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Agriculture in Sask: Agriculture in the Classroom finding new ways to engage students

Agriculture in the Classroom is getting creative in delivering agriculture-related education in schools this year
agriculture in the classroom
Agriculture in the Classroom is focusing on in-classroom kits this year, like the Dig Deeper: Soil Discovery kit for grade three students. (supplied)

Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) is hardly taking a break this year because of COVID-19, as the non-profit organization has a number of new programs up its sleeve to help bring agriculture to classrooms across Saskatchewan.

As an organization, AITC is dedicated to connecting students and teachers with the many facets of the agriculture industry, usually with a ton of hands-on, in-person programming like farm tours, interactive events, classroom presentations and the annual Food Farm program every spring

But this year, the organization is focusing on reworking its educational materials for teachers to implement themselves in their classrooms, thanks to the pandemic and public health restrictions.

“It's a bit more challenging right now, to consider how we can make things interactive and engaging for students when they aren’t allowed to share materials,” said AITC executive director Sara Shymko, about the change. “So, we’re just trying to be innovative in terms of what we can do to create an interactive experience for the students.”

A lot of the organization’s programming has moved online, said Shymko, with resources and activities available to teachers and homeschooling parents. But AITC is still working to provide more than just online lessons, as the organization finds interactive methods are the best way to demonstrate agriculture in action.

“We’ve developed a few outdoor learning activities, designed for teachers to take students outside. We have soil testing kits, and observation activity, a plants and seeds activity that are all designed to be done outdoors,” said Shymko. 

Programming is focusing on a more individual nature, like the Little Green Thumbs and Little Green Sprouts programs that are continuing this year, and activity kits for students that avoid group work.

AITC is also working on a few entirely new resources to release in the next few months, including an interactive website for students at the grade four or five level to explore the past, present and future of agriculture, and a game focused on nutrition.

They are also leaning into COVID-19 with a new resource for high-school students examining how the pandemic has affected Canada’s food system and producers.

“As great as an online experience will be, it simply can’t replace that hands-on experience, getting to talk to farmers, visiting farms, [so] we’re basically just trying to keep some engagement level,” said Shymko. 

It was important for AITC to adapt programming for this year, so they could continue exposing young students to the different aspects of agriculture and the industry.

“We want kids to know about farming, and recognize that farmers here in Saskatchewan care for their land, care for their animals, and are good stewards of the land,” said Shymko. 

Aside from raising awareness about a huge part of Saskatchewan’s culture and communities, Shymko feels like introducing all the possible nooks and crannies of the agriculture industry to kids at a younger age might help spark an interest in joining the field in the future. 

“Lots of students will say, ‘oh, I want to be an engineer,’ and they can be an engineer in agriculture. They can be a lawyer and work in the field. If they’re interested in biology, there is a tremendous opportunity to work right here in Saskatchewan and be on the forefront of some cutting edge technology,” said Shymko. “So, we’re hoping that with our inquiry-based and hands-on resources, we’re helping kids to become critical thinkers and view agriculture through a positive lens.”

AITC is also joining in the Agriculture Month activities with a giveaway starting on Oct. 1, where teachers who share how they’re using AITC resources in their classrooms can win an agriculture-focused book for each of their students.

Shymko encourages parents and teachers to take a look at AITC’s resources, available on the organization’s website — and she even encourages anyone in the community with questions about agriculture-related topics like vaccinating livestock, GMOs or antibiotics to check out AITC Canada’s resources

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