Flat Aggie Adventures is a six-part newsletter series geared towards upper elementary students. Flat Aggie was inspired by the beloved children’s story Flat Stanley. Students will travel with Flat Aggie to a farm or ag business to explore the day in the life of a local industry professional. The Flat Aggie Adventures series includes pork, dairy, turkey, careers and now corn/soybeans. Through the series, students will use STEM based skills to learn about plant growth, harvest and function. Students will also engage in career exploration. Flat Aggie Adventures is a partnership between Linn, Buchanan, Delaware and Scott County Farm Bureau. Links to access the completed Flat Aggie Series: -Linn County Farm Bureau: Flat Aggie Adventures | mysite (linncoag.com) -Riverbend AITC: Flat Aggie Adventures | RiverBend AITC Ways to utilize Flat Aggie: 1. Print it off and have students write and highlight key points. 2. Print and laminate for multiple uses. 3. Keep the newsletter in online format and send to the students or display it in front of the class. Ways to integrate Flat Aggie into your curriculum: 1. Guided reading time 2. Morning bell ringer 3. Science time 4. Individual reading time 5. Research project Discussion topics for integration: 1. Identify the STEM careers involved with growing corn and soybeans. 2. Discuss how advances in agriculture have changed production over time. 3. Explore supply and demand and how it relates to our grain industry. 4. Ask students to identify key ideas. 5. Discover the different stages in the life cycle of an Iowa commodity. Corn and Soybean Sneak Peak Edition 1: Tillage Practices SNEAK PEAK Edition 2: Planting SNEAK PEAK Edition 3: Lifecycles SNEAK PEAK Edition 4: Fertilizer SNEAK PEAK Edition 5: Harvest SNEAK PEAK Edition 6: Storage SNEAK PEAK *****Like what you see? Download the newsletters for free at our website Flat Aggie Adventures | mysite (linncoag.com) STANDARDS MET: Agriculture Literacy Outcomes T2.3-5.e Understand the concept of stewardship and identify ways farmers/ranchers care for soil, water, plants and animals. T1. 3-5.a Describe the similarities and differences between managed and natural systems. T4.3-5.d Provide examples of science being applied to farming for food, clothing and shelter products. Iowa/ Common Core Standards w.3.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. R1.4.1 Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. R1.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. 3-LS2-1 Construct an argument that some animals form groups that help members survive. 4-LS1-1 Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival and growth. 5-LS2-1 Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers and the environment. Essential Concept and/or Skill: Adjust to various roles and responsibilities and understand the need to be flexible to change. Essential Concept and/or Skill: Demonstrate initiative, creativity, self–direction, and entrepreneurial thinking to produce successful outcomes.

“They say making hay is difficult… I don’t know, it seems rather cut and dried.” Hay is a type of grass that is cut and dried to be used as animal feed during winter months. Hay is a great source of nutrients and protein for livestock when they’re unable to graze. The process of growing, cutting, drying, and baling grass has been around for hundreds of years. Today, we’re going to discuss the process of making hay! We often hear the terms, grass hay and alfalfa hay. Farmers will feed one or both as part of their feed ration. The protein content is one of the most significant differences between grass hay and alfalfa. Alfalfa hay has a higher protein content, with an average of 15% to 21%, depending upon when it was cut. This is significantly higher than grass hay’s protein levels, which usually contain 10% to 15%. There are many different varieties of grasses grown for hay production. A few common grasses include Ryegrass, Timothy, Fescue, or Orchard grass. Of course, like most crops, hay is grown from a seed that is planted in the spring. After a few months of growing, farmers cut the grass using a hay mower attached to a tractor. Farmers leave the cut hay to dry in the field before raking the hay into windrows. It’s important that these steps are done on warm, sunny days as rain can damage or spoil the crop. After the hay is dried, it is then raked and baled into either round or square bales. Farmers tend to use the larger, round bales if they have more livestock to feed rather than the smaller and lighter square bales. Once hay is baled, it’s stored, typically in a building or a structure with a roof to protect it from the weather. Farmers can usually make 2-3 cuttings of hay throughout the summer season. During the 18th and 18th century, baling hay was an extremely laborious job! In order to help hydrate farmers, a new drink was created called Haymaker’s Punch or Switchel. This old-fashioned summer drink is still loved by many. The recipe below was found in The Old Farmer’s Almanac: 1 gallon water 1 ½ cups molasses ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger Optional: teaspoon of fresh lemon/lime juice Try out this refreshing recipe like a true haymaker! Check out our hay video and lesson activities! November | mysite (linncoag.com) Book: 3rd - Google Drive FarmChat; (1) 434C1E15 3FCD 47C9 8CA4 19379955600B - YouTube While hay is an extremely common crop in Iowa, it’s not to be mistaken with straw. Straw is the leftover dried stalks of cereal plants. Straw, while edible, isn’t often used as feed for livestock as it lacks much nutritional value. It is typically used as bedding for animals since it repels moisture and holds heat. Straw can also be used for biofuel and gardening as it offers great nutrients for compost! If you’re interested in learning more about the differences between hay and straw, check out our Hay v Straw lesson on youtube! (1) Hay vs straw lesson - YouTube

Are you ready to check out for winter break? I know I am! There is a weird 3 or so weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas that seems sort of in limbo. We need to wrap up the year, but we also want to find a good stopping place before next semester begins. There are usually a few days towards the end of December where you just want to keep the kids busy! Let us help you with fun and educational ideas! We have compiled a list of our 10 favorite winter activities. These resources can be modified for most grades and are easy to prep! Join us as we sled down our favorite hill! 1) Fun Coloring Sheet! Download and use during transitions, holiday parties, indoor recess, etc! 2) Tree FarmChat Video Tour a Christmas tree farm with a local farmer, Rick Wyffels. 3) Managing a Christmas Tree Farm Lesson Plan -Ages 6th-8th -Students will understand some of the jobs and roles involved in operating and supporting a Christmas tree farm. Students will apply math concepts to make Christmas tree farm management decisions. 4) Engineering with Christmas Trees Lesson Plan -Ages 3rd-5th -Engineer ways to recycle real Christmas (conifer) trees by gathering insights on the issue of Christmas trees in landfills. 5) Evergreen Trees Video Head to Saybrook, Illinois, in McLean County, to visit Helmig's Tree Farm! 6) Seasons! Illinois is very close to Iowa when it comes to seasons! Learn about growing seasons through the eyes of another state! Download here 7) Day in the Life of a Cattle Farmer (Winter Edition): Have your students explore what chores look like on a farm during the winter season. Compare and contrast to different types of farms or compare to how it might look different living in town. The blog post can be found here. 8) All about Trees Winter is a great time to incorporate tree activities into your curriculum. Not only do learning about trees tie in perfectly with Iowa core standards but students can take advantage of the winter months to easily observe the differences between bare deciduous tree and green needled conifers. Resource links 9) Time for Cranberries: Students will explore the production of cranberries while enjoying a taste test! 10) LAST BUT NOT LEAST: 12 Days of Ag Activities -The 12 days will include entertaining lessons that teach the whole family about agriculture. For example, STEM sugar cookies, scavenger hunt, Christmas corn paint, homemade snow, etc!

It is turkey time! We have compiled a list of our favorite Ag in the Classroom resources and lesson plans! Learn all about raising turkeys with our FarmChat, Flat Aggie Series and more! 1)Turkey FarmChat Join us as we tour an Iowa Turkey Farm! Ron takes us into the barns to get a closer look at the bird care as we gear up for Thanksgiving. 2)On the Farm Turkey Talk: Care on the Farm The Iowa Turkey Federation chats about the care on the farm and the standards for raising turkeys in Iowa! 3)Turkey Flat Aggie Adventures Newsletter Series We have a complete series on our website available for download. Check it out to learn about human nutrition, turkey poults, turkey care, mature turkeys, technology and transportation. 4)My Family's Turkey Farm Book Adam takes us on a tour of his family's turkey farm! The My Family Turkey Farm books is perfect for students in 3rd-5th grade! Read aloud or have the students read it on their own for research activities! 5)First grade turkey lifecycle lesson plan Visit our website for a complete lesson plan perfect for lower elementary! We are talking; life cycle, sequencing, matching game, labeling worksheet and more! FOR THE PARENTS: The oven is undoubtedly the go-to method for roasting that whole turkey to perfect. The Iowa Turkey Federation is breaking it down to help you make the most of your turkey dinner! Here are turkey recipes for everyday! Food safety reminders below!

James, a 4-Her from New Hampshire utilized our website for a research project. In his search, he also found a list of agriculture terms and thought it might be a good addition to our list of accumulated recourses. James, we appreciate you! Below are definitions for common agriculture and farm terminology. It was a great idea to add these to our site, we mention a lot of them in our resources and now we will have a list to reference back to! Acre: The standard unit of measurement for farmland. One acre is 43,560 square feet or 0.405 hectares. This is approx. the length of a football field. Agribusiness: This encompasses the entire chain of commercial farming, from sufficient production to earning a profit up to investments and modernization of equipment to reduce costs and increase profit margins. Agribusiness is really anything related to the business of farming. Agriculture: The practice of raising and cultivating livestock and plants. Without the development of agriculture over the millennia, society as we know it could not exist. Agronomy: Agronomy is the science of growing and raising crops on a farm. Aquaculture: Aquaculture is farming but in water. Aquaculture can involve raising fish in ponds or even plants grown in flooded fields or ponds. Barn: The typical barn is a large, two-story, roofed structure used for housing animals and feed. Modern barns come in a variety of sizes and styles depending on the farmer’s needs and the type of animal they will be used for. Bovine: Anything bovine is related to cattle or the raising of cattle. Bushel: A bushel is the standard unit of measurement for crops. A modern dry bushel measurement is 64 pints. However, any single bundle or measurement of a dry crop or product can informally be referred to as a bushel as well. Co-Op: A co-op, or farmer cooperative, is a group of farms and farmers working together for the mutual benefit of all members. Farming co-ops offer many benefits to members, including greater purchasing power, wider product distribution, and greater negotiating power. Combine: Combines are large, tractor-like vehicles used for harvesting grain. Commodity: A commodity is a crop that is traded in markets and on futures exchanges. Examples include corn, oranges, rice, and wheat. Compost: Compost is decomposed organic matter, usually made from accumulated food scraps and other matter. Compost provides nutrients for plants and helps enrich the soil. Contour Farming: This practice involves planting seeds at a perpendicular angle to the slope of the land to decrease soil erosion. Cover Crop: A cover crop’s purpose is to improve and protect the soil between the plantings of the regular crop. Crop: This can be anything grown, cultivated, and harvested on a farm. Crops can be used for animal feed or sold for profit. Crop Rotation: The practice of planting different crops in successive seasons prevents draining the soil of vital nutrients. Erosion: The relocation of soil by wind or water; erosion is a major problem faced by large-scale farmers. The infamous Dust Bowl of the Great Depression was caused in part by soil erosion stemming from poor farming techniques. Ethanol: Ethanol is an alcohol-based fuel derived from a number of organic sources, primarily corn. Feed: There are three types of animal feed on a farm: roughage, concentrates, and mixes. Each type of animal will require its own specialized feed in line with its dietary needs. Fertilizer: Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic substance or chemical applied to the soil to help provide nutrients to crops. Fodder: Stalks, leaves, and other detritus left behind after harvest that can be used for animal feed. Fodder is an example of roughage. Fungicide: A fungicide is a chemical used to treat fungi-infested plants and seeds. The chemical may be organic or inorganic. Genetically Modified Organism (GMO): GMO crops are those in which the plant’s DNA has been scientifically altered to produce certain characteristics, like greater fruit yield, better color, or resistance to pests. Herbicide: A chemical applied to undesirable plants, such as weeds, to kill them. The chemical may be organic or inorganic. Irrigation: Irrigation is providing water to fields and crops through sprinklers, hoses, or other means. Organic: Organic crops are grown without synthetic chemicals. Pesticide: This is a chemical that kills insects harmful to plants. The chemical may be organic or inorganic. Silage: Silage is feed stored in an airtight silo. The feed is typically grass or other fodder material that can be used as food for the winter. Silo: Shaped almost like a rocket on a launch pad, a silo is a large, cylindrical building for holding animal feed. Thinning: Thinning is the process of uprooting and removing weaker plants in order to direct more sunlight and natural resources toward healthier plants. Tillage: Tilling the soil means tearing, loosening up, and aerating the ground before planting. ***Terms and definitions came from Jeffery Nadrich with the Nadrich and Cohen website.

Happy Fall y'all! It is time to share our favorite harvest time and pork month resources. We have compiled a list of 10 great lessons and media ideas to implement into your classroom today. All ideas align well with the Iowa Core Standards and can be modified to fit the needs of your classroom. October is National Pork Month, so let's start there! Iowa is the nation's leading pig state, pigs out number people 1 to 7! Wow that is a lot of pigs! Iowa's farmers understand animal care, how to protect the environment and provide a safe, nutrient-dense product to meet consumer demand. Did you know one in ten working Iowans has a job tied to the pork industry? Family farms raising pigs in the local community help create jobs in trucking, at feed mills, butcher shops, veterinary medicine and more. Through innovation, technology, new research and farmer-led changes, today’s pork is more sustainable than ever. Since the 1990s, U.S. pork production has increased by 80% while per-unit emissions have decreased by 20%. Lean pork is part of a healthy diet. Pork is an excellent source of Thiamin, Niacin and Vitamin B6 which help regulate metabolism. It can also help strengthen bones, promote energy and help build red blood cells. Just like us, pigs live in a climate-controlled home that are protected from predators and kept clean to prevent disease. Farmers check their pigs every day to make sure their feed is clean and provide individual care to animals. Pig farmers are continuously improving their on-farm practices to enhance animal health and protect the environment. When compared to 1960, one pound of pork today uses 76% less land, 25% less water and 7% less energy. Here are a few pork-tastic resources! 1.My Family's Pig Farm Book: Meet Caeden, an 8-year-old who lives on a pig farm. Learn how farmers take care of pigs through Caeden's eyes, as he takes you on a tour of his pig farm. https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/63054669/my-familys-pig-farm 2.Flat Aggie Adventures Pork Edition: Follow Flat Aggie's Adventure each month as he travels from barn to barn to learn all about pigs. Newsletter content is geared towards a 3rd-5th grade reading level. Flat Aggie Adventures | mysite (linncoag.com) 3.Pork lessons: All about Pigs (PreK and KG) and Build a Pig Home (3rd) October | mysite (linncoag.com) 4.Ohio Pig Field Trip Let's move on to harvest time! Iowa is a leading producer for corn and soybeans! Why do we grow so much grain? Well for one, we rank number one for pigs and eggs and livestock eat a mix of corn and soybeans along with other things that make up their complete feed ration. And second, corn and soybeans are used to make biofuels, biodegradable products and over 4000 other products! Wow! 4000? That is amazing! Incorporate harvest into your curriculum with these high yielding activities! 5. How does a combine work? It's Harvest! Here's a quick, explanation of how it works! 6. Flat Aggie Adventures: Corn and Soybean Edition Flat Aggie Adventures | mysite (linncoag.com) 7. Iowa Corn Growers Fun For Kids activity sheets Fun for Kids | Iowa Corn 8. Iowa Corn trailer: Looking for an opportunity for your students to learn about all things corn? Want to give them a hands on experience? Or maybe you'd like to experience all things Iowa Corn for yourself? The Iowa Corn Promotion Board has designed and built a mobile educational unit looking to travel to your next event! Learn how corn is grown by farmers right here in Iowa. From the foods on your table to the gas in your car, the classroom on wheels is a fun, interactive experience for Iowans of all ages! Mobile Educational Trailers | Iowa Corn 9. Antique Tools and Modern Day Equivalents! Wow the combine is efficient! 10.Complete lesson plans for all ages! Dress up like a corn plant, my family's turkey farm, Little Red Hen Bakes a Cake, Antique Tools, etc! November | mysite (linncoag.com) We hope you enjoyed these free resources! Let us know how you incorporate agriculture into your classroom this fall! Visit our website to learn more!

Football season is finally back – it’s the time of year that millions of people wait for. Sport fans are excited to crowd around the T.V. or gather in the bleachers, munching on popcorn while watching the big game. Did you know that agriculture is essential for these Friday Night Lights? From the food to the turf to the footballs themselves, everything is brought to us by ag! In this blog post we break down the different ways that football connects to agriculture. Popcorn, peanuts, hotdogs, and hamburgers are some of America’s favorite football treats and all are brought to us by plants and animals.. Believe it or not, popcorn actually grows on the cob and 45% of the nation’s popcorn is grown in Nebraska. We even grow some popcorn fields here in Iowa! Peanuts are popular sports snacks in the U.S. and, surprisingly, are grown below ground! Peanuts grow on a plant that flowers above ground, leaving the actual peanut below the surface. These crops are grown primarily in the south, but are surprisingly easy to grow and can lead to a bountiful harvest. A single peanut can produce 30-40 nuts! Hotdogs are often made of beef, chicken, or pork, or a combination of them. Iowa alone produces 33% of America's hotdogs and is the leading producer in pork products. Hamburgers are one of the most well-known American foods! True hamburgers are made out of beef, which come from beef cows, but alternative versions are rising in popularity, such as turkey burgers or black bean burgers. Despite these new variations, nothing truly beats a football meal like a juicy beef burger. Speaking of beef, cows are actually involved in more than just the food aspect of football games! In all NFL games, the footballs used are made from cow hides. Hides of the best quality are specially chosen, sewn, steamed, and laced to absolute perfection. Wilson is the required NFL football brand and the Wilson employees produce 4,000 footballs a day by hand. This fact often confuses individuals due to the common football term “pigskin.” This is because the very first football was made of inflated pig bladders, leading to the nickname “pigskin.” While it seemed like a great idea at the time, lugging around an inflated pig bladder wasn’t always that pleasant so when the invention of rubber came around, the pigskin was quickly ditched for rubber wrapped in leather. Another unknown agriculture relation is the field. The turf used in football games is carefully grown and perfected. Sod was bred with various varieties to ensure it was the perfect length, strength, and color. Once the new grass variation was created, it had to be grown and cared for by farmers for several months before being sent to the stadium in perfect condition. While it may seem a little hard to believe, agriculture is everywhere around us – even in our favorite games. While you cheer on your team this weekend, remember that it was brought to you by farmers.

I love that I continue to learn and explore right along with our students. Melissa James, a science teacher at Center Point-Urbana High School, and her students grew an abundance of cool crops this year. One of them being the Scarlet Runner Bean. When Melissa opened up the green pod, I was shocked to see a vibrant red bean inside! I dared to try it and it tasted similar to a pea with maybe just a tad bit stronger "pea" flavor. So of course I had to do some digging of my own to find out more about this unique plant. The scarlet runner bean is a member of the legume family. We can eat both the pods and seeds. The seeds can be consumed both fresh or dried. The flowers and young leaves are also edible. How cool is that? We can eat pretty much the whole plant! The flowers also add a nice touch of ornamental appeal. With bright cheerful flowers, this makes for a great addition to your garden! Other popular common names of the plant are Runner Bean, Scarlet Runner Bean, Scarlet Conqueror, Fire Bean, Mammoth, Red Giant, Dutch runner bean, Case knife bean, seven year bean, Scarlet runner, Red flowered runner bean, Red flowered vegetable bean, Perennial bean, Dutch Case-Knife Bean, multiflora bean and butter bean. The plant can be planted by seed in May and is a climbing variety that can reach to be 9 feet in length. The plant thrives in warm, sheltered, and sunny position in a consistently moist, fertile, organically rich well-drained soil with plenty of moisture in the growing season. It dislikes heavy, wet or acid soils. Tips: Large quantities of the raw mature seed are poisonous. This plant has a toxic substance called Phytohaemagglutinin and the leaves and bean has to be cooked thoroughly before consumption. Scarlet runner bean occurs wild from Mexico to Panama and most likely originated from Mexico. Today the runner bean is mostly grown for ornamental purposes but I bet it would taste great in soups! To learn more about the bean, check out this site! Let us know if you give the Scarlet Runner Bean a try! We would love to see pictures of the plant and beans.

"Wow, what a fun summer full of agriculture connections." Linn County Farm Bureau had the opportunity to partner with local libraries, daycare centers, county fair and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach-Linn County Day camps to bring agriculture activities to our Linn County youth and families. Themes aligned with a variety of agriculture literacy outcomes including plants and animals, agriculture and the environment and science and technology. A few of the activities included cover crop monsters, sunflower life cycle, mini greenhouses, composting worms, pollination, build-a-barn, milk and milk substitutes, grains, biodegradable packing peanuts, and farm webs! Students of all ages, from toddlers to fifth graders, participated in these summer activities. Participants had the opportunities to learn where the cereal comes from, play with slimy worms, and participate in challenges such as building a barn from spaghetti noodles and marshmallows! It was great to see students express their creativity and curiosity through these lessons and activities! We also offered three STEM kits that were delivered at the beginning of each month. This year, our Summer STEM Kit theme was sports. Students learned how agriculture and byproducts are all around us. Students got to participate in activities that taught them where things come from – like how footballs and baseballs can have byproducts from animals or how our favorite summertime snacks, like popcorn, come from farms all around us. These lessons helped students learn to connect everyday activities and objects with local agriculture. Not only did we provide various lessons and activities throughout the summer, but we also began planning for lessons to use in the upcoming school year! We recorded a handful of FarmChat Fridays that will be used with newly created lessons and activities during the 2022-2023 school year! A trip to a beef and bison farm, a local blueberry patch, and a small-town coffee shop will be available, introducing students to some of the broad agricultural career opportunities available all across Iowa! We can’t wait to show students the fascinating aspects of agriculture and how we can all learn from it. I found this summer to be one full of great opportunities! I was able to teach new lessons to various age groups, allowing myself to become more comfortable with the content and teaching in general. I also had the opportunity to go on various trips and learn new things! Going to visit the local farms we recorded FarmChats with allowed me to realize how much there’s still to learn in agriculture. It’s always exciting to see these new opportunities and allow my creativity to flow when creating new lesson plans. I’m excited to take these new things I learned and created and apply them throughout the school year. We would like to thank the following locations and businesses for inviting us to educate youth on the importance of agriculture during these past few months. We appreciate the opportunity and look forward to working with you all in the future: Center Point Public Library, Lisbon Public Library, The Linn County Fair- Linn County, Taste of Iowa Camp – Iowa State Extension and Outreach- Linn County, Kitchen Concoctions Camp – Iowa State Extension and Outreach- Linn County, Bug Camp – Iowa State Extension and Outreach- Linn County, Turtle Club Daycare and, The Mississippi Valley Fair – Scott County For more information on our services and other educational agricultural resources, please visit our website at www.linncoag.com or visit our Facebook page under Linn County Education Outreach.

Raise your hand if you read Flat Stanley in school? Flat Stanley is an American children’s book series written by Jeff Brown. According to the Flat Stanley Project, “Dale Hubert, a 3rd grade teacher created a fun project to accompany the stories, little did he know that it would become a country wide initiative. Students begin by reading the original Flat Stanley book. They expand their learning by creating a Flat Stanley to mail to a friend, pen pal, or relative in another state. The goal of the project is to increase reading and writing skills as well as expose students to different places.” I remember my sister and I mailed our Flat Stanley to Texas and Missouri to visit family. My cousins sent back photos and journal entries from their time at football games, restaurants, a Friday night bonfire, etc. The project was super memorable! Fast forward to 2018, Reicks View Farms came to Linn County Farm Bureau looking for a fun way to partner to help increase both of our agriculture educational efforts. A team of us, Buchanan, Linn and Delaware County Farm Bureau, came up with the idea to create a Flat Aggie newsletter. I had heard the term Flat Aggie being tossed around the Ag in the Classroom world and knew it would be a perfect project. Flat Aggie Adventures is a six-month newsletter series geared towards a 3rd-5th grade reading level. Newsletter content meets both literacy and science Iowa Core Standards. Reicks View sent us photos and descriptions of what was happening in the photo, and we put the content together in newsletter format! We currently have completed series for pork, dairy, turkey, careers, and now corn and soybeans. One new issue will be available for download beginning in September. The Flat Aggie Adventures: Corn and Soybeans series was written by Taylor Korte, Region 8 Intern. The series explores tillage, planting, life cycles, fertilizer, harvest, and storage! Sign up for our newsletter to receive the Flat Aggie Adventures series to your inbox. It is free to sign up and download! www.linncoag.com. Ways to utilize Flat Aggie: 1. Print it off and have students write and highlight key points. 2. Print and laminate for multiple uses. 3. Keep the newsletter in online format and send to the students or display it in front of the class. Ways to integrate Flat Aggie into your curriculum: 1. Guided reading time 2. Morning bell ringer 3. Science time 4. Individual reading time 5. Research project Discussion topics for integration: 1. Identify the STEM careers involved with growing corn and soybeans. 2. Discuss how advances in agriculture have changed production over time. 3. Explore supply and demand and how it relates to our grain industry. 4. Ask students to identify key ideas. 5. Discover the different stages in the life-cycle of an Iowa commodity.

It’s National Blueberry Month and to celebrate we visited a local blueberry farm called “Blueyah Blueberry Farm”. During our visit, we learned the ins and outs to operating a small business as well as growing delicious blueberries! Blueyah Blueberry Farm is located near Oxford, Iowa owned by Jenna Hammerich and Eric Johnson. This U-pick blueberry farm offers three varieties of blueberries with over 300 blueberry bushes! A U-pick farm is exactly what it sounds like – you pick your own blueberries! Blueyah offers this peaceful and unique experience on a gorgeous rural property during the late summer months. While visiting this farm, we had the opportunity to learn all about blueberry farming. Did you know that blueberry bushes can reach to be six feet tall? It takes blueberry bushes about 8 - 10 years to reach maturity, but will start to produce fruits at a young age. Blueberry plants love lots of sun and acidic soil, they also like to be planted with other blueberries, which allows for better pollination! We also learned that blueberry plants will tell you when they’re lacking nutrients. The leaves of blueberry bushes will begin to change in color depending on what nutrient they’re lacking such as iron, potassium, or phosphorus. Not only do they tell you what they need, but they rarely suffer from pests and diseases in our state! The biggests pests are Japanese Beetles and birds, although neither do any real damage to the plant. Eric and Jenna told us all about their journey as blueberry farms. The farm began in 2012 after they visited another U-Pick farm and got inspired! By 2016, Blueyah Blueberry Farm was born and open to the public. Due to increasing popularity, Blueyah has begun to offer appointment slots that can be reserved for pickers. Appointments are priced at $5 a ticket ($4 of which will be returned with the first pound of blueberries you pick) and $5 per pound of blueberries. If you’re interested in picking your own fresh blueberries, visit www.blueyahblueberryfarm.com. There are hundreds of ways to indulge in these berries such as making a homemade jam, a batch of sweet muffins, or the way Eric and Jenna recommend – straight off the bush! Blueberries as we know them were first domesticated in the early 1900’s, meaning that people couldn’t buy blueberries at the grocery store until the 20th century! This huge step in farming history was done because of two historical figures, Elizabeth Coleman White and Dr. Frederick Coville. During their journey to domesticate this plant, they collected over 120 wild blueberry bushes. Of those collected, only two met White and Coville’s standards based off of taste, color, shape, and maturation time. The pair used these two pushes to grow thousands of hybrid bushes, creating the 100+ blueberry varieties we indulge in today! Blueyah Farm doesn’t just offer delicious, organic blueberries, but they also have two adorable llamas, yard games, and an experience that will leave memories that last a lifetime. Visit the local blueberry farm before the season’s over!

It is that time again! TIME TO SIGN UP FOR OUR 2022/23 AG IN THE CLASSROOM PROGRAM! Can you tell how excited we are to visit you all again? We are ready to DIG into curriculum and CULTIVATE ag connections. I am slapping my knee as a I chuckle at my not funny but funny puns. Is it a pun though? I don't really understand puns. I am not up with the times! Welcome to Agriculture! Our mission is to increase youth awareness on the importance of agriculture, agriculture careers and the benefits provided by agriculture throughout an individual's life. Our Lessons Invite us to your classroom! Agriculture is a great way to provide real-world examples that meet science and social studies standards. Our students will investigate core subjects through agriculture phenomena examples. Why Teach Agriculture? ​ Agriculture provides local connections to math, science and social studies concepts. By offering agriculture in the classroom we can create real-world STEM opportunities. The National Agriculture Literacy Themes align with 90 Iowa Core science standards. ​ National Agriculture Literacy Themes: 1. Agriculture & the Environment 2. Plants & Animals for Food, Fiber & Energy 3. Food, Health & Lifestyle 4. Culture, Society, Economy & Geography 5. Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics Ag in the Classroom monthly sign up is live! For the first time, Morgan will have assistance with lessons! Paige will be leading preK-KG lessons. We are so excited to have Paige working with Linn County Farm Bureau full time. Schedule your monthly visit below, it is first come first serve for days and times! Fill in your preferred time slot with your name, grade, school and number of students. If multiple teachers are participating from one building please do your best to collaborate and choose the same day with back to back timeslots. Please consider drive time between schools when you are choosing a time slot, I will do my best to adjust the schedule as slots are filling up. If your scheduled visit falls during a holiday, we will do our best to reschedule. The pink high-lighted days are for prep. Lessons are 30-40 minutes. Schedule here! We have fun lessons planned for the 2022/23 school year including activities for the following themes: Meet the Education outreach team! Hi my name is Morgan Hibbs and I am the Education Outreach Director for LCFB. In my current role, I manage the program and visit classrooms preK-12 monthly to bring awareness to the importance of Agriculture. I reside in Tiffin with my husband, Tyler and son, Dean. In my free time, I likes to blog about home-grown flowers and life on a beef farm. Hi my name is Paige McGovern and I coordinate Linn County Farm Bureau outreach efforts, contribute to the Spokesman newspaper and assists with the Ag in the Classroom Program. I recently graduated from UNI and am currently planning a wedding. My hobbies include writing, horseback riding, and spending time with my family and friends. Email Morgan at mhibbs@ifbf.org with questions!