Ag in the Classroom Grant Sample
from the 2001-2002 Applications
Teacher’s Name:
Mrs. Becki Cowley
Grade Level:
2nd grade
Name of School:
Pinckneyville Grade School
Phone #:
(618)357-5161
School Address:
301 W. Mulberry St.
Pinckneyville, IL 62274
Home Address:
XXXX XXXXXXX
XXXXX XX XXXXX
Home Phone:
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Email Address:
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Title of Project:
Agriculture is OUR Culture
Illinois Learning Standards Addressed:
English/Language Arts
1.C.1b
Identify important themes and topics.
2.A.2a
Identify the literary elements of theme, setting, plot, and character within
literary works.
2.A.1b
Classify literary works as fiction or nonfiction.
2.B.1c
Relate character, setting, and plot to real-life situations
3.B.1a
Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas.
3.B.1b
Demonstrate focus, organization, elaboration, and integration in written
compositions.
3.C.1a
Write for a variety of purposes including description, information,
explanation, persuasion, and narration.
4.A.1a
Listen attentively by facing the speaker, making eye contact, and
paraphrasing what is said.
4.A.1b
Ask questions and respond to questions from the teacher and from group
members to improve comprehension.
4.A.1c
Follow oral directions accurately.
4.B.1b
Participate in discussions around a common topic.
Mathematics
6.A.1a
6.B.1
6.C.1a
7.B.1a
7.B.1b
Identify whole numbers and compare them using the symbols <, >, or = and
the words “less than”, “greater than”, or “equal to”, applying counting,
grouping and place value concepts.
Solve one-and two-step problems with whole numbers using addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division.
Select and perform computational procedures to solve problems with whole
numbers.
Given a problem, describe possible methods for estimating a given measure.
Compare estimated measures to actual measures taken with appropriate
9.A.1a
9.A.1b
Science
11.A.1a
11.A.1b
12.A.1a
12.B.1b
12.C.1a
12.D.1b
13.A.1c
13.B.1c
13.B.1d
13.B.1e
Social Science
15.A.1b
15.C.1a
15.D.1a
16.B.1(W)
16.C.1a(W)
17.C.1a
measuring instruments.
Identify related two-and three-dimensional shapes including circle-sphere,
square-cube, triangle-pyramid, rectangle-rectangular prism and their basic
properties.
Draw two-dimensional shapes.
Describe an observed event.
Develop questions on scientific topics.
Identify and describe the component parts of living things.
Describe how living things depend on one another for survival.
Identify and compare sources of energy.
Identify observable forces in nature.
Explain how knowledge can be gained by careful observation.
Describe contributions men and women have made to science and
technology.
Identify and describe ways that science and technology affect people’s
everyday lives.
Demonstrate ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle materials.
Describe how wages/salaries can be earned in exchange for work.
Describe how human, natural and capital resources are used to produce
goods and services.
Demonstrate the benefits of simple voluntary exchanges.
Explain the contributions of individuals and groups who are featured in
biographies, legends, folklore, and traditions.
Identify how people and groups in the past made economic choices to
survive and improve their lives.
Identify ways people depend on and interact with the physical environment.
Number of Students Involved in Project:
Mrs. Cowley’s second grade class will participate in this year-long unit. The number of students is
presently 22.
Objectives:
Students will build key vocabulary words related to agriculture.
1. Students will learn information on corn production and corn economics.
2. Students will learn the importance of biodegradable products.
3. Students will learn and explain how pumpkins are produced.
4. Students will gain an understanding of guesses, estimated, and actual numbers through a
pumpkin seed math activity.
5. Students will discover how gravity and sunlight affect plants.
6. Students will understand the life cycle of plants.
7. Students will conduct an experiment, record data, and interpret results.
8. Students will learn the difference between exaggeration and reality.
9. Students will learn about John Chapman and his legend as “Johnny Appleseed.”
10. Students will understand apple growth.
11. Students will make and taste applesauce.
12. Students will recognize that farming involves many jobs.
13. Students will become familiar with careers related to agriculture.
14. Students will be able to identify farm machinery and explain its use on the farm.
15. Students will be able to identify safety hazards on a farm and explain how to avoid them.
16. Students will identify important dates in the history of the soybean using a timeline.
17. Students will name products that are made with soybeans.
Materials Needed:
I do not plan to ask for funding for any consumable items. I hope to collect all the consumable
items needed through funding from my district and donations from parent volunteers. I will ask for
funding only for items that can be used over multiple school years. These items are the books,
videos, puzzles, games, and CD-Roms listed in the Budget for Project section.
Overview of Activity and Project Timeline:
With my last name being “Cow”ley, each year I welcome my new students with a farmrelated unit. On the door are cows that say “We’re Moo-ving In.” Inside, ears of corn and a farmer
on a tractor declare “A Super Crop of Second Graders.” I display my present collection of farmrelated children’s literature and the students work through photocopies pages of the ABC’s of
Illinois Ag coloring book with their daily seatwork. We do an extensive study of apples, and in the
spring, we usually visit the SIU Swine, Dairy, and Equine Centers.
In the past, except for the field trip, my farm unit has been a fall project. Through this grant,
I hope to satisfy the following two goals:
1. To develop a cross-curricular, hands-on unit that meets state goals for learning in science,
math, social studies, and language arts and is based on, but certainly not limited to, the Illinois
Farm Bureau® Ag in the Classroom Ag Mags, Ag Bag lessons, and selected lessons from the
Kids, Crops, and Critters K-3.
2. To build agricultural literacy by incorporating more information about the food and fiber system
into daily lessons.
Pinckneyville is very much a farming community. However, few students understand the
connection between agriculture and everyday life. Obviously, it is not practical to travel to a farm
every time I teach a farm-related lesson. Through software, videos, hands-on lessons, guest
speakers, and non-fiction and fiction children’s literature, I hope to bring to life agricultural concepts
as they are taught.
My plan is to assign one Ag Bag topic to each month of the school year. Following is the
lesson plan and timeline I plan to follow:
September-Apples
Ag Mag #12
The Story of Johnny Appleseed by Aliki
How Do Apples Grow? by Betsy Maestro
The Apple Cake by Nienke van Hichtum
Activity-How Apples Appear (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 114-119)
Activity-Apples Keep on Growing (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 200-202)
Activity-Making applesauce
Video-Johnny Appleseed (American Tall Tales and Legends Series)
October-Pumpkins
Ag Mag #9
Pumpkin, Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington
Too Many Pumpkins by Linda White
Activity-Pumpkins with Personality (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 55-57)
Activity-Weighing Pumpkins (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp.57)
Activity-Pumpkin, Pumpkin (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 132-133)
November-Corn
Ag Mag #11
Corn Belt Harvest by Raymond Bial
Activity-Biodegradable Plastic From Corn (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 23-25)
Activity-Corn Putty (Ag Mag #11)
Activity-Corny Math Facts (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 47-51)
Activity-Corn Harvest (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 109-113)
December-Dairy
Ag Mag #14
Hooray for Dairy Farming by Bobbie Kalman
The Milk Makers by Gail Gibbons
Activity-Milk on the Move (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 64-65)
Activity-Cow-culations (Ag Mag #14)
Activity-Better Butter (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 66-70)
Video-Milk & Cookies (Teacher’s Video Company)
January-Sheep
Ag Mag #13
Hooray for Sheep Farming by Bobbie Kalman
Charlie Needs a Cloak by Tomie dePaola
Activity-Spinning in the Classroom (Ag Mag #13)
Activity-Colorful Fleeces (Ag Bag Lesson Plan)
Video-Sheep on the Farm (Video Field Trip)
February-Horses
Ag Mag #7
A Field Full of Horses by Peter Hansard
Leah’s Pony by Elizabeth Friedrich
Video-Pony Tales (Taecher’s Video Company)
Activity-Good Grub for Horses (Ag Bag Lesson Plan)
Activity-What Kind of Horse Are You? (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 42-45)
March-Farm Safety/Careers
Ag Mags #15, #19, and Ag Week Special Edition
Careers in Agriculture by Christopher Benson
Video-Kids Talk Farm Safety Stuff (Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, Dow AgroSciences)
Video-I Wanna Work With Animals (Teacher’s Video Company)
Guest Speakers in farm-related careers
Activity-Grain Drain (Ag Mag #15)
Activity-Career Bingo (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 186-190)
Activity-Hats Off to the Farmer (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 142-144)
April-Soybeans/Gardens
Ag Mag #10
Jack’s Garden by Henry Cole
Activity-Soybean Placemats A-Z (Illinois Soybean Association)
Activity-Balloon Plants (Acres of Agventures Volume 1, Issue 1, 1997)
Activity-Soil Sam (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 242-245)
Activity-Sink or Float (Illinois Farm Bureau® Ag in the Classroom 2000-2001 Calendar)
Activity-What Grows Up? What Grows Down? (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 61-63)
Activity-Soybeans-Those Amazing Little Beans (Kids, Crops, and Critters pp. 159-165)
May-Pork
Ag Mag #17
Welcome to Our Farm by National Pork Producers Association (book and video)
Life on a Pig Farm by Judy Wolfman
Activity-Pork By-Product Memory (Ag Bag Lesson Plans)
Activity-Welcome to Our Farm curriculum and activity sheets (National Pork Producers)
I hope to be able to incorporate a different agricultural topic each month of the school year. I am
presently working on my September-Apple unit with materials I already had, or obtained this past
summer at the SIU-C Summer Ag Institute. I will begin purchasing the remaining materials as soon
as funding is available.
Method of Project Evaluation:
The students will be writing in agriculture journals to record their activities and reactions to
activities. They will also be writing a “Life on the Farm” story using the Kid Pix Farm CD-Rom. I
will be using observation, discussion, and testing as my methods of evaluation. I plan to monitor
these students through thrid grade and see if ISAT scores among these students are perhaps a bit
higher as a result of completing this year-long unit.
Budget for Project:
-CD-Rom Kid Pix Farm Activity Kit
-Video (Kids Talk Farm Video)
-Video (My Family’s Farm)
-Video (Hey, That’s My Hay)
-Video (Milk & Cookies)
-Video (Pony Tales)
-Video (I Wanna Work with Farm Animals)
-Video (Farm Animals)
-Video (Johnny Appleseed)
-Farm Jumbo Puzzle
-Fun on the Farm J-I-N-G-O
-Fraction Burger (2)
-Book (The Apple Cake)
19.95
19.95
15.00
19.95
19.95
19.95
FREE
19.95
19.95
14.95
12.00
8.50 X 2
14.95
$213.55
I plan to use the remaining $36.45 to purchase soft-cover copies (if available) of the following
books. If I am not able to purchase all the books for this amount, I plan to check my local library
and the Shawnee Public Library System for the remaining titles.
-Book (How Do Apples Grow?)
-Book (Pumpkin, Pumpkin)
-Book (Too Many Pumpkins)
-Book (Corn Belt Harvest)
-Book (Hooray for Dairy Farming)
-Book (The Milk Makers)
-Book (Hooray for Sheep Farming)
-Book (Charlie Needs A Cloak)
-Book (A Field Full of Horses)
-Book (Leah’s Pony)
-Book (Careers in Agriculture)
-Book (Jack’s Garden)
-Book (Life on a Pig Farm)
TOTAL
$250
Signature of Applicant: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Signature of Building Principal: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX