Students will explore nutritional habits of families from different countries. In this activity, students will recognize agriculture’s influence on food systems across the globe.

Students will discover that plants, like humans, need an adequate amount of nutrients to grow and stay healthy. Plants require 16 chemical elements for growth and development. Some nutrients come from the air while others are taken from the soil. It’s important to test soil regularly to determine if there are enough nutrients to support plant growth. The soil test kit will help students identify whether the soil sample is fertile or deficient in nutrients. Keep in mind that all plants need nutrients, but requirements vary depending on the type of crop, shrub, tree, etc.

Check out our Testing Soil Nutrients N-P-K Lesson for math applications associated with this topic!

This fast-moving relay race teaches students that before any product leaves a factory, or enters a store, it began as a resource or product of the natural world – most likely agriculture. Students will work in teams and run a relay race where they have to quickly decide the source of a product and then race to place it into one of the buckets marked Factory, Store, Farm or Earth. Source Relay is a great interest approach activity for older students!

Check out the adapted online, student worksheet version for elearning puposes!
Answer Key to Source Relay with explanations.

*This lesson plan is similar to our Breakfast Relay lesson plan. Click the link to check it out!

In this activity, students will observe barley seed heads and sort them to compare and contrast traits with parent barleys, showing that offspring are like, but not exactly like, their parents. Lesson developed by Barleyworld, Oregon State University.

Virtual Version of the lesson plan can be found here.

This activity will introduce students to farm economics and the variable forces affecting crop production and sales. Students will learn that farming is a business and the importance of anticipating and managing risks that affect profit. Lesson adopted from Oregon Aglink.

Students will investigate the “three sisters” crops (corn, beans, and squash) and explore the benefit to planting these crops together through a germination activity and legend reading exploration.

Students will explore the life cycle of a Douglas-fir Christmas tree through this fun craft learning the various stages of growth.

Students will explore the life cycle of a Douglas-fir Christmas tree through this fun craft learning the various stages of growth.

Discover the nutrient requirements of dairy cows! Students will collaborate in teams to unlock feed examples through a series of escape boxes. As students work to unlock each escape box, they will be tasked with calculating rations using the Pearson Square method to provide a balanced meal for dairy cows to enjoy!

Explore the world of gardening through owning a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) operation! Students will explore economics as it relates to owning and operating a program through a simulation.

Find virtual learning versions of this lesson here.