Springfield students learn about agriculture

Through a Minnesota Agriculture Education Leadership Council grant awarded to Minnesota 4-H aimed at increasing ag literacy and ag education opportunities within Minnesota, Cottonwood County 4-H was able to offer an AgEd Leaders in the Classroom program to all Springfield fourth grade students.

Students participated in a lesson that provided awareness, knowledge, and appreciation for agriculture in effort to understand where food and other everyday items come from. The lesson involved activities related to wheat. Participants learned how wheat is planted in fields and arrives in grocery stores as flour.

“AgEd Leaders in the Classroom gave me the opportunity to explore a career path that interests me,” said Aubree Paplow, a Cottonwood County 4-H AgEd Leader. “When working with the kids, it taught me patience as well as responsibility. These skills are something that I will continue to use throughout my daily life.”

The AgEd Leaders in the Classroom program is a youth teaching youth program focusing on agriculture literacy and careers by a 4-H program in local school districts and it offers experiential learning through hands-on activities, increases ag literacy, provides an opportunity to explore careers and fosters memorable experiences for the participants and youth teachers.

For more information about the Cottonwood County 4-H program, contact the Extension office at 507-831-4022 or mohrh002@umn.edu.