Over 500 Students at Whittier Elementary in downtown Kansas City experienced Missouri crops and livestock all part of an effort to teach young people where their food comes from.

“The majority of our young people are several generations removed from the farm,” says Ag Education on the Move Program Director, Luella Gregory.

“We feel it is important to bring experiences to students, so they can better understand where their food comes from and that farm families work hard to provide food and everyday products,” added Gregory.

Whittier Elementary participated in an agriculture education day, learning about corn, soybeans, wheat, beef, dairy, pork, poultry in addition to technology used on today’s farms. Students also had the opportunity to plant seeds and sample beef and dairy products. A interactive GPS unit was available for students to see the amount of technology used on today’s farms. Laura Handke, Regional Coordinator visited with Elementary students about beef, pork, poultry and dairy products. Students had the opportunity to learn about Milk’s Journey in 48 seconds (see video below), by viewing Midwest Dairy videos and exploring activity pages.

To follow-up, Whittier Elementary will be participating in an in-classroom hands-on agriculture education program this fall. Students gain an understanding of today’s agriculture and farm families, through diverse learning experiences while learning about crops, livestock, soil and water conservation, nutrition and agricultural careers. Students engage in agriculture in a fun and exciting way by planting seeds, experimenting with yeast and bread making, creating corn plastic, rock ‘n’ roll ice cream and more.