, Director of Global Business Development and Technology at AgCareers.com! Kathryn is responsible for working with a variety of different internal and external clients. Working with a large variety of people across the world, Kathryn states that every day is unique and presents new challenges and experiences. To have a similar profession you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics, Business, International Business or Marketing. MBA or other related degree is a plus. Typical employers include, food production companies, commodity buyers and suppliers who have international customers or purchase international goods. Large port/cargo cities would be a common place for jobs to be found, but you are not limited by that geographic area, it all depends on your products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director of Human Resources
Meet Dave Shepard, Director of Human Resources at Ippolito Fruit and Produce Ltd. In his role, Dave is responsible for the employee discipline, encouragement, performance reviews of over 300 staff. Additionally, he works out staffing plans for the week. To become a Director of Human Resources, you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources or other Business-related degree. Many employers may also require you to have your SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) or SPHR (Senior Professional in Human Resources) certification. Human Resource Managers are employed at most medium and larger size companies. You can work in a variety of agricultural industries, being bi-lingual would be extremely valuable in recruiting in many sectors of agriculture. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director of Marketing
Meet Ashlee Mclean, the Director of Marketing at Ippolito Fruit and Produce Ltd. In her role, Ashlee is responsible for the consumer marketing for the company and developing their product line. She also plans their social media, so is responsible for the company's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram posts. A Bachelor's degree in Agriculture Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration is required to become a Marketing and Communications Manager. Seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director of Product Development
Meet Danielle Brodhagen, the Director of Product Development at the Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance! In her role, Danielle works with clients such as farmers, chefs and hotels, to develop products and strategic business plans that work together, all surrounding local food in Ontario. To become a Director of Product Development you will likely need a Bachelor's degree in Commercial, Industrial or Product Design. In the agricultural industry, a Master’s or a Doctorate Degree in your desired field is typically required. For example, you may need a degree in Plant Pathology to work as a Product Development Manager for a seed or crop services company. Product Development Managers work for medium to large-scale agricultural companies and organizations as well as some governmental agencies. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director of Sales & Circulation
Meet Lynda Tityk, the Director of Sales & Circulation for Farm Business Communications, a farm newspaper publishing company! In her role, Lynda directs the advertising and sales department. In doing so, she communicates with advertisers on how they can reach their audience, as well as farmers, to be able to provide them with meaningful information. To become a Sales Director, you will need a Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field. Significant work experience may also be required prior to receiving the job. Typical employers include food production companies, commodity buyers and suppliers who have international customers or purchase international goods. Large port/cargo cities would be a common place for jobs to be found, but you are not limited by that geographic area, it all depends on your products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Director, Obsolete Collection
Meet Russel Hurst, the Director of Obsolete Collection at CleanFARMS! In his role, Russel is in charge of the pesticide collection programs all across Canada. Russel works with many different people to develop the programs and ensure that the program is delivered effectively. To become a Director of a company, you will need a degree in Agricultural Economics, Business, or Marketing. An MBA or other related degree is a plus. Directors can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Division Sales Manager
Meet Jeremy Murray, the Division Sales Manager at Premier Equipment Ltd. with John Deere! In his role, he sells smaller agriculture equipment for the company. To do so he works with customers through different situation to solve problems using the technology and equipment he sells. To become a Division Sales Manager, you will need a degree in Agriculture Business, or Marketing is preferred. Depending on the nature of the retail store, Animal, Horticulture, Crop Science or Soil Science could also be sufficient. Typical employers include, food production companies, commodity buyers and suppliers who have international customers or purchase international goods. Large port/cargo cities would be a common place for jobs to be found, but you are not limited by that geographic area, it all depends on your products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Division Sales Manager - Small Ag & CWP
Meet Jeremy Murray, the Division Sales Manager at Premier Equipment Ltd. with John Deere! In his role, Jeremy sells the smaller agriculture equipment for the company. To do so he works with customers through different situation to solve problems using the technology and equipment he sells. To become a Division Sales Manager, you will need a degree in Agriculture Business, or Marketing is preferred. Depending on the nature of the retail store, Animal, Horticulture, Crop Science or Soil Science could also be sufficient. Typical employers include, food production companies, commodity buyers and suppliers who have international customers or purchase international goods. Large port/cargo cities would be a common place for jobs to be found, but you are not limited by that geographic area, it all depends on your products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Dock Worker
Meet Jeff Palmer, a Dock Worker at Koornneef Produce at the Ontario Food Terminal! As a Dock Worker, Jeff receives orders from customers and then delivers the desired orders based on the supply in the warehouse. He typically drives a forklift during his workday to lift the large pallets of food. As his career advances, Jeff hopes to one day become a supervisor, warehouse manager, or buyer for the Food Terminal. Dock Workers do not require formal post secondary degrees. However it is common to undertake additional training such as forklift, and on the job apprenticeships to become familiar with the machinery. Dock Workers work for medium to large-scale agricultural companies that continually ship and receive goods and products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Drought Contingency Specialist
Meet Hajnal Kovacs, a Drought Contingency Specialist at Grand River Conservatory Authority! As a Drought Contingency Specialist, Hajnal helps farmers to use the resources available to ensure they are irrigating at the proper times, therefore mitigating the risk of ruining the soil. With global warming worsening and the prevalence of droughts increasing, it is crucial that farmers maintain a certain soil moisture, and Hajnal's expertise helps to ensure this. To become a Drought Contingency Specialist, you will need a University Degree in Biology or a related field, such as Horticulture, Chemistry or Environmental Science is required. Typical employers include, universities, government agencies, consulting firms, research laboratories, museums, field stations, parks and recreation areas. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Editor of Greenhouse Canada Magazine
Meet Dave Harrison, the Editor of Greenhouse Canada Magazine. As the Editor, Dave is responsible for looking after the magazine, writing special features, and encourage researchers to write features for the magazine. A Bachelor’s degree in Communication, Journalism or Agriculture Communications. Strong computer and Microsoft Office (Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint) skills. Photography and basic video skills are a plus. There are many trade publications that are agriculture specific that would prefer to hire someone with an agriculture background. Some newspapers have writers who are agriculture reporters and companies often have communications personnel who write for their brochures, websites, and press releases. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Education and Marketing Manager
Meet Ashley Collins, Education and Marketing Manager at AgCareers.com! In her role, Ashley does a large amount of travel to give presentations at different universities and colleges across Canada and the US. When in the office, she works to prepare the presentations and manages the social media initiatives content at AgCareers.com. To become an Education and Marketing Manager you can have a background in Education, or will need a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration. Companies that would hire someone in this role include seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, educational, equipment companies as well as advertising agencies or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Entrepreneur
Meet Bruce Sargent, the owner and operator of Farm Boy Productions, a marketing company that is responsible for these videos! His company produces media for farms and agriculture business. In his role, he spends a lot of time meeting with new clients, filming content and editing it to make a final product. To work a similar job, you will need a degree in Digital Marketing, Media, or Graphic Design. Business degree's can be applicable as well. People looking to pursue a career in this direction typically work independently but may work for companies/organizations as well as marketing agencies.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Executive Director of Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance
Meet Rebecca LeHeup, Executive Director of Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance! In her role, Rebecca plans, develops, organizes, implements, directs and evaluates the company or organization’s business units, vision, mission and overall strategy. You may be flexible on what type of degree you have depending on the type of industry you are working for, but generally, a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree is required. To become an Executive Director in the agricultural industry, you must also have proven your ability through a generally accepted minimum of five years of related industry experience and have a strong background in leadership. Executive Directors can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Farm Animal Care Coordinator
Meet Kristen Kelderman, a Farm Animal Care Coordinator for Farm and Food Care Ontario! In her role, Kristen ensures the well being of animals on farms and works to improve the information gap between what consumers believe farmers are doing and what farmers believe consumers are looking for, in regards to animal care. To become a Farm Animal Coordinator, you will need a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Animal Science, Animal Welfare, or a related field. Other certifications relevant to different animals may also be requested. Someone in this job would likely work for the government, animal production companies, food and restaurant companies, animal processing facilities or animal welfare organizations and agencies that oversee or provide services to producers. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: General Manager
Meet Derek Hundert, the General Manager at PlanET Biogas Solutions Inc.! As a General Manager, Derek is responsible for all departments of the business in North America. He spends a lot of time with customers as well as managing the companies finances. He was first interested in Biogas as he is passionate about renewable energy and sustainability. To one day become a General Manager it is good to start with a university degree that includes but is not limited to Business and Accounting. Although, many general managers have other unique education backgrounds such as Engineering, Law, Science, or the Arts. General Managers can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: General Manager and Secretary Treasurer
Meet Bruce Nicholas, General Manager and Secretary Treasurer of the Ontario Food Terminal Board. In his role, Bruce is responsible for the operations of the food terminal. He ensure that that the products ordered arrive at the terminal, and are distributed to their proper locations. To one day become a General Manager it is good to start with a University Degree that includes but is not limited to Business and Accounting. Although, many General Managers have other unique education backgrounds such as Engineering, Law, Science, or the Arts. General Managers can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Government Relations
Meet Debra Conlon, a Government Relations worker for Grain Farmers of Ontario! In her role, Debra is responsible for speaking to the government on behalf of the Grain Farmers of Ontario to tackle a large array of issues and ensure farmers are set up for success. To work in government relations you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration. Typical employers include seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: HR Services Specialists
Meet Mandy Belaen, HR Services Specialists at AgCareers.com! Mandy is responsible for the company's Canadian sales, working with US counterparts and conducting market research such as the HR review. To become a HR services specialist you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources or Agricultural Business. Typical employers include food production companies, equipment sales companies, chemical companies, co-ops, seed production companies, retail businesses, animal health companies, and financial services companies. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: IMV Maintenance and Inventory Coordinator
Meet Ben Clutton, an IMV Maintenance and Inventory Coordinator at EastGen! In his role, Ben performs maintenance tasks on the lab equipment sold and is involved in ensuring orders reach their buyers. To become a Coordinator most people work their way up to this position after completing a degree in Business, as communication and people skills are important for the role. Typical employers include farm equipment dealers and manufacturers. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Laboratory Coordinator
Meet Rachel Campbell Murdy, a Laboratory Coordinator and Technical Support at U of G! In her role, Rachel is responsible for a variety of tasks including attending meetings, writing reports and participating in activities with farmers and local entrepreneurs. Her main task involves conducting research into looking at Bioproducts products. To become a laboratory coordinate, you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Laboratory Science, Biology, Chemistry, etc. Laboratory Coordinators can work in a variety of labs. Technicians can work in an academic, government or company setting. Seed, chemical, biotech and animal health companies are examples of companies that hire laboratory technicians. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Laboratory Manager, Crop Breeding and Genetics
Meet Chris Grainger, a Laboratory Manager at the University of Guelph! In his job, Chris conducts research projects involving plant breeding and genetics. Specifically, he uses DNA technologies to determine the important genes in soybean plants. A Bachelor’s degree in Laboratory Science, Biology, Chemistry, etc. is required to be a Laboratory Manager. Laboratory Managers can work in a variety of labs. They can work in an academic, government or company setting. Seed, chemical, biotech and animal health companies are examples of companies that hire laboratory technicians. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Land Resource Specialist
Meet Nicole Rabe, a Land Resource Specialist for the Environmental Management Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food. In her role, Nicole is primarily responsible for soil mapping. Soil mapping involves locating and identifying different types of soil and recording this on digital maps to show the distribution of land. A Bachelor’s degree in Biology or a related field, such as Horticulture, Chemistry or Environmental Science is required. Universities, government agencies, consulting firms, research laboratories, museums, field stations, parks and recreation areas. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Lead Roadie and Retail and Events
Meet Deanna Wolske, the Retail and Events Coordinator at Flat Rock Cellars Winery. In her role, Deanna is responsible for her team and the events they put on. To execute this successfully, Deanna also has to negotiate events accommodations, choose audio-visual equipment and production company and monitor the event while it's taking place. To become a Retail and Events Coordinator, a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture Business, Public Relations, Hotel and Restaurant Management or Communications is required. Some companies hire events managers to handle events, field days, trade shows etc. Some event managers are self-employed and contract their work out to different clients. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Manager, Member Services
Meet Kim Timmer, a Manager of Member Services at CleanFARMS, a NPO (Non Profit Organization) that helps to develop waste management programs. As a manager, Kim typically communicates and maintains a relationship with the organizations members. She is a vital part of the organization, as the members of an NPO are a large source of donation, and allows CleanFARMS to move forward with their mission. To become a Manager of Member Services, you will need a degree in Business, Management, Communications or a related field. Previous work experience and a potential master's degree is also commonly obtained. Most NPOs will hire a Manager of Membership Services. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Market Development Coordinator
Meet Nicole Mackellar, Market Development Coordinator at Grain Farmers of Ontario. Nicole is responsible for creating and improving new markets for members, specifically the corn, wheat and soybean market. She is also the program coordinator for the national soybean council that works to promote Canadian Soybeans. A Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration. Seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Marketing Specialist
Meet Claire Cowan, a Marketing Specialist at Syngenta Canada Inc. In her role, Claire works in the Customer Marketing Department where she helps promote Syngenta to growers in the corn and bean industry. She is also responsible for monitoring the brands performance and conducting market research to ensure her marketing efforts see success. To become a Marketing Specialist you will need a Bachelor's degree in Agricultural Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Educations or Business Administration. Seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies typically employ marketing specialists, or you may be self-employed.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Marketing and Communications Manager
Meet Heather Copland, the Director of Marketing and Communications at Grober Nutrition! In her role, Heather works to deliver a message to customers that they can understand, through marketing. To do so, she works with the Sales and Nutrition departments as well. A Bachelor's degree in Agriculture Business, Marketing, Journalism, Communications, Education or Business Administration is required to become a Marketing and Communications Manager. Seed, feed, fuel, fertilizer, plant, animal pharmaceuticals, equipment, companies as well as advertising agencies typically employ marketing and communications managers. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Member Services Coordinator
Meet Holly Lethbridge, the Member Services Coordinator at Eastgen! In her role, she is responsible for coordinating tours for Eastgen and maintains a relationship with the organizations members. She is also involved in design for the website and displays for large events. A high school diploma is required and an Associate’s Degree in business is preferred. Any NPO may hire a Member Services Coordinator, depending on the organization's size. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Nutrition Associate
Meet Megan Van Schaik, Nutrition Associate for Grober Nutrition! Megan is responsible for ensuring that animals are receiving optimal nutrition. This includes feed formulation and research and development, as grocer nutrition is focused on manufacturing a milk replacer for young animals. A Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science, Poultry Science or other related field is required. A Master's degree in Animal Nutrition may be required for some roles. Depending upon the animal, you may work for a cooperative, veterinarian, a feed company or independently.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Nutrition and Herd Management Specialist
Meet Nancy Charlton, a Nutrition and Herd Management Specialist at DeLaval Canada, an international company originated from Sweden. At DeLaval, Nancy manages the equipment used to milk the cow. She works with farmers to ensure this equipment is understood and utilized effectively to ensure the optimal health of the cows. To become a Nutrition and Herd Management Specialist, you will need a Bachelor's degree in Animal Science or a related field. As well, some roles required a Master's degree in Animal Nutrition. Depending upon the animal, you may work for a cooperative, veterinarian, a feed company or independently. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Owner and Head Sales
Meet Steve Fett, Owner and Head Sales of S. Fett Farms! In his role, Steve is responsible for driving to the super markets and selling his produce to consumers. A high school diploma is required to be a row crop farmer but an associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in a relevant or supplementary field such as Agribusiness, Plant Science, or Agriculture would be helpful. Certifications such as a CDL or pesticide applicator licenses are also often desired. Row crop producers may work independently on their own farm or they may work for large farms and agricultural companies that produce crops and crop-related products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: President of Gallant Horticultural Solutions Inc.
Meet Adrien Gallant, President of Gallant Custom Laboratories. Adrien is in charge of the companies operations involving vaccine manufacturing for animals. He works with all different departments to ensure that operations run smoothly and efficiently. You may be flexible on what type of degree you have depending on the type of industry you are working for, but generally, a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree is required. To become the president of a company in the agricultural industry, you must also have proven your ability through a generally accepted minimum of five years of related industry experience and have a strong background in leadership. General Managers can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: President of J.E. Russell Produce Ltd.
Meet John Russell, President of J.E Russell Produce Ltd! In his role, John is responsible for buying and selling product and managing the operations the ensure that everything is running at maximum efficiency. You may be flexible on what type of degree you have depending on the type of industry you are working for, but generally, a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree is required. To become the president of a company in the Agricultural Industry, you must also have proven your ability through a generally accepted minimum of five years of related industry experience and have a strong background in leadership. General Managers can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: President, Richard E. Ryan and Associates Ltd.
Meet Barry Green, President of Richard E. Ryan and Associates Ltd. at the Ontario Food Terminal! In his role, Barry speaks with customers in the terminal and stays up to date with industry trends. He then communicates with suppliers to cater towards these trends. He partakes in many other tasks to ensure the company runs smoothly and successfully. You may be flexible on what type of degree you have depending on the type of industry you are working for, but generally, a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree is required. To become the president of a company in the agricultural industry, you must also have proven your ability through a generally accepted minimum of five years of related industry experience and have a strong background in leadership. General Managers can work for any small to large company or organization within the agricultural industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Preventative Maintenance Scheduler
Meet Cheri Johnson, Preventative Maintenance Scheduler at Grand River Foods. In her role, Cheri is responsible for taking note of daily maintenance required in the plant and then scheduling electricians and mechanics to fix these problems. To have a similar profession you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics, Business, Accounting, Finance, or a related degree. As a Preventative Maintenance Scheduler you can work for agriculture marketing groups, banks, grain merchandisers or consulting firms. Some in the risk management field are self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Producer
Meet Charlie Welsh Owner and Operator of Welsh Bros. Farm and sells at the Ontario Food Terminal. As a Producer, Charlie is responsible for managing the growing process of over 1200 acres of crops. To become a producer, a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business, Food Science, Animal or Poultry Science, is needed. Some roles may also be obtainable with an associate’s degree. Producers work in food processing facilities ranging from meat to dry packaged goods. As well in live animal production settings and in the chemical/biotech industry. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Productivity Improvement Coordinator
Meet Ian Rumble, the Productivity Improvement Coordinator at DuPont Pioneer! In his role, Ian is responsible for making recommendations for change, involving process redesign and efficiency improvement. He also ensures that there is ongoing coaching, development and training of team members. To become a Productivity Improvement Coordinator, a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations Management or Business Management is typically required. Productivity improvement coordinators most often work for medium to large-scale agricultural companies and manufacturers as well as research firms. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Project Development Coordinator
Meet Becky Parker, Project Development Coordinator at Ontario Agri-Food Education! In her role, Becky is responsible for developing proposals for partnerships, researching and developing educational resources and staying up to date with industry trends. It is recommended that you have a degree in Agricultural Education, Education, Agriculture, Ag Communications, or Ag Business. Extension youth program coordinators work for county and state extension offices. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Project Manager
Meet Shane Heddersen, a Project Manager for CleanFARMS. As a Project Manager, he manages the recycling portion of the business, meets with contractors and partakes in projects in the field. He travels a lot to attend meetings, visit different sites and audit different pesticides containers to ensure plastic of high quality. To become a project manager you will need a Bachelor's degree in management, business, or a related field. A master's degree is also commonly obtained among project managers. Project Managers work for medium to large-scale agricultural companies as well as advertising or marketing agencies to develop and promote products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Regional Sales Manager
Meet Diana Holst, the Regional Sales Manager at John Deere Financial! In her role, Diana is responsible for the financial sales for the all of Western Canada. She deals with people all across the Ag industry. To become a Regional Sales Manager you will need a Bachelor's degree in a Business related program i.e.. Economics, Communications, Administration, Accounting etc. Typical employers include food production companies, commodity buyers and suppliers who have international customers or purchase international goods. Large port/cargo cities would be a common place for jobs to be found, but you are not limited by that geographic area, it all depends on your products. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Relationship Manager
Meet Jason Emke, the Relationship Manager at Farm Credit Canada! As a Relationship Manager, Jason works with farmers and lends them money to cover equipment purchases, investments and operational expenses. Becoming a Relationship Manager requires a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business, Accounting or Finance. A general understanding of agriculture is very valuable and desired. Relationship Managers most often work for banks, some of which are agricultural in nature. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Sales and Product Specialist
Meet Melissa Bowers, a Sales and Product Specialist at Semex. Her job consists of collaborating with Canadian beef and dairy breeders, sourcing embryos for international customers and much more. On a regular she communicates with many international customers to market embryos. To become a Sales and Product Specialist, you will need a Business related Bachelor degree, or Agricultural Major that relates to the product you are representing. Typical employers include commodity supply companies, seed production companies, chemical/fertilizer distributors, animal processing and health companies, equipment dealerships, there are also some opportunities to be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Senior Turf Services Representative
Meet Sean Bradbury, the Senior Turf Services Representative at Zander Sod Company Ltd. In his role, Sean is responsible for selling the companies services to golf course, sports field managers or home owners. Then he delivers and installs the customers order alongside other staff. To become a turf services representative and eventually a manager, a Bachelor's degree in Turf grass Management is required. Typical employers can include universities, golf courses, municipal stadiums, and professional sporting teams. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Shop Foreman and On Road Technician
Meet Chris Pleiter, a Shop Foreman and On Road Technician at Premier Equipment! In his role, Chris is responsible for meeting with customers for on site repairs and maintenance. A high school diploma or more preferably an Associate’s Degree in Industrial Equipment Technologies, Mechanics, Heavy Equipment and Transport Technology, is required. Employed by farm equipment dealers and manufactures. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Shows and Events Coordinator
Meet Sarah McIntosh, a Shows and Events Coordinator for John Deere! As a Shows and Events Coordinator, Sarah travels across the country coordinating trade shows and sponsorship's John Deere has such as festivals, competitions and award shows. To become a shows and events coordinator you will need a degree in Agriculture Business, Public Relations, Hotel and Restaurant Management, or Communications. Some companies hire events managers to handle events, field days, trade shows etc. Some event managers are self-employed and contract their work out to different clients. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Solutions Specialist
Meet Brian DeLeye, a Solutions Specialist with John Deere Canada ULC! As a solutions specialist, Brian works with dealerships to solve problems regarding the technology John Deere offers. He also works with the dealer to put on clinics to help the customers utilize the technology to it's maximum potential. To become a Solutions Specialist you will need a degree in Business or Engineering. As well, experience in the agriculture industry is the best way to get your foot in the door! Solution Specialists typically work for companies that have branches that sell their products. This could be an equipment dealer, parts retailer, insurance, finance, software or feed company. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Territory Manager
Meet Jennifer Christie, a Territory Sales Manager for John Deere! In her role, Jennifer is responsible for ensuring that there is a clear stream of information between John Deere and its dealership network. She travels to different farm shows and dealership putting on different events as well. To become a Territory Manager, it is helpful to have a background in Finance and Analytics. To have a career in Agriculture Sales/Business it is required that you have a Bachelor's degree in either of these areas. Companies that hire Territory Managers are often commodity supply companies, seed production companies, chemical/fertilizer distributors, animal processing and health companies and equipment dealerships. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Turf Services Representative
Meet Josh Tribble, Turf Services Representative for Zander Sod Company Ltd. In his role, Josh is responsible for developing and implementing plans for the successful maintenance of all athletic fields and grounds. To become a turf services representative and eventually a manager, a Bachelor's degree in Turfgrass Management is required. Typical employers can include universities, golf courses, municipal stadiums, and professional sporting teams. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Veterinary Technician
Meet Courtney Swann, a Veterinary Technician with Hogendoorn Dairy! As a Veterinary Technician, Courtney is responsible for providing health care to the animals. This involves injury/illness treatment, performing x rays, tests, surgeries and much more! To become a Veterinary Technician, you will need a degree in Veterinary Technology or Animal Science. More research based positions may require a Bachelor’s degree. Typical employers include veterinary clinics, university research farms, diagnostic laboratories, zoos, animal control facilities and wildlife preserves. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Meet Stephen Denys, the Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Pride Seeds. In his role, Stephen is involved in a large diversity of tasks. He works with dealers and producers to form relationships and ensure that they can maximize yields and profitability. As well, he works to develop solutions for current industry issues. To become a Vice President of Sales and Marketing you will need a Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy, Crop Science, Soil Science, Biology or a related field, such as Horticulture, Plant Physiology or Environmental Science is required to become a Agronomy Sales person. You may also have a degree in agricultural business with a background or minor in a more agronomic related field. Jobs similar to Stephen's are typically employed by seed companies, crop protection companies and cooperatives.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Vineyard Manager
Meet Craig Wismer, Vineyard Manager for Glen Elgin Vineyard Management and for Flat Rock Cellars. Craig is responsible for managing vineyards for people who need the assistance. He manages the entire process from bud sampling, pruning, to harvesting. A Bachelor’s degree in Viticulture, Oenology, or Horticulture is required. A Master’s degree in is also often a requirement. Typical employers are wine farms or estates, wine production companies, government agencies, colleges and universities or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Careers: Career Profile: Winemaker
Meet Jay Johnston, a passionate Winemaker for Flat Rock Cellars Winery! In his role, Jay oversees the entire production process of creating wine, including grape harvesting, crushing, fermentation, aging, blending and bottling. He is very passionate about his job and winemaking as it is a process that includes art, science, technicality and creativity. To become a wine maker, a Bachelor's degree in Viticulture is recommended. Typical employers are wine farms or estates, wine production companies, government agencies, colleges and universities or you may be self-employed. This video is for all ages.
Growing Green
Through this interactive resource students explore the concepts of climate and climate change, investigate the impact on agriculture, and are challenged to propose solutions to help farmers mitigate or adapt to the changes. The exercises and activities will help science students understand how climate change affects the real world.
Growing Pulses
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will understand how nutrients are passed from the soil to the plant through its root system, nitrogen-fixing as a concept and symbiosis through the role of rhizobia in growing pulses. Ontario curriculum links include grade 4 Science.
Growing for a Sustainable Future
This resource identifies the types of products that agriculture has made available to reduce our reliance on materials and products that are not sustainable and will help students develop a better understanding of the ways in which Canada's farmers are working to provide resource sustainability for all Canadians.
Growing for the Future
Growing for the Future is a resource developed to meet the Ontario Science and Technology curriculum for grades 6 through 8, with cross curricular ties to Language. Students will gain a broader understanding of the end uses of commonly grown Ontario grains and oilseeds. Students demonstrate an understanding that humans rely on renewable and non-renewable resources.
Growing with Hydroponics
This lesson discusses world population growth and the need to increase and advance food production. It takes a particular focus on technological advancement, namely hydroponics, and its role in feeding a growing world.
Guardians of the Grasslands
Guardians of the Grasslands is a short documentary that explores the current state of one of the world’s most endangered ecosystems - the grasslands in the Great Plains - and the role that cattle play in its survival. As we reach new critical levels in the loss of these iconic landscapes, there are important truths we must face about humanity’s relationship with the land and our food.
Harvest Bin Project: Creating a Harvest Bin Farmer’s Market
Students will learn to calculate the cost and pricing for the crops produced in their harvest bins. They will also learn how to run a successful marketing campaign and one day market event.
Harvest Bin Project: Design and Build a Better Farming Tool
This resource will enable students to design and build a better farming tool for use in the Harvest Bins that solves or improves upon a challenge they experienced during the farming process (planting, caring for the plants, or harvesting). Students will have to research the history of their tool, create a template for the design and outline how it will work and improve their farming experience.
Harvest Poetry Tea Time
Harvest Season! What food will inspire student poetry ideas? Take advantage of a great time of year to introduce poetry and have a Tea Party! This assignment introduces 3 types of poems (Couplet, Limerick and Free Verse) that have Harvest Food as a theme. Assignment criteria for each type of poem, as well as the 6 figures of speech to include (metaphor, personification, synecdoche, onomatopoeia, hyperbole, and alliteration), are expanded upon in the Student Assignment. In order to explore student poems together, culminating with a Poetry Teatime, provides the opportunity in a relaxed setting to share some completed Harvest Food poems and special harvest time treats.
Hay Crop Challenges
Students will be challenged with a problem-based scenario to design a hay storage facility. They will complete calculations to determine the design criteria, and apply concepts of perimeter, area, and volume as they complete a grid drawing of their plan.
Health and Nutrition
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will recognise the role different foods play in a balanced diet, and the effects on health of an unbalanced diet. They will explore ways in which we can design balanced meals from different food types and evaluate the benefits of including pulses in a balanced diet. Ontario curriculum links include grades 4 & 5 Health.
Healthy Eating: Eating Well in Ontario
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grade 4-6 Health & Physical Education and Mathematics. Students will identify the four food groups, list similarities and differences between the old and new version of Canada's Food Guide, and create a healthy breakfast idea.
Healthy Foods from Healthy Farms
Healthy Foods from Healthy Farms is available for Grades 1-3 and for Grades 3-5. This resource includes: -A 3-part video (below), that will take your students on a journey behind the scenes of a favourite snack (crackers, cheese and carrots) to meet some of the Manitoba farmers and processors who grow and process your food. -An activity which gives students the opportunity to create a healthy snack using Canada’s new Food Guide while learning about the farmers who grow the food and the people who process the food. This activity is available as a: Class Kit which comes with a teacher guide and enough activity sheets and sticker sheets for 25 students. Order below. or A downloadable resource. Click the button to download a folder with everything you need to deliver the activity in French or English to your students!
Healthy Hybrids
In this lesson, students will learn about basic genetic principles - crosses through patterns of inheritance - and will be able to predict genotypes of organisms using Punnett Squares. Use the lesson in conjunction with the corresponding Healthy Hybrids PowerPoint presentation.
Healthy Kids Quest
A healthy, balanced lifestyle is particularly important for children, since habits established in childhood often stay with us for life. Take on the Healthy Kids Quest to encourage and empower your students to make healthy lifestyle choices. There are six modules, each with a different theme. All themes include an introductory lesson plan, a theme-specific challenge, one or more follow-up activities, and an information sheet for parents.
Holiday Activity Kit
AgScape, in collaboration with 4H Ontario developed a holiday activity kit for all ages containing 4 ornament crafts each with a fun fact. Take a picture with your craft hanging in your home on a tree or in the windowsill and share your photos/social media posts with AgScape and 4-H Ontario.
Holiday Activity Kit 2022
In partnership with 4-H Ontario, we bring you the 2022 Holiday Activity Kit. This kit contains 4 foldable geometric activities (e.g. turkey, sheep, reindeer and horse) that can help students creatively learn about math while also being artistic.
Horses
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits, our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
How Does A Label Influence My Choice
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grades 5-7 Language and The Arts. Students will identify the different components of a label, analyse their eating habits and the influence of various factors on their personal food choices, and demonstrate an understanding of how colours emit a variety of feelings and emotions. Students will also demonstrate an understanding of the importance of appropriate lettering on a label and design a cereal box label applying the techniques that they learned.
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Engage students in growing plants! Students will plant seeds in water gel crystals to enhance their ability to observe the growth of roots, stems, and leaves over several days. Then, explore how plants are grown in hydroponic systems.
International Year of Pulses 2016 Education Pack
This pack contains 4, hour-long lesson plans and their curriculum connections to Canada’s provincial curriculums designed for grades 6 through 10. This resources explores issues such as health and nutrition, food security, and environmental sustainability. The plans are designed to either build concurrently or work as stand-alone classroom activities.
International Year of the Pulses
This series of lessons will introduce topics such as the role pulses can have in maintaining a balanced diet, the idea of pulses as edible parts of a plant, how to prepare a balanced meal with pulses, the benefits of growing pulses, learning about pulses around the world, and food security.
Interview with a Farmer
Our food has a story. So we decided to bring a camera crew to farmer Will Bergmann's house to ask him some questions and see how he helps feed the world. Get accurate, balanced and current agriculture information in a visual way by watching our interview with Will. Plus we had the opportunity to ask Will a few more of our pressing questions after the interview! Check out his responses to questions about organic farming, pesticide use, buying local and more in the 'Questions with Will PDF'.
Introduction to Pulses
Pulses are the group of crops that includes dry beans, dry peas, chickpeas, and lentils. As a steady source of nutrition and soil sustainability, pulse crops play a major role in our global food security, a role which will only grow in the future. Curriculum connections include: -Grade 3 Science units: Growth and Changes in Plants, Soils in the Environment -Grade 4 Science unit Habitats and Communities -Grade 4 Social Studies Cluster 3 The following worksheets, created by Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers and Agriculture in the Classroom & MB, focus on the role that pulses play in advancing health and nutrition, food security and environmental sustainability.
Invasive Species
This resource looks at Invasive Species in Ontario. Students learn about the impacts invasive species have on agriculture, the environment, economy and society. Students will have the opportunity to research common invasive species, get outside and explore their local green space, work with a variety of media/technology and learn how they can make a difference. Links to Science, Language, Visual Arts and Health and Physical Education.
Invent a Bug
In these lesson plans, students will learn to recognize bugs by identifying common characteristics and structures and investigate how their adaptations help them to adapt to their environment.
Investigating Top Soil
The objective of this activity is to help students understand the importance of topsoil. Students will explore matter cycles while investigating a variety of topsoil conditions and will learn how these conditions can influence plant health.
Journey & Farmers 2050
Using either Journey 2050 or Farmers 2050 virtual applications, interactive activities, and hands-on lessons, students will explore important concepts, such as sustainable agriculture and how we are going to feed a growing world in the future.
Keeping the Great Lakes Great
The Great Lakes offer many important contributions to Canada's society, including: economic, environmental, and social benefits. Learn more about these through the research, case studies, trivia, and hands on activities provided in this resource.
Lab to Label
Pesticides are one of the most regulated products in Canada. From Lab to Label explains how pesticides make it from the discovery phase and then become a registered product that farmers can use in Canada.
Lentil Berry Muffin Recipe
Try making this delicious Lentil Berry Muffin Recipe, inspired by ingredients grown right here in our province! Students will also learn about the different ingredients used and where they come from.
Let's Talk Eggs! Exploring Manitoba's Egg Industry
Bring a Manitoba egg farm experience to your students without leaving your classroom. Eggs are a very popular part of our daily diets and our Manitoba egg farmers work hard every day to make sure we have eggs to enjoy! Student will: -Explore the production of eggs on a Manitoba egg farm -Identify the steps in the journey of eggs from farm to table -Create and observe chemical changes through a 'Naked Egg' experiment -Describe how eggs provide nutrients that help us maintain a healthy body Includes videos, worksheets, experiments and more.
Let’s Eat: Plants!
Let’s Eat: Plants! is an interactive resource that connects kids to where their food comes from. Students learn which grain, fruit and vegetable crops are needed to make the foods they commonly eat. Plant parts as food ingredients are investigated.
Life Cycles of Animals, Plants and Me
Students will investigate the stages in the life cycles of a variety of living things, such as plants, animals and humans. Students will identify any similarities and differences in life cycles and understand each stage of development. Finally, students will create a model of a plant and animal life cycle, while utilizing technology to illustrate how they progress to each stage.
Local Food Activity Kit 2022
AgScape, in collaboration with 4H Ontario and Farm & Food Care Ontario, developed a local food week activity kit for students from kindergarten to grade 8 containing virtual tours, worksheets, crafts, and games.
Local Food Infographics
These infographics explore the meaning of what is local food as well as the environmental, social, economic and health impacts of eating it. They outline the economic impact of buying local products, where to find local products, seasonal availability as well as tips and tricks for year-round preservation.
Local Food Week 2023
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trips: 1. Berry Farm, 2. Asparagus Farm, 3. Fish Farm, 4. Honey Bees, 5. Egg Farm. Pair these videos with our Activity Kit! This activity package contains activities for students of all ages. These activities explore local food in Ontario such as berries, asparagus, fish, honey, eggs, and more!
Local Food and Horticulture: Issue Analysis and Career Opportunities
This resource introduces students to the evolving face of local food and horticulture. Careers related to local food and horticulture are also explored. Students will be encouraged to think critically about how the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s regulations affect local businesses and industries. Issue analysis and business plan assignments are included. Links to Technological Education and Science
Lunch Bag Challenge
In Canada, it’s common to find a grocery store, convenience store, or even a farmers-market in your area. How often have you visited with your family, pushed a cart around, and seen the variety of available food on the shelves. Maybe you’ve helped select the best fruits and vegetables from the stacks, or picked your favourite meat and dairy products from the refrigerated displays. But have you ever stopped to think about how it got there? Food goes through a cycle from production to waste management, and every step along the way, we must be thinking of ways to ensure that food is available, accessible, nutritious, affordable and stable. These five elements are vital to food security and the goal of eliminating hunger and malnutrition worldwide.
Make Your Own Bio-Plastic Stuff… In Your Microwave
Students make bio-degradeable plastic in the microwave using corn oil, corn starch, and water as a way to relate Agriculture to the environment and what we as humans can do to keep it sustainable for all.
Make Your Own Salad Dressing Using Canola Oil!
Engage your students in learning about the properties and changes in substances and the particle theory of matter while they create their own simple emulsified salad dressing with canola oil from one of Manitoba’s top two crops. The teacher guide provides curriculum connections, a lesson plan, a student worksheet, and a fun physical activity that provides a model of the chemistry behind an emulsified salad dressing for better student understanding. This is a great companion resource for the Follow the Canola Farmer video.
Manitoba Pork Educational Videos
These six, short, 2-minute videos deal with environmental, social, and economic aspects of sustainably farming pigs, as well as animal welfare practices and the use of technology on a pig farm. The six videos are: 1. Environmental Stewardship 2. Give Me Shelter 3. Barn Life 4. GPS Technology on the Farm 5. The Nutrient Cycle 6. Waste Not. Want Not.
Manitoba Soil Exploration: Digging Deep
Students will dig deep into how soil is formed in Manitoba. A variety of activities cover topics such as what kind of soils are in Manitoba, and the importance of this natural resource in agriculture.
Manitoba Species at Risk: Partnerships on Agricultural Lands
Manitoba cattle ranches – a biodiversity solution? Yes - Manitoba’s beef producers play a critical role in carefully managing thousands of acres of privately-owned and agricultural Crown grasslands. Many of these grasslands provide critical habitat for Canada’s most at-risk plant and animal species. In the video, bird expert and former Manitoba Program Manager for Bird Studies Canada, Dr. Christian Artuso talks about the synergies between beef production, habitat preservation, and protecting endangered grassland species and how we can help preserve our prairie grasslands through the choices we make with our consumer dollars.
Maple Syrup Activity Kit
Download the Maple Syrup Activity Kit to access various resources for your students to learn about the process of creating maple syrup from sap! There is a range of activities from a Spot the Difference to a chapter reflection from the book 'Braiding Sweetgrass'.
Maple Syrup Production
This virtual field trip will take you to William's Farm where you will learn all about maple syrup production! Join us as we learn about collecting sap and boiling it down into delicious syrup. Pair this field trip with our activity kit! This kit contains activities from a maple syrup process board game to colouring pages which work for various grade levels.
Math on the Farm-Grade 8 Resource
Grade 8 classrooms can use this fun resource to support math 8 curriculum including using percentages and ratios. Students use their math skills to help Sam, the dairy farmer, complete tasks throughout a busy day on a dairy and crop farm. The challenge: how can you help the farmer to increase their crop yield, keep the cows happy and healthy, and run the farm smoothly? There are 5 math tasks to completed by students. As the students complete the tasks, they learn just how much math happens every day on the farm; from making milk replacer for the calves to determining how many hectares of soybeans need to be planted in order to harvest enough for the winter. This fun resource includes a lesson plan with curriculum connections as well as a student facing PowerPoint to help guide the classroom activity. Math on the Farm Resource provides: -lesson plan with curriculum connection to grade 8 math, background information, guiding questions, student task answers and a list of online resources and video links - student-facing inquiry guide (PowerPoint) with tasks to complete in small groups - staff support to answer questions
Meat and Poultry Processing in Ontario, Teacher Guide for Grades 7-12
This comprehensive resource includes a Teacher’s Guide, providing an overview of the meat and poultry processing sector in Ontario, as well as three interdisciplinary lesson plans targeting grades 7-8, grades 9-10 and grades 11-12. Many different and relevant themes such packaging and food waste (7-8), industry challenges and solutions (9-10) and food safety (11-12) as well as an overarching theme of career exploration are covered in the lesson plans provided.
Medicine Wheels and Health
Through the lens of health and wellness education, students will engage in learning about the Medicine Wheel. Students will discover the many uses of the Medicine Wheel, learn how to connect the Medicine Wheel to their own health through food, and will make a Medicine Wheel garden as a class.
Meet an Agri-Food Expert!
Want to hear more about agriculture and food straight from the experts? Watch or share this Youtube playlist with your students of various farmers and agri-food reps talking about their work, the science, how technology is important, and how they got into their career all while they are doing a tour of their facility. To date, this playlist contains videos of sheep, dairy, fish, and egg farming as well as greenhouse growing. New videos continue to be added!
Minute to Win It Activities
This guide provides fairs and agricultural societies with interactive curriculum-linked activities that could be led at their agriculture education events. The mission of these activities is to provide agricultural societies with a tool that will help them spread knowledge of agriculture and agricultural careers with youth.
Module - Mooo! Some butter....
🧈 But where does butter come from? From this question, some students will say it comes from the grocery store, while others will say it comes from cows. In this module, students will make butter from cream. This will help them understand the origin of butter and its various stages of production. They'll be able to observe the different phase changes the cream undergoes to become butter.
Mother Nat's Challenges - Apple peel chips!
🍎 Here's another challenge from our lovely Mother Nature! 🍎 Apple peel chips! What better way to minimize waste during apple season? Another zero-waste trick to try and reduce our ecological footprint. ♻️ Let's get cooking! No more apple peel leftovers after making our beautiful pies, eat it all!
Mother Nat's Challenges - Beetroot pink pancakes !
🌞 New challenge from Mother Nature: Pink beetroot pancakes! 🌞 Ready for a unique and colorful culinary challenge? Dare to make pink beetroot pancakes! 🌸🥞 Beetroot, with its naturally vibrant hue, not only tastes delicious but also adds a unique splash of color to your pancakes. By using natural and seasonal ingredients, we honor Mother Nature while indulging in summer flavors. 🌟 By taking on this challenge, you're promoting the use of healthy, local ingredients, all while reducing your environmental impact. Thank you for joining Mother Nature in this eco-friendly gourmet adventure!
Mother Nat's Challenges - Halloween makeup
🌿 Can you take on the challenge of transforming yourself into an animal or character using only natural ingredients? 🎨🐾 How to make natural dye? An activity for both the little ones and the grown-ups to brighten up a gloomy day and prepare for Halloween peacefully :) 🎃👻 Mother Nature is excited to see your adorable faces! 🍂
Mother Nat's Challenges - Natural all purpose cleanser
🎄 Why not give a second life to your Christmas tree and... extend the delightful scent of Christmas for a few more weeks? A recipe for a household product that will raise awareness about overconsumption and waste production among the students in your class! 🌿🌍 Let's make sustainability a part of our festive celebrations! 🌟
Mother Nat's Challenges : Eco-friendly water-based paint!
Have you ever thought about making your own eco-friendly water-based paint? Have you ever wondered why carrots are orange? And the tomatoes, red? Come and find out right here and do your own painting to reduce the damage to the environment and animals that regular painting could cause. Come on, let's have fun and create!
Mother Nat's challenge - Seasonal fruit popsicles!
🍓 Ready to savor the freshness of local fruits? We've crafted a refreshing and delightful taste experience just for you. Seasonal fruit popsicles are here to brighten your sunny days and provide a healthy gourmet break. We believe in the power of Mother Nature and aim to promote the use of locally sourced, freshly harvested ingredients to create popsicles with authentic and natural flavors. By choosing seasonal fruits, we support our local farmers and preserve the ecological balance of our region. 🌱🌞
Mushroom Farming
Explore the exciting world of mushrooms with our Mushroom Activity Kit. This kit is filled with hands-on crafts, and thought provoking activities, all centered around different types of mushrooms, mushroom anatomy, and more! It's perfect for teachers who want to spark curiosity and teach students about how mushrooms grow in Ontario. This kit pairs perfectly with our Mushroom Farm Virtual Field Trip , bringing the world of fungi right into the classroom or home. Simply download the activity kit, choose the activities that best suit your class, and embark on a fascinating journey into the realm of mushroom farming with your students.
My Food is From...
Have you ever wondered about the path different foods have to take before they end up in your lunch box? This resource will enable students to identify where familiar foods are produced and describe the steps of how a particular food made it into their lunchbox.
My Gardening Journal
This hands-on wreck-it journal aligns with the Grade 4 curriculum, but is fun for all ages. Plan, plant, care for, harvest, cook/bake with, and compost your very own garden, while conducting informative scientific experiments along the way!
Nature Prints
A fun experience in Grade 5 Science is when students learn about wetland ecosystems where students study life in a local pond, slough, marsh, fen or bog. These areas are often found on a local farm, and farmers must avoid these areas for protection of the wetland, and because it is too difficult to use them for agricultural purposes.
Nourishing the Planet in the 21st Century
Engage your students with the learning materials provided on a variety of topics, including soil science and agricultural sustainability. Learn about the important role plant nutrients play in global food security, and the creation and maintenance of green spaces.
Now You're Cooking with Manitoba Chicken
Manitoba Chicken Producers serves up this beautifully illustrated cookbook and video with student-friendly recipes, garnished with chicken farming facts, food safety tips, and cooking tips to help junior cooks master the ins and outs of food prep and cooking.
Nutrient Movement
Plants remove water and nutrients from the soil through the plant's root system. Some nutrients move into root cells from the soil by diffusion and others by an energy- requiring process (active transport). This diffusion activity represents one-way movement of dissolved nutrients into the plant roots.
Nutrition and Health Claims: What Do They Mean?
Students will explore the difference between nutrition and health claims. Students will also compare labels that show a nutrition/health claim with the ‘original’ or ‘regular’ version to investigate the truth of the claims. Finally students will collect and analyze data to determine the impact of nutrition and health claims and advertisements on food choices.
Oat Crumble Muffin Recipe
Did you know Saskatchewan farmers grew over 1.4 million acres of oats in 2018?! Try making this delicious Oat Crumb Muffin Recipe, inspired by ingredients grown right here in our province, and learn about the ingredients used.
Ontario Ag Week 2023 Activity Kit
Unearth the wonders of agriculture with our Ontario Ag Week 2023 Activity Kit. This kit is a treasure chest of engaging lessons, hands-on crafts, and captivating activities, all centered around crabapples, hydroponics, feed/nutrition, cherries, and dairy farms. Perfect for teachers looking to inspire curiosity and teach students about diversity in Ontario Agriculture, this kit pairs seamlessly with our virtual field trips, bringing the farm to the classroom or home. Download this activity kit and choose the activities that fit your class to explore the fascinating world of farming with your students, making learning about agriculture a fun and enriching experience for all!
Our Food Has a Story
How is conventional farming different from organic farming? What is a GMO? Are chemical pesticides safe? I s buying local always the best environmental choice? You had questions about food, so we asked a farmer. Not just any farmer, but Manitoba organic vegetable and conventional crop farmer Will Bergmann. We brought a camera crew to Will's house to ask him frequently asked questions and see how he produces food to feed the world. The Our Food Has a Story Teacher's Guide includes pre- and post-viewing activities, links to Will's video, and answers to questions about buzzwords such as organic, conventional, GMOs and GE crops, and topics including pesticides and food safety, consumer choices, and how farmers are stewards of the land.
Pandemic Food Panic!
Using a problem-based learning approach and real-life examples, students will examine the impact COVID-19 had and continues to have on our food system. Students work through an interactive, online learning resource, then are posed with a real-world problem and must investigate and propose a solution.
Pig Tales Activity Book
Pigs are amazing animals! In this fun activity book, students will learn about how pigs are cared for by farmers! They will also explore the different foods that pigs provide us as well as other common by-products that come from pigs.
Pigs
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits, our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
Pkwiman Wild Blueberries
A resource for Grade 7 Science and Grade 8 Social Studies teachers to support curriculum outcomes related to the ecological and cultural significance of wild blueberries in Mi’kmaki and Wabanaki. The lesson plan includes background information, guiding questions and a list of online resource. A student-facing inquiry guide is also provided. Links to a virtual farm tour are provided in this resource.
Planet X
‘Out of this world’ opportunities in agriculture and food. This lesson focuses on the many professions within the Agriculture and Food sector. Students gain appreciation and knowledge of the multitude of professions in agriculture, while understanding the importance of everyday food production and sustainability to the global population. Student activities include weblinks that help them research various careers.
Planet X: Out of this World Opportunities in Agriculture and Food
An Educational Resource for Grades 9-12. This lesson focuses on the many professions within the Agriculture and Food sector. Students will gain appreciation and knowledge of the multitude of professions that exist within this realm, while also understanding the importance of every day food production and sustainability to the global population. Planet X: Mission Description Hook video: https://youtu.be/mNvyfSGi1O4
Planet X: Out of this world' Opportunities in Agriculture and Food
‘Out of this world’ opportunities in agriculture and food. This lesson focuses on the many professions within the Agriculture and Food sector. Students gain an appreciation and knowledge of the multitude of professions in agriculture, while understanding the importance of everyday food production and sustainability to the global population. Student activities include weblinks that help them research various careers.
Plant Something Bee Friendly
Do your students want to know how they can help bees? Use this resource to teach them about the threats to bee populations, as well as ways that they can help support bees by planting bee-friendly plants.
Planting a Promise Handbook
Use this activity handbook to enhance learning around the Planting a Promise program. The activities help students explore the life cycle of a daffodil, from planting bulbs in the soil to the blooming of flowers and their final dormancy. Curriculum connections, background information, and presentation suggestions are included.
Plants, People & Climate Change
Students explore the interconnections between plants, people and our planet. Lessons engage students in plant biology and processes, soil science, food waste and the implications for climate change through videos, hands-on activities and action-oriented reflections. Developed by Little Green Thumbs.
Pollinators
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits, our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
Potato Farming
Download this resource to get access to various printable activities for your K-8 students to learn all about Potatoes! Pair the activity kit with a recording of a Virtual Field Trip at a BC Potato Farm! Go to the BC Agriculture in the Classroom website to find more. (https://www.bcaitc.ca/resources)
Potato Power! Exploring the World of Potatoes
Add a little life to your classroom – grow a potato! The potato is one of the world’s most popular foods and one of Manitoba’s main crops. Students investigate and journal about the life cycle of this flowering plant while exploring world history and geography through the eyes of a potato using videos, worksheets, and world maps. Art projects reinforce the learning
Precious Produce
Because of advancements in processing and packaging, people can store foods for longer periods of time, therefore decreasing food waste. This experiment challenges students to think creatively to invent their own packaging.
Precision Agriculture
This resource explores the tools of precision agriculture and how they are helping farmers to reduce their environmental impact and their business' bottom line. Includes interesting facts and highlights career opportunities related to the industry.
Productivity, Technology, and Sustainability in Canadian Ag
Investigate this big question: How have technology and environmental sustainability changed in the agricultural industry? Students will explore the topics of crop nutrients, crop production, and plant breeding to answer this question.
Project Agriculture
Agriculture infuses every aspect of human life, from the food we eat, to the jobs we do, to the products that we create. Project Agriculture provides opportunities for teachers and students to explore agricultural themes, topics, issues and challenges.
Project Produce
How are plants classified? How are different plants grown? How are foods imported? How do unfamiliar foods end up in our local grocery store? Answer these questions and more in this resource created by the National Science Teaching Association.
Project Webfoot: Wetland Ecosystems 1: Habitats, communities and the diversity of life
This resource includes a teachers guide consisting of 9 lessons to help students explore wetlands and a wide variety of ecological concepts, and a student project guide for Grades 4 to 6 to support the lessons.
Project Webfoot: Wetland Ecosystems 2: Interactions and Ecosystems
This resource includes a teachers guide for a unit that combines a field trip to a wetland ecosystem with a variety of classroom activities, and a student guide for Grades 7 to 8 to support the lesson.
Project Webfoot: Wetland Ecosystems 3: Evolution, diversity and sustainability of ecosystems
This resource includes a teacher guide for Grades 9 to 12 to support the student guide consisting of six lessons teaching ecological concepts through the study of wetlands.
Pulses and Nutrition
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will learn about the role of pulses in maintaining a healthy, balanced diet and apply their learning in a Case Study. For use with the Pulse on Pulses infographic. Ontario curriculum links include grade 8 Health & Physical Activity, HFN10/20, HFC3M/3E, HFA4U/4C.
Pulses around the World
This National AITC Canada resource was developed for the 2016 International Year of Pulses. Students will compare diets around the world and throughout history. They will develop their understanding of how different pulses are used in different dishes around the world and consider how different countries / cultures use pulses to meet their dietary needs as well as the role global trade plays in that process. Ontario curriculum links include grade 4 & 6 Social Studies.
Pumpkin Art
During harvest season it is always fun to use pumpkins as a theme for an art project. Grades five and six enjoy colouring with markers and have usually acquired fine control of their skills using markers. With this in mind this project will also challenge their artistic talents.
Raising Farm Animals
Students will be able to investigate and describe the needs and characteristics of various farm animals. Students will be able to identify the impact that humans and the environment have on animals.
Reading Labels Means Healthy Food Choices
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grades 4-6 Health & Physical Education and Mathematics Language. Students will identify the difference between the ingredient list and the nutrition facts table as well as understand the meanings of descriptors within the table. Students will also identify which nutrients are in different products by reading the food labels and create a menu for a meal that contains all of the necessary nutrients.
Reggie's Technology Adventure
AgScape is proud to partner with Agriculture in the Classroom Newfoundland and Agriculture in the Classroom Canada to bring you Reggie’s Technology Adventure Storybook. Follow Reggie as he visits different farms to learn about the different types of technology found there. What do you think you will find?
Robotics in Agriculture
This resource explores some of the ways farmers are working with robots to help in various areas of their operations. Includes interesting facts, career opportunities and an interview with someone who works in the industry. Accompanying Teacher's Guide includes various related activities for the classroom.
Run a Food Truck
This grade 4 Manitoba curriculum connected project aims to not only reinforce real-life math and language skills, but also inspire kids in the kitchen. Although this project has been created to specifically target Grade 4 Manitoba Math and ELA outcomes, it can be used by teachers anywhere! The specific skills that this project reinforces are: MATH addition, subtraction, multiplication, division estimation identifying and adding fractions problem solving time and money graphing and data interpretation ELA use descriptive and persuasive language use online sources to conduct research; manage information and ideas design for a specific purpose and audience The link below will take you to Teachers Pay Teachers to download for free.
Rural and Farm Safety: Animal Warning Signs and Behaviours
Large farm animals might look cute, but they can also be dangerous. Every 1 in 5 injuries on the farm is because of livestock. When large animals are scared or aggressive, they will show you through body language and warning signs—so watch out for these behaviours when near large animals!
Sask Snack Granola Bar Recipe
Did you know Saskatchewan farmers grew over 1.4 million acres of oats in 2018?! Try making this delicious Sask Snack Granola Bar Recipe, inspired by ingredients grown right here in our province, and learn about the ingredients used.
Saskatchewan's Native Prairie
The Canadian Prairie offers a distinct environment for plants, animals and people that live here. This booklet is intended to provide an appreciation for the impact that settlement has had on Saskatchewan's prairie landscape.
School Garden Resource
Step-by-step instructions on how start-up and maintain a school garden year-round. Complete with suggestions on crop varieties, soil recommendations and planting/harvest timelines.
Science Career Resource
This resource has been developed as a teaching tool for grades 11 and 12 covering careers related to the agri-food industry. It is linked to the Ontario Curriculum for grades 11 and 12 Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Science.
Season Change Scavenger Hunt
Student's go on an outdoor scavenger hunt adventure to find Fall items such as leaves, seeds, and fruits. They will then connect the items they found on the scavenger hunt to the work done by farmers as seasons change. These discussions include harvest, differences in perennial and annual plants, need to maintain health of livestock in a cold winter, and more.
See Yourself in Agriculture
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. This issue we chose to explore careers in agriculture because it is the future of our industry. As an industry that is always innovating and growing, opportunities for the next generation are vast and diverse. Bringing awareness to the many career paths available can help close the labour gap and provide job security to young adults looking for fulfilling work.
Sheep
Farms are home to many types of animals—just ask Old MacDonald! Each book in this special publication series features a different farm animal. From the animal's history, to their diet and their weirdest and most wonderful traits, our goal with this series is to entertain young minds while they learn all about their favourite farmyard friends.
Sheep Farmer Food Chain
Everything a farmer does is connected to the food chain! Farmers manage food chains to produce enough good quality, safe food for the world’s people to eat. In this activity, students will create food chains and food webs, as well as define and use related these vocabulary words: food chain, food web, producer, consumer, prey, predator, herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, and scavenger. This activity sheet comes in 2 formats: • An online interactive genially activity or • A printable worksheet Choose the format that works best for you and your students. Both are available at the links below. Curriculum connections to Grade 4 Science unit Habitats and Communities. The activity is a great companion resource to the Follow the Sheep Farmers video.
Simple Machines are Everywhere on the Farm
With this activity sheet, students learn to identify simple machines – wheels, wedges, pulleys, gears, levers, etc. – found on farm machines such as tractors, combines and air drills. Along the way, they discover where their food comes from and explore how science and technology have increased productivity on the farm.
Smart Water Use in Agriculture: Issue Analysis & Career Opportunities
This resource introduces students to smart water usage techniques, technologies and tools that can be used on farms and in greenhouses. Careers related to water use and conservation are also explored. Students will be encouraged to think critically about how innovative technology and water conservation practices can benefit agricultural and horticultural operations. Issue analysis and water smart action plan assignments are included. Links to Technological Education and Science.
Social Science Resource Library
The Ministry of Education released the revised version of the Social Sciences and Humanities 9-12 curriculum in 2013. Within Family Studies, the Food and Nutrition courses have an increased focus on agriculture and food topics. Many of the expectations examine food sources, availability and trends within Ontario, Canada and internationally. Given the underlying focus on research and inquiry skills which are present in each course, students require access to information and resources which will help them develop their critical literacy skills while exploring these topics. Ontario Agri-Food Education Inc. surveyed Ontario educators and identified 9 topic areas in which they required additional resources and information: biotechnology, organic and conventional food, food security, local food, livestock production, environment, pesticide use, food safety and general agriculture production. In order to support educators in the delivery of this curriculum, and the promotion of inquiry/critical thinking skills, Ontario Agri-Food Education has created a library of learning charts and resources related to the nine areas identified.
Soil Health
Identify plant and animal wastes, and describe how they are recycled in nature. For example, plant leaves serve as a source of food for soil insects, worms and other creatures. The wastes of these animals may then be further broken down by molds, fungi and bacteria.
Soil Science: The Science and Careers of Dirt
This resource provides an overview of soil types, properties, quality and environmental issues as it relates to agriculture and food production. Career opportunities and profiles as well as post-secondary programs related to soil science are included in the resource. Suggested student activities link to Environmental Science, Biology, Green Industries, Chemistry, Science and Earth Science.
Soil Sorting
Not all soil is the same - even soil that looks similar can be very different. Soils contain different properties and different nutrients that plants use. Students will be given a sample of soil to inspect and identify differences they can see in the soil, including organic and inorganic material.
Spotlight on Blueberries
Watch this 10-minute video tour of a BC blueberry farm and learn the art and science of growing blueberries! Use this video in conjuction with the Race Around the Blueberry Bush game and lesson plan. Enjoy!
Spotlight on Cranberries
Locally produced cranberries are harvested in October each year. Learn more about the wet harvest of cranberries in BC and how they are flooded in the bog then collected in this 2-part video series. Then, have fun with this fun curriculum-linked trivia activity to help students learn about the wet harvest of BC cranberries.
Spotlight on Eggs
Sunny-side-up! Watch this 10-minute video tour of a BC egg farm and learn the art and science of producing eggs. with the accompanying resource, students will have the opportunity to learn about the many fascinating features about eggs, which is one of BC’s important agricultural commodities. Students will also have the opportunity to learn about the nutritional value of eggs as well as information on egg parts, egg sizes and grading.
Spring Sprout 2022
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Spring Sprout 2023
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Spring/Summer Ag-Activity Pack
Looking for fun and educational agriculture and food activities? Developed for our 30-year celebration, our new Spring/Summer Ag-Activity Pack has gardening ideas, games, crafts, recipes, and puzzles for grade 2-7 students! Enjoy!
Spuds in Tubs - A Perfect Food Package
Students will investigate the nutritional value of potatoes, and use this information gathered to answer the question of whether humans can live exclusively off potatoes without suffering from nutrient deficiencies or health complications. Students will reveal their final results in an oral presentation to the class.
Stewardship and Sustainability
Students will generate an understanding of the concepts “stewardship” and “sustainability” in relation to human activities. Students will assess the positive and negative impacts of agriculture and other human activities on the land. Finally, students will identify how farmers are considered stewards of the land and explain environmental practices that they do to promote stewardship and sustainability.
Strawberry Greenhouse
Explore the marvels of year-round strawberry growth in Ontario with our Strawberry Greenhouse Activity Kit and Virtual Field Trip! The downloadable kit offers engaging crafts, insightful lessons, labs, and more, allowing students to discover the wonders of strawberry cultivation. Make learning memorable with our this virtual field trip, showcasing the magic of strawberries thriving in greenhouses throughout the year in Ontario.
Student Resources
Are your students writing a research paper or doing a class project with a focus on agriculture? Looking for accurate, balanced, current information about the agriculture and food industry? Our collection of digital resources for students features videos and websites that explore many different agriculture topics, making it easier for students to think critically about a topic, form ideas, and present their thoughts from a place of knowledge. You will find resources on the following topics: Agriculture (General) Agriculture Careers Agriculture Past and Future Animal Agriculture Crop Nutrition and Fertilizers Crop Protection and Pesticides Economics and Agriculture Farm to Plate Genetics and GMOs Innovation and Technology Just for Fun Nutrition Organic Farming Sustainability
Summer Sprout 2021
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Summer Sprout 2022
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Survival of the Fittest
Students will be able to demonstrate relationships between humans and the environment. Students will be able to identify the impact that humans and the environment have on each other and students will critically think about components that are key to human survival.
Sustainability
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. This issue we chose to explore agriculture’s environmental connection because it will help us reach new levels of sustainability. We want to see a tomorrow where agriculture is thriving and precious resources like water, soil, and air are available for future generations.
Sustainability in the Beef Industry in British Columbia
Students will begin to understand the importance of the beef cattle industry in British Columbia, including the products cattle produce, the production process from farm to plate, and how cattle can utilize and obtain energy from grass and other forage.
Sustainable Development Goals
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. In our second issue of Nourishing Minds we chose to explore the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals because they are the future of our industry. We want to see a world where Goal 2: Zero Hunger is achieved and "development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." This is a global agenda that we strive to achieve every day.
Take a Stand
This pre-assessment activity makes a great introduction to a module or unit that discusses food security, food systems, nutrition, sustainability, and agriculture practices. Student examine their own beliefs and knowledge about food in order to become aware of the role that agriculture plays in their lives.
Taking Making into Classrooms
Learn all about oceans through a series of engaging Design Challenges! Students will enhance their ocean literacy and will understand ocean stewardship on a deeper level.
Teacher Appreciation Cards
Let's show our appreciation for all Teachers do for us and our kids! To show them how much we care, we made this cute printable card you can download and have your child fill in. Print one for the teacher, the principal, the librarian.... anyone who helps your child grow every day! Download the card in English or French!
Teacher Garden Club Session #1
In the first workshop we'll be learning all about planting seedlings. Topics will include planting seedlings in a classroom setting, why seedlings are planted inside, what kinds of plants your class can grow, and how to make your seedlings thrive in the classroom! The workshop will include an instructional session with a question and answer period afterwards.
Teacher Garden Club Session #2
In our second workshop we will learn all about taking care of indoor seedlings and preparing for an outdoor garden. Topics will include different ways to set up a classroom garden, how much space is needed, what kind of location to use, and how to bring seedlings from inside to outside!
Teacher Garden Club Session #3
In our third workshop, we will learn all about the last frost and transplanting. Topics will include when the last frost is in your area, how to bring seedlings from inside to outside, and replanting your seeds for the growing season!
Teacher Garden Club Session #4
In our fourth workshop, we will learn all about how to care for your plants throughout the summer. Topics will include watering, caring for your plants in the heat, and tips to keep your plants growing and thriving!
Team Mustard Activity Book
With Saskatchewan farmers exporting more mustard than anywhere else on earth, it is important for students to understand how valuable mustard is to our province. These worksheets teach students about the parts of a mustard plant, the needs of a mustard plant, and stages of growing a mustard plant.
Technology & Innovations Infographics
These infographics will help students explore new technologies in the agriculture industry, outline some of the challenges and the various career opportunities that are available. They will help students understand the various innovations currently taking place in the agriculture sector from farm to fork as well as international development.
Technology Career Resource
This resource has been developed as a teaching tool for grades 11 and 12 covering careers related to the agri-food industry. It is linked to the Ontario Technological Curriculum for the Green Industries and Transportation strands and is an excellent resource for students pursuing a Specialized High Skills Major Program.
Temporary Foreign Workers in Canada Educators' Resource
Explore with your students through various fun interactive activities the importance and contributions of temporary foreign workers to the agriculture and food industry as well as to consumers.
Thanks to Pollinators
Bees are an essential part of our food system. Use this worksheet to explore the importance of pollinators, understand how pollination occurs, and learn about the attributes of bees.
The Adventures of Chase Duffy in Fields of Home
Join Chase Duffy on an incredible canola journey. This adventure includes a trip back in time, a discovery of canola and a meeting with Mr. Slovonuk, the first farmer who imported rapeseed from Poland to Canada, which eventually became modern day canola! The Fields of Home animation is based on the Fields of Home graphic novel.
The Adventures of Michael & Mia: Stewards of the Land
This storybook tells the story of two young children who decide to grow a garden. Learn about the wonders and challenges of growing food, all while caring for the environment.
The Amazing Invent-a-Plant
This guided activity engages children's observation skills and invites them to get creative by inventing an imaginary plant. Students will explore the important role of seeds and will understand of the many uses of plants in our every-day lives.
The Culture of Agriculture: North America
"The Culture of Agriculture" ignites curiosity and enable people to discover the world of food, agriculture, and culinary arts. We want to take readers on an around-the-world tour of different continents, diving deeper into the culture and history that shaped the food systems we see today. We chose to explore the continent of North America for our first issue because it is both our home and a rich cultural mosaic of food, created from a unique exchange of ideas and ingredients.
The Cycle of Agriculture
Students will be able to identify stages in the agricultural cycle and explain how consumer products are processed from raw materials. Students will also be able to analyze products to determine the raw materials from which they were made.
The Earth on a Turtle's Back
The legend of how the Earth began is put together with beautiful illustrations by Saskatchewan artist, Leah Dorian. Read this story with your children and discuss how we depend on the land and how we can take care of it.
The Feeding Innovation Podcast | 01 - Tristan Hertzog - Teacher and Chef
In the first episode of the AgScape Feeding Innovation Podcast, meet teacher and professional chef Tristan Hertzog. Tristan shares his passion for imparting the importance of understanding where your ingredients come from, and how that understanding makes his students better chefs, and more informed participants in Ontario's food system.
The Feeding Innovation Podcast | 02 - Katherine Jones - Growing Chefs Ontario
In the second episode of the AgScape Feeding Innovation Podcast, we talk to Chef and Educator Katherine Jones of Growing Chefs Ontario. Katherine talks about how Growing Chefs Ontario is changing the way we learn about and develop healthy relationships with food. Growing Chefs! Ontario is a registered charity based in London, Ontario that unites chefs, growers, educators and community members in children’s food education projects.
The Food Value Chain
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. In our fourth issue of Nourishing Minds, we explore the process food goes through in order to reach our plates - a process known as the food value chain. Concerns around the cost of food, the safety of food, nutrition and healthy eating, the economy, and sustainability are some of the most pressing issues for Canadians. From production to storage and distribution to retail and waste management, join us as we discover the journey of our food, from farm to table
The Future of Food and Farming
The Future of Food and Farming highlights the exciting topics and emerging research happening at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, and the horticulture industry at large. There is a section devoted to career opportunities in science and research. Questions for consideration and suggested activities link to science, technology and green industry.
The Great Canadian Farm Tour: Season 1
Learn about Canada’s exciting agriculture and food story, and see what life is like for real Canadian farmers all across the country by taking your students on 11 virtual farm tours. This extraordinary learning opportunity will inspire your students, ignite their curiosity, and teach them about the important role agriculture plays in their lives, every day!
The Great Canadian Farm Tour: Season 2
We are back with another season of Great Canadian Farm Tour. Learn about Canada’s exciting agriculture and food story, and see what life is like for real Canadian farmers all across the country by taking your students on 11 virtual farm tours. This extraordinary learning opportunity will inspire your students, ignite their curiosity, and teach them about the important role agriculture plays in their lives, every day!
The Great Veggie Challenge
What is it? Since the Canada Food Guide recommends that vegetables and fruit make up half your plate, we invite you and your students to use this free printable activity and supplementary resources to: -Explore the many wonderful vegetables we grow right here in Manitoba -Explore the many ways to eat vegetables -Challenge your students to eat a different vegetable every day for 10 days -Complete the challenge and enter to win prizes Game materials include: The Veggie Challenge Board – a one-page sheet that has a capital V on it made up of blank squares Veggie tiles – a one-page sheet that contains vegetables in squares that can be coloured in by students, and cut out and pasted onto the squares on the Challenge Board Activate suggestions : Explore students’ knowledge of vegetables. Have students make a list of as many different vegetables as they can. This can be done as a class, in small groups, by pairs of students, or individually. List the vegetables identified by students on the board. Decide which of the vegetables in the list are grown by Manitoba Farmers. (For good photos of some of the vegetables, go to the Peak of the Market website products page here.) List the different varieties of each vegetable that students can identify. Examples: Cabbage varieties could include green, red, Chinese, bok choy Lettuce varieties could include iceberg, green or red leaf lettuce, romaine, arugula Pea varieties could include green peas, snap peas, snow peas Discuss and list different ways that each vegetable is eaten. This can be done as a class, in small groups, by pairs of students, or individually. Examples: Tomatoes can be eaten raw, cooked, as tomato sauce for pasta or pizza, as ketchup, or as tomato soup. Remind students that the Canada Food Guide suggests that vegetables and fruit should fill half their plate whether they are eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a snack. Vegetables are packed with fibre, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Phytonutrients give vegetables their colour. Eating a variety of different coloured vegetables will provide you with the most nutrients and benefits from your diet. When it comes to vegetables, choose to ‘Eat the Rainbow’. Ways to play : The challenge is for students to eat at least one different vegetable each day for 10 days. Have students complete the 10-day veggie challenge either individually or as a class. Option 1: Individual Student Challenge -Provide each student with a copy of the Veggie Challenge Game Board and Veggie Tiles page. -Challenge them to eat a different vegetable each day for the next 10 days. Each day, they can record the vegetable they ate by colouring in and cutting out the vegetable on the Veggie Tiles sheet and pasting it on their Veggie Challenge board. -After 10 days, each student should have a Veggie Challenge board showing the 10 different vegetables they ate over the past 10 days. Option 2: Whole Class Challenge -Create a chart to record what vegetables were eaten by the students in your class for each of the next 10 days. -Challenge your students to try different vegetables from the ones eaten by students on the previous days. The challenge is to have at least 10 different vegetables listed in the chart by the end of the 10-day challenge. -Circle any vegetable(s) in the list from Day 2 to Day 10 that were not included in the previous days’ lists. (If by Day 8 or 9 the class has not identified 10 different vegetables on their chart, then consider buying and bringing in one or more different vegetables for the students to try.) -At the end of the 10 days, create groups of up to 10 students each. Provide each group with a Veggie Challenge board and the Veggie Tiles sheet. Have each group colour and cut out the 10 different vegetables they recorded in their class chart and paste them on to the Veggie Challenge board. Thank you to Peak of the Market, our 2022 Foundations of Manitoba Agriculture Presenting Sponsor!
The Haven Project
How can we create a future without hunger? Following along with The Haven Project audio drama, students will explore the role of individuals and governments in creating change, research real life food security issues, and communicate their findings by designing a website and participating in a class debate. Please download the accompanying The Haven Project Student Booklet
The Pesticide Debate
Dealing with difficult issues and making decisions are important concepts to study, and yet, tackling complicated issues such as agricultural pesticide use can cause stress and confusion if you, as a teacher, are unsure of the questions asked and the research presented. To support teachers of Science, Geography, and Food & Nutrition, this resource contains recommended lessons, suggests websites, and provides activities and informative articles, to help students examine all sides of the pesticide issue. It is intended that through discussions, debates, teamwork and individual research, the learner will gain increased, accurate knowledge about the topic and a better understanding about recognizing choices and appreciating differences. Ultimately students will form personal, fully informed opinions about agricultural pesticide use.
The Radish Party
This inquiry provides students with an exciting opportunity to grow vegetables while watching each stage of growth. Through this they will learn that stem strength and colour, in addition to growth, are indicative of a healthy plant and healthy soil.
The Real Dirt on Farming in the Classroom
The Real Dirt on Farming in the Classroom enables students to engage with the Real Dirt on Farming while examining its key areas – animal welfare, crops and plants, sustainability, agriculture policy, hot topics in our food system & more!
The Science of Nutrition
This teacher's guide is designed to provide the teacher with a comprehensive resource that will assist students in learning about canola. The information provides a text for both teaching and learning. The student activities give the teacher direction for using the facts about this important crop in the Canadian economy. The guided inquiry tool should be used to guide your students towards asking these questions on their own.
The Seed Detective
Your mission is to help Detective Thumb identify the "Mystery Seeds". This is a TOP SECRET investigation where you will discover the identity of your "Mystery Seeds" and help Detective Thumb complete this mission!
The Sky Woman
This resource is designed to meet the curriculum expectations for Grades 2 to 5 Social Studies, Health & Physical Education, and Language. Students demonstrate an understanding about the way in which the traditional "Three Sisters" played a vital role in the survival of the early colonists of Upper Canada. Students will also apply the revision process to write a letter from the perspective of a colonist.
The Story of Food: Beef
The tradition of eating beef has passed down many generations to become an important part for many of our regular diets. It is an excellent source of high quality protein and essential nutrients needed by the body for optimal functioning. Take your students on a learning ag-venture with our beef cattle lessons, activities and farm fun resources.
The Story of Food: Canola
Canola is a crop with plants from three to five feet tall that produce pods from which seeds are harvested and crushed to create canola oil and meal. Canola can be found growing in fields all across Alberta. It is a special crop with plants from three to five feet tall that produce pods from which seeds are harvested and crushed to create canola oil and meal. These plants also produce small, yellow flowers, which beautify the environment and create bright yellow fields! In this issue of The Story of Food, we will learn about the canola crop and how the pressed canola seeds make the world's healthiest cooking oil.
The Story of Food: Chicken
What came first, the chicken or the egg? Well, we can't answer that question, but we can tell you about the chicken's journey from egg to barn to nugget! Chicken is one of the most popular sources of protein all across the globe! The meat and eggs can be used in a variety of nutritious dishes for breakfast, dinner, and even dessert! Here in Canada, all chicken raised for meat and eggs is free-run, and never fed any added hormones or steroids. As the chicken grow they are fed a proper nutritious diet for each stage of growth, which typically consists of locally grown grains. Learn more by reading "The Story of Food: Chicken."
The Story of Food: Cranberry
From the way they are harvested to the way they taste–cranberries are an interesting fruit! They are often used to make sauces, jellies, baked goods, and juice. They contain important minerals and vitamins A and C, which are important qualities for any superhero! Cranberries are native to North America and were first used by Indigenous Peoples as a source of food and were added to dishes like pemmican (dried meat with berries). Today, in Canada, most cranberry superheroes are grown in British Columbia and Quebec. They are bright red on the outside like strawberries and cherries but that doesn’t mean they are sweet on the inside. If you bite into this fruit when it is fresh, you might be surprised by the sour flavour, but that isn't the only surprise the cranberry is hiding. Read "The Story of Food: Cranberry" to learn more.
The Story of Food: Dairy
Dairy cattle are female cattle bred for the ability to produce large quantities of milk, from which dairy products are made. An average dairy cow produces 30 to 35 litres of milk a day. That’s about 8 milk jugs of great tasting, nutrient packed goodness. Dairy cows are barnyard royalty and have earned themselves the nickname “Dairy Queens.” Happy and healthy cows produce more milk, so farmers make sure to take very good care of their dairy cows. Dairy farmers make sure their cows have a diet suited to their needs. The most common food dairy cows eat are grasses, but they also may get corn, soybeans, oats, barley or clover depending on their needs. Learn more by reading "The Story of Food: Dairy."
The Story of Food: Eggs
Eggs are simply the best! They taste great and can be used in a variety of dishes from savoury to sweet! In addition to their great taste, eggs are an excellent source of protein. Protein is very important for your health. It keeps you full and gives you energy for the day! Protein also helps build muscle and makes your hair and nails stronger. Crack open the mystery of where eggs come from as we follow eggs on their journey from barn to belly!
The Story of Food: Holiday Edition
The holidays are a special time of the year! Among holiday cheer and gifts, getting together with your family and friends truly makes it a happy season—and what’s the best way to bring people together? Delicious and fun homemade holiday treats, of course! "The Story of Food: Holiday Edition" has recipes for all ages!
The Story of Food: Potatoes
Potatoes, sometimes called spuds, are a starchy tuber of the plant Solanum tuberosum. They come in a wide array of colours and sizes due to hundreds of years of cultivation. Potatoes aren't just good to eat, they are are a nutritious vegetable packed with essential vitamins and minerals that help support our bodies and increase energy levels. Potatoes are loaded with nutrients and contain a good amount of carbs and fibre as well as vitamin C, vitamin B6, potassium and manganese. They are more energy-packed than any other popular vegetable and are used in a variety of dishes all over the world! Potatoes can be baked, fried, grilled or mashed. There really is no wrong way to cook potatoes, they taste delicious no matter what you do to with them!
The Story of Food: Pulses
Pulses are the dried edible seeds of legumes. Legumes are plants that grow in pods, like beans. Common pulses include dry peas, dry beans, chickpeas and lentils. For a legume to be considered a pulse, it must be dried. This means fresh peas and beans are not pulses, but dry peas and beans are. Read "The Story of Food: Pulses" to learn more about this amazing legume!
The Story of Food: Pumpkins
Pumpkins: They’re fall’s favourite vegetable. Whether you love to eat them or just enjoy carving spooky faces into them, pumpkins have a fascinating history. They weren’t always the plump, orange gourds we know today. Originally from Mexico, pumpkins used to be a lot smaller, whiter, and even bitter. So, why did they catch on? Well, pumpkins were actually wanted for their thick flesh. Indigenous communities were known to roast pumpkin strips over the fire or dry the strips to be woven into mats. The vegetable became one of the first crops to be grown in North America, and visiting seafarers would often take them back to their own countries. They were even used during the first Thanksgiving where pilgrims wrote a poem to honour the vegetable for keeping them alive during the tough North American winters. Read "The Story of Food: Pumpkins" to learn more.
The Story of Food: Sugar Beets
We love sweet snacks! But, did you know that much of Canada's sugar comes from sugar beets? Here in Alberta, Taber homes the only sugar refinery in all of Canada. The process of producing sugar is truly a labour of love. From growing, the process of photosynthesis, to harvesting and extracting the sugar! From here we will also learn about the benefits of sugar (in proportion), and how it gives us the energy to take on each day. Learn more by reading "The Story of Food: Sugar Beets."
The Story of Food: Wheat
Did you know that wheat is the most harvested crop in the world? Wheat is a member of the grass family which is widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain which is a worldwide staple food. Wheat is a building block for many common foods. Read "The Story of Food: Wheat" to learn more!
The Story of Food: Zucchini
Zucchinis: They have an origin story – Every superhero has a backstory, explaining where they came from and how they came to be a superhero. Zucchinis are no different. Often mistaken as a vegetable, zucchinis are actually a fruit – a squash to be exact! They are a part of the gourd family along with melons, cucumbers and pumpkins. First grown in Mexico, the oldest seeds discovered were from 7,000 years ago! They quickly grew in popularity, and zucchinis soon spread from Mexico to the rest of the world. Read "The Story of Food: Zucchini" to learn more.
The Story of Your Lunch Comic Strip Activity
This interactive activity allows teachers to combine agri-food literacy and visual arts with their students. Students will fill in and design their own comic strip explaining where the food in their lunch box comes from. We encourage completed comic strips be shared with us on social media through tagging AgScape or emailing them to programsassistant@agscape.ca to be posted.
The Three Sisters
Students will learn about the connection between Indigenous oral traditions and agriculture practices with modern crop management. Students will further identify how crops are used for purposes other than food.
Thinking Critically About Local Food
The Ontario Family Studies Leadership Council (OFSLC) partnered with The Critical Thinking Consortium to develop this teaching resource which supports teachers and students as they think critically about the geographical origins of our food. This on-line resource focuses specifically on the health, economic and environmental benefits of eating locally grown foods and meets curriculum expectations in Grades 9, 10 and 12 Food and Nutrition courses. Funding was provided by the Ontario Agri-Food Education Healthy Eating Program and the Ontario Teachers’ Federation.
This Land is Your Land
Soil erosion is something farmers have to be very aware of. Through this activity students will learn about erosion on different types of soil. Then they will design and build a farm with the goal of protecting buildings and crops from being flooded or washed away. Students work creatively as farmers to prevent soil erosion and save their farm.
Three Sisters Companion Planting
In learning about plant growth and change, it is always fun for students to enjoy discovery learning and immerse themselves in a hands-on project. With this concept in mind, students will have the experience of nurturing plants through one complete life-cycle; from seed to seed, of a “Three Sisters” garden. This companion planting method is one that members of the Iroquois confederacy has used for centuries. If you have the opportunity it is fun to work in a community garden space at your school, otherwise students will need to prepare and complete the growing portion of the project in their home gardens.
Timeline of Agricultural and Settlement Events
A list of Canadian agricultural events that have happened since the year 2,000,000 BCE. This list highlights the relationships between agriculture and settlement in Canada.
Tips for Fairs
This resource is intended to give some helpful tips on creating both entertaining educational displays and activities that will help fairs get their messages to the public.
Tips for Tours - Dairy
This handout serves as a handy guide for teachers who want to provide students with the farm tour experience. Includes everything a teacher may need to know before visiting a dairy farm - from planning and arranging the tour to what kinds of questions students may ask. Combined with the Tips for Tours resource for farmers, these guides ensure that both farmer and teacher are well prepared before embarking on or hosting a farm tour.
Twenty Years of Agriculture Innovation
This resource introduces students to agricultural innovations which have emerged over the last 20 years. Careers related to agricultural innovations are also explored. Students will be encouraged to think critically about how innovative technology and machinery may benefit current practices in the agri-food industry. Issue analysis and loan application assignments are included. Links to Technological Education and Science.
Understanding Money for Your Future
Financial services are an integral part of doing agri-business. This resource introduces students to terminology related to financing post-secondary education and business investment. Career profiles and opportunities are included along with suggested education programs at universities and colleges. Suggested student activities link to curriculum in Green Industries, Mathematics and Business Studies.
Using Acid-Base Chemistry to Produce the Best Cheese
A learning resource for grade 11 and 12 chemistry about the use of acid-base chemistry in cheese production. Using acid-base chemistry, learners will determine how to make the best cheese. Background information is provided on topics like the history of cheesemaking, commercial cheese production and cheese chemistry. A video accompanies this resource to allow learners to see how cheese is made in Nova Scotia. The cheese production learning resource includes: - a lesson plan with curriculum connections to grade 11 and 12 chemistry, background information, guiding questions, and a list of online resources. - supplies for making cheese - a video showcasing the dairy and cheese industry in Nova Scotia - staff support to answer questions Teachers should take into consideration that: - schools will need to purchase milk products for the cheese making activity. - the lab should be conducted in a food lab in order for the students to be able to taste the cheese Eligibility - Grade 11 and 12 chemistry teachers in Nova Scotia public schools can apply.
Vegetarian Activity Bank
Investigate vegetarian diets with your students through this list of activities. Understand what motivates people to follow vegetarian eating plants, what nutritional requirements are needed for a vegetarian diet, and much more!
Virtual Field Trip: Tractor and Equipment Dealership
Pair our virtual field trip with our activity kit to provide an engaging lesson in your classroom! Watch our virtual field trip where Megan Murphy, will show us the behind the scenes of her local tractor dealership! This printable activity kit includes an assortment of activities that you can do with your class. There are activities appropriate for grades K-8, just pick the one you like and print it off!
Virtual Food & Farm Field Trip - Explore Plant Science with Doug & Ashley from Syngenta
Watch this Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip, where you can ask questions live to learn more about plant science with Doug Baumann & Ashley Dickson from Syngenta.
Virtual Food & Farm Field Trip: Cedar Hill Christmas Tree Farm
Cedar Hill Christmas Tree farm is operated by Grant, Pam, Todd, Neil, Adam and Graham Martin. Pam (Deugo) was raised in Cedar Hill as the youngest child of George and Shirley Deugo of Fulton’s Pancake House. This video is for all ages and students will learn about Christmas Tree farming.
Virtual Food & Farm Tour with Linwell Gardens
Join us for a tour of Linwell Gardens in Beamsville, Ontario. Linwell Gardens specializes in the propagation of rooted annuals, chrysanthemums, and poinsettia. We’ll join Tom, a fourth-generation flower farmer, to learn all about Poinsettias, the perfect flower for the holiday season. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip to a Beef Farm
Meet 4-H Ontario Volunteer Coordinator and beef farmer, Cam Crogie. Cam will take you on a tour of his beef operation, so that you can see what he needs to do daily to care for the well-being of his beef cows.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip to a Dairy Farm
Join us for a trip to a dairy farm and meet AgScape Teacher Ambassador, Ontario Certified Teacher, and dairy farmer Cheryl Olthaar. Cheryl will take you on a tour of her dairy operation so that you can see what she needs to do daily to care for the well-being of her dairy cows.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip to a Strawberry Farm
Join us for this virtual field trip with Andrew who is a strawberry farmer and farms with his family at Brantwood Farms. Along with strawberries, he farms rhubarb, apples, sweet corn, pumpkins, and much more.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip with 4-H Ontario Ambassador and Beef Farmer Marissa Lester
Join us for this food and farm tour, where you can learn more about beef farming with 4-H Ontario Ambassador, Marissa Lester. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip with Food For Life
In this virtual food and farm field trip with Food For Life, students will tour the organization's warehouse and learn all about food waste, rescuing food, and food security. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: AgScape Teacher Ambassador/Beekeeper
Meet Shaunna MacQuarrie, an Ontario Certified Teacher & an AgScape Teacher Ambassador who loves empowering young people to become educated food consumers and teaching students about the wide variety of career paths available to them in the agricultural sector. She is also a Beekeeper. Tune in to ask her about her role as an AgScape Teacher Ambassador and satisfy all your curiosities about honeybee colonies. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Apple Farm with Maryanne Van de Gevel
Join us for this virtual food and farm tour, where you can learn more about apple production with Maryanne Van de Gevel from Great Lakes Farms. See how apples are produced on trees in orchards, harvested and much more, all while learning about the different of varieties of apples produced in Ontario. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Asparagus Farm
Visit Dalton White Farms and meet Rebecca, an Ontario asparagus farmer. Learn all about this summertime favourite and ask her your questions live! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Beef Farm
Jordan is an Ontario beef farmer who operates a commercial cow-calf operation with his extended family on Manitoulin Island. Jordan will tell you what is like farming on the island, to work with family and all about his cattle. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Beekeeping
In this tour, meet AgScape's very own Project Assistant, Ontario Certified Teacher and beekeeper, Shaunna MacQuarrie along with her husband, Beekeeper Ken. Beekeeper Shaunna and Ken, along with their children, care for over 30 honeybee colonies, sell honey and beeswax products locally and speak regularly to groups about both native bees and honeybees, pollination and caring for the environment. This video is ideal for K-grade 8.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Blueberry/Strawberry Farm
Meet Dusty! He’s the fourth generation on his family farm in Norfolk County, which grows high bush blueberries, hops and propagates strawberries for growers throughout Canada and internationally. He’s also a co-founder of the family-owned Hometown Brewing Company. Take a tour of his state-of-the-art strawberry greenhouse. Learn what it takes to produce high-quality strawberries ( & craft beer) and why innovation and skilled labour are essential to his farm. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Cheesemaking
Meet Shep! Owner and head cheesemaker at Gunn's Hill Artisan Cheese in Woodstock, ON. Shep's journey to becoming a skilled cheese maker began on the family dairy farm where he not only loved dairy farming but all the delicious products that come from dairy. After he completed university, where he received a degree in business, Shep had numerous opportunities to study and make cheese in the United States, British Columbia and most recently Switzerland. It was during these ventures that he developed his passion and skill set for cheese making. This video is ideal for grades 5-12.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Dairy Farm
Join us for this virtual food and farm tour where you will meet AgScape's very own Program Assistant, teacher and 3rd generation farmer, Cassi Brunsveld. Cassi currently operates a 140+ organic dairy cattle farm with her husband in the Cambridge region. In this live tour, you will have the opportunity to learn about organic dairy farming, and ask questions to explore how organic milk gets from the farm to your table. This video is ideal for K-grade 5.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Dairy Farmer Norm
Join us for this food and farm tour, where you can learn more about dairy production with Dairy Farmer Norm. Join Dairy Farmer Norm as he’ll be inside the barn talking about the cattle, his robotic milking system and their future goals of opening up a processing facility. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Egg Farm
Meet Ontario egg farmer, Megan! Visit her egg packing room and learn everything about egg farming including how important is technology! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Egg Producer Janelle and Chef Mike
Join us for this food and farm field trip, where you can learn more about egg production from farm to table with Egg Producer Janelle and Chef Mike. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Farm Safety and Equipment
Meet Rob from Green Tractors Brampton who will talk to you about farm equipment and farm safety. Rob is part of a family-run operation that has been in the heart of Brampton for just shy of 60 years. Rob will tell you everything you would like to know about safety, as well as the commercial and consumer equipment that he sells at his dealership. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Farm Tour with Farmer Norm
Farmer Norm is back for another tour! Join us for this virtual food and farm tour, where you can learn more about food that is fed to cattle, technology on the farm and much more with Farmer Norm. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Flower Greenhouse
Join us on May 25 at 1:30 p.m. for a virtual field trip to a flower greenhouse, where you will meet Arielle and Ralph. Arielle's parents started Rosa Flora in 1978, so she's been a flower farmer for nearly her entire life! They initially specialized in hybrid tea roses, but now Arielle and her husband Ralph have grown the farm to include gerbera daisies, snapdragons, lisianthus and garden roses in over 40 acres of greenhouses! They look forward to showing a slice of life in a cut flower greenhouse from seed to shipping. This video is ideal for grades K-5.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Goat Farm
Join us for a virtual field trip to a dairy goat farm! Here, you’ll meet Emily, a recent graduate from the University of Guelph and herd manager at her family farm Frankhaven Dairy Goats. Her family started the farm in 1999 with 23 milking 'does' (female goats) and now have 700! Emily’s main focus on the farm is caring for the young goats, known as ‘kids’ and improving the health of the herd. Tune in for a LIVE tour and Q&A! This video is ideal for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Greenhouse Farm
Learn with Mike, an Ontario greenhouse grower, who will discuss the process of growing various vegetables in a greenhouse and the importance of pursuing a career in the agri-food sector! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Greenhouse Tomato Grower
Nature Fresh Farms – meet an Ontario greenhouse tomato grower in Leamington, Ontario, and learn all about how they grow fresh tomatoes year-round. Ask about technology, pollinators, sustainability and why they love what they do! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Hensall Co-op
Hensall Co-op is a farmer-owned cooperative focused on helping farmers sell their grain, feed their animals and grow their crops (like edible beans). Hear from three employees about what they do, why they love it, and how jobs like theirs play a huge role in farming across the country. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Making a 3 Course Meal with Local Foods
Get your cook on with Andrea as she leads us through a grill worthy 3 course meal featuring items from our farm tours! She will be making: apple and cheddar turkey burgers, grilled Greek vegetables with a tomato vinaigrette and an asparagus grilled flatbread. Recipes can be found at www.farmfoodcareon.org/local-food-week/. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Maple Syrup Production
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Jodie and Dugald Aldred who specialize in maple syrup production at Aldred Maple Products. Jodie and Dugald will take us through a live virtual tour of their sugar bush and sugar shack on AgScape or Farm Food Care's Facebook or YouTube channels. This video is for all ages. Virtual Field Trip: This virtual field trip will allow students to take a tour with Kevin Snyder at Snyder Heritage Farms through their sugar shack. Students will learn all about maple syrup production. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Pea Harvest tour - from a Senior Kindergartener!
Jaxson, who is in Senior Kindergarten here in Ontario was so inspired by some of our recent Virtual Farm Tours he wanted to do a tour of his own! Video is ideal for elementary level students.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Pfisterer Farm in Wellington County
The celebration of Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month continues with Jess Pfisterer who is a first generation farmer who together with her husband owns the Pfisterer Farm in Wellington County providing pasture raised meats, free range eggs, and seasonal products. Sustainable and regenerative farming practices are core to their operation, committing to farm without compromising precious resources so future generations can continue to do the same. She is a strong advocate for accessible, local, nutritious, affordable food for all and transparency of how and where food comes from. This video is ideal for K-grade 5.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Pig Farm in Lambton County
John Van Engelen has been a pig farmer for 40 years, and now farms side by side with his son and daughter. Ask John about where pigs live, what they eat and what it’s like to work with family. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Potato Farm in Chatham
Meet Josh! Josh grew up on his family farm near Chatham, ON, where they grow corn, wheat and soybeans. Josh studied agriculture at the University of Guelph and later moved to Prince Edward Island for three years to farm potatoes. Now that he is back in Ontario, Josh is working as a Certified Crop Advisor (kind of like a personal trainer for crops!) and started growing potatoes on his own farm. This video is ideal for K-grade 8.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Sheep Farm in Ottawa Valley
Chris and Lyndsey operate their family-run sheep farm in the Ottawa Valley. These sheep farmers are passionate about raising quality pasture, healthy animals and nurturing resilient soil. In the spring, summer, and fall their sheep graze on pasture, in the trees, and along rocky outcrops of the Canadian Shield and under solar panels! This video is ideal for K-grade 8.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Sheep Farm in Wellington County
Romy Schill is a fifth generation sheep farmer. She and her husband Ryan are raising their three children as well as 300 sheep on their farm in Wellington County. They spend lots of time caring for the animals and land, but they get to play too. Ask them about where sheeps live, what they eat and what kind of fun things they get to do on the farm. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Soil Health Interpretive Centre in Guelph
Join this tour of the University of Guelph Soil Health Interpretive Centre to learn all about soil health! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Strawberry Farm in London
We’re kicking off Local Food Week with many Ontarians’ favourite summer fruit - strawberries! Join us for a trip to Heeman’s; a family-run strawberry farm, cidery, greenhouse and garden centre. They grow over 50 acres of strawberries which are available from June through October. Here you’ll meet Susan and Tom, who grew up on berry farms and now play many different roles in the family business and local community. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Trout Farm in Hanover
Sister-brother duo Arlen and RJ Taylor are the owners of Cedar Crest Trout Farms, a second-generation family business that has five trout hatcheries and a processing plant near Hanover, Ontario. Watch Arlen and RJ as they show you the daily happenings at a fish farm, from eggs and incubation, to feeding time, and even behind the scenes of the country’s largest trout breeding program. They will talk about how fish farming in Ontario is good for the environment, and why they love this innovative and expanding agri-food sector so much! This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Turkey Farm in Norfolk County
Meet Clair and Kathryn, Ontario turkey farmer! Join us for a tour and have your questions about turkey farming answered. This video is for all ages.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Urban Farming in Durham
Join us for a virtual field trip where you will meet Ryan Cullen who is the Field Supervisor at the W. Galen Weston Centre for Food where he manages a team of students and a number of urban farm production systems at Durham College’s Whitby Campus. The farm is host to a ¾ market garden, ¼ acre apple orchard, a vertical hydroponic farm, greenhouse production facilities, a forest garden, an arboretum of trees and a number of perennial gardens. He works closely with the culinary and hospitality programs in the Centre for Food to supply the Centre with fresh, locally grown produce year round while also integrating production systems into curriculum. This video is ideal for grades 7-12.
Virtual Food and Farm Field Trip: Viticulture (Wine Growing) in Niagara
Join us for a virtual field trip, where you can ask questions live to learn more about viticulture or winegrowing (wine growing) which is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes from Niagara College expert, Gavin Robertson. This video is for all ages.
Watering and Plant Growth
Students will design and carry out an experiment to determine how altering watering conditions (temperature, amount, size of droplet, time of day, mulching, type of soil, etc.) can affect plant growth.
Wave of the Future
This resource addresses all things ocean; from economy, to ecology, to transportation, to careers. Learning is solidified with a variety of fun activities.
Weather to Farm Game - How Will Weather Affect Your Farm?
How will weather affect your farm? Dive into weather in this gamified experience! Students will play the role of the farmer and be presented with different weather scenarios, learning about how weather can affect our ability to grow food. While playing the game students will encounter scenarios related to and definitions of these weather terms: blizzard, climate, cold front, dew, drought, frost, frost free days, heat wave, humidex, rain, relative humidity, snow, warm front, weather, wind. The worksheet is great for students who are doing the program remotely or independently. Browser note: use the latest version of Chrome, Edge or Safari to play the Weather to Farm Game.
What is Agriculture?
‘What is Agriculture?’ is a short (~1 minute) animated video that will not only define agriculture but initiate student discussion and exploration about: • their connection to agriculture • the depth, breadth, and importance of agriculture • the many people who work in agriculture • the global nature of the agriculture industry This video is part of the Think Global – Agriculture & Our World resource (grade 7) and is an excellent way to introduce the Career Case/Agri-mission Game (grades 9 – 12).
What is Food Security?
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action. In this first issue of Nourishing Minds, we explore food security and food insecurity while breaking down the stages food goes through from food production to food waste. We investigate the various causes of food insecurity, including environmental and social factors, and address the challenges of achieving food security globally. By creating content that engages students and empowers educators, we bring agriculture to life today so that together we can change the world to a better tomorrow.
What is the Ethical Choice for People, Animals and Planet?
How can today's food system meet the growing global demand to produce more food using fewer resources? This video incorporates the 'Earth as an apple' model to highlight the amount of soil available and looks at the amount of freshwater available. At the same time, it highlights the increasing need for food due to an increasing global population.
What is the Source?
A fun way to learn about the misconceptions that farms provide us with only raw produce and other foods. In reality, agriculture also provides us with a wide variety of raw materials from which we are able to make clothes, books, cosmetics, medicines, sports equipment, and much more.
What's Food Security? (Interactive)
The Nourishing Minds publication series has been developed as an educational tool for youth, educators, parents and anyone who wishes to learn more about agriculture and food systems. These magazines offer young people the chance to engage about a wide variety of topics such as food security, nutrition, climate change and sustainability and learn how they can take action.
What's Growing Around Us?
What's Growing Around Us is an educational storybook that highlights many of the crops and livestock that are grown and raised on the prairies, in Newfoundland, and on Prince Edward Island.
What's for Dinner?
This resource gives a comprehensive look at the issue of genetic engineering and its application to food production. It also demonstrates the connection between science, technology, society and the environment through a series of modules ranging from basic genetics to food production to the many societal issues surrounding genetically engineered foods.
Where Beef Comes From
In this storybook, students will learn about beef production in Saskatchewan, including different steps in producing, growing and manufacturing beef. Children will also learn the valuable role beef plays in their daily diet.
Who Made You Dinner? Careers in the Certified Seed Industry
Developed in partnership with the Ontario Seed Growers Association, this infographic highlights the various career opportunities available in the seed industry. Students will learn about who is involved in developing, growing, harvesting, testing and transforming grains and oilseeds into the foods we enjoy every day.
Wily Wild Oats
Students identify some biological factors that have made wild oats such a successful weed. Then the students collect wild oat samples and study the seed structures for possible clues revealing the reasons for the plants success.
Winter Sprout 2021–22
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Winter Sprout 2022–23
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
Winter Sprout 2023–24
Sprout is a hands-on learning magazine for young farmers designed to educate and entertain. Whether you live in the country or the city, get ready for some farm and food fun! Designed for pre-teens, Sprout features farm stories, puzzles, animals, crafts, recipes, food facts, science experiments and more.
You Are What You Eat!
Introduce your students to the topic of food science! They will identify which foods contain carbohydrates, fats, sugars, and/or proteins. These activities will help students to then apply their knowledge of what their food is made up of, to their daily food choices.
Your Life - Your Agriculture
Canadian agriculture has a lot to offer when it comes to careers - no matter what subjects your students are interested in! Show your students how they can take advantage of the opportunities agriculture has to offer. After all, it's your life and your agriculture.
connectAG
This online resource invites students in Grades 7 to 9 to explore Canadian agriculture by introducing them to farms and farmers across Canadian provinces, including the variety of agricultural commodities they produce and their link to our food system.
snapAG Information Sheets: Animal Care
From Antibiotics in Food, to Dairy Cows, explore a number of hot-button topics related to animal care!
snapAG Information Sheets: Farming Basics
From Organic Farming to Animal Breeding, explore a number of hot-button topics related to farming basics!
snapAG Information Sheets: Farming and the Environment
From Beef Protein to Carbon Sequestration, explore a number of hot-button topics related to farming and the environment!
snapAG Information Sheets: Food
From Global Protein Consumption to Milk Pasteurization, explore a number of hot-button topics related to food!
snapAG Information Sheets: Growing Crops
From organic soil management to fertilizer use, explore a number of hot-button topics related to growing crops!
snapAG Information Sheets: Pesticides
From Neonics, to Organic and Synthetic Pesticides, explore a number of hot-button topics related to pesticides!
snapAG Information Sheets: Technology and Innovation
From the science behind GMOs, to GMOs around the world, explore a number of hot-button topics related to technology and innovations in agriculture and food.
snapAG Jeopardy
Are you looking for an engaging way to discuss hot topics affecting the agriculture agriculture with your students? This game will add a little bit of competition, and result in a whole lot of learning!
snapAG Website
What are GMOs and are they okay to eat? What does organic farming look like? How are animals like chickens or cattle raised? snapAG is a series of resources that invite students to explore the hot topics affecting the agriculture industry today. Topics range from organics, biotechnology, GMOs, livestock, and more. Explore what’s trending in agriculture in Canada by browsing the topics on the website.
For educators, please share the direct snapAG Website link with your students to access. No login required.
thinkAG 30-Day Challenge Calendar
30 days of thinkAG career exploration activities! AITC-C is challenging your classroom to explore the world of agriculture and food career opportunities with this Canada Career Month calendar (featuring November 2022). Feel free to continue using this resource beyond November for year-round suggestions on career education with students, both at home and at school.
thinkAG Career Case
Demonstrate the diversity and importance of careers in agriculture and food with this fun game, while supporting students in recognizing how their skills and interests can fit into careers in the industry. Students are faced with various challenges in which they work in groups to determine the careers needed to solve the case. Scroll on this webpage until you find your province specific learning materials!
thinkAG Career Case: Explore Digital Agriculture Extension
What is “Digital Agriculture”, what are some careers involved, and how does agricultural technology compare to everyday technology? Explore the various tools and technologies used in agriculture and food production, and the leading-edge careers that exist within the compelling world of digital agriculture. *Facilitator Slide Deck Only*
thinkAG Career Case: Master Scenario List
Are you looking for more Career Case scenarios to challenge your students with? Check out all 32 of the agriculture and food scenarios curated from AITC-C's 10 provincial member organizations.
thinkAG Career Exploration Activity Toolkit
The thinkAG Career Exploration Activity Toolkit is as collection of games and activities that allow students from grades 9-12 to explore career opportunities in agriculture and agri-foods and gives students a chance to try out some of the skills required for positions in agriculture.
thinkAG Initiative: Agriculture is...
Can you picture yourself in a career in agriculture and food? This series of videos showcases different career choices in agri-food with a focus on Art, Business, Engineering, Math, Science, and Technology.