Agricultural Education and Communication

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In order to make this a robust and comprehensive resource space, we would love to have you share some of the resources you have developed and are comfortable sharing so that other teachers may implement them in their own classrooms. If you have any resources to share, email them to Dr. Tre Easterly at tre.easterly@ufl.edu.

Agriculture Teacher Resources for Online Teaching

When schools shifted to an online method of teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication worked to provide resources for agriculture teachers who wanted support in creating variation in their online lessons. These resources are still available and can be utilized as you see fit! Please click an icon for the content area in which you are interested or scroll to the bottom of the page to view all resources available.

Agriscience Foundations

• Agricultural Commodities: This resource guides students through exploring various agricultural commodities and research on one commodity they choose.
• Anatomy of a Pig: This worksheet guides students through learning terminology and location of various parts of the pig.
• Animal Byproducts: This webquest guides students' exploration about animal byproducts, how they are developed and how they are marketed.
• Animal Science Terms Letter Writing: This assignment provides a creative way for students to apply their knowledge of animal science terms by writing a letter to their parents, persuading them to be allowed to raise a pig.
• ANR STEM Careers: This assignment encourages students to explore a career in agriculture, but can be done completely online.
• Beef Breeds: This worksheet provides an overview of the commercially important beef breeds in Florida.
• Beef Cattle Operations: This worksheet provides a quick overview of common terms used in beef production.
• Beef Retail Cuts: This worksheet guides students through a quick introduction about the retail cuts of meet.
• Beef Terminology and Anatomy: This worksheet provides a quick overview of some of the terms used in beef production including anatomy terms and bull/steer/cow/calf.
• Biosecurity Article: This is a quick assignment related to biosecurity for students.
• Careers in Agriculture: This activity guides students' online learning about different careers based in the agriculture industry.
• Cell Phone App Plant ID: Designed to engage students through inquiry-based process by investigating various smart phone apps to identify plants, the assignments reinforce plant identification skills while embedding technology concepts.
• Citizen Science: This website has several ideas to engage students in science that spans subject area during social isolation.
• Climate Science Exploration: A webquest guide for exploring climate science using various sources is provided.
• Common Florida Pests Lab: This lab asks students to find insects around thei home, guides them through insect identification and asks them to create a plan to manage any pests they find. (Delaney Harvey & Jaymes Arbuckle, FL)
• COVID-19 Supply Chain: Using recent events and newly developed Extension documents, this resource examines the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the agricultural supply chain.
• Current Events in Agriculture: This assignment provides an outline for having students find a report on an article related to current events in agriculture.
• Dairy Breeds and Anatomy: Dairy breeds and anatomy worksheet provides a quick overview of the major breeds of dairy cattle and the important parts of a dairy cow.
• Favorite Swine/Beef Breed Teaching Project: This resource allows students to choose a breed of livestock (beef or swine) and investigate the breed more in-depth.
• Florida Agricultural Commodities Map: This resource guides students through an examination of agricultural commodities in the state of Florida.
• Food Safety at Home: Food safety at home is a very serious issue and can have significant consequences. This assignment guides students to investigate their home kitchen according to CDC guidelines. This can be used for middle school students.
• For the Love of Soil: This has several soil science resources for teachers to use to educate about soil science concepts.
• Global Agriculture Impacts: Students will explore global impacts of agriculture.
• Government Agencies: Students are guided through researching government agencies related to agriculture.
• Ice Cream Lab: This resource proides the instruction for a classic agriculture lesson and has students engage in the process at home. (Maggie Reaves & Ashlynn Roach, FL)
• Importance of Agriculture: The importance of agriculture worksheet has students explore agricultural commodities in the United States using resources from American Farm Bureau.
• Insect Picture Collection: This assignment encourages students to go outside to find various insects and do some research about the insects they find.
• Integrated Pest Management: This resource is designed to engage students in creating integrated pest management plans. It contains a Powerpoint presentation and Word document activity.
• Introduction to Florida Aquaculture Commodities: This resource provides links to videos that explore various aspects of the aquaculture industry in the state of Florida.
• Jo Bo Holstein Virtual Field Trip: These documents support the virtual field trip of a dairy farm for students, complete with a question worksheet and answer key.
• Job Application Resources: Completing a job application is a critical skill for all students. These resources provide content, lesson plans, examples and assignments for having students complete a job application, complete a resume, and conduct a phone interview.
• Livestock Judging 101: This resource provides an introduction to livestock judging by having students watch practice classes and observe a few things about each class.
• Livestock Profile: Students learn about various livestock breeds/species by creating a social media post that showcases pertinent data about the animals.
• Mitosis: These assignments can be used to teach students the concepts of cell division.
• My Job Depends on Ag: This television show is focused on agriculturally-related jobs. It is set in California, but gives insight about the process of food production.
• National FFA Organization Overview: This worksheet provides a brief overview of the FFA Organization.
• Ornamental Trees and Shrubs: For this lesson students will be preparing a chart of popular ornamental trees and shrubs in their community/yard.
• Pesticide Labeling: This assignment is designed to teach students how to read and use information on pesticide labels correctly. This project can be conducted by finding information from labels around the home and documenting information gleaned from labels. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Photosynthesis: This assignment provides an overview of the photosynthesis process.
• Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration: This foldable activity allows students to create a model of a leaf to explain the photosynthesis and cellular respiration processes. (Brad Coleman, FL)
• Plan a Garden: This assignment is designed for students to plan a garden at their home.
• Plant Parts: This worksheet provides practice for students learning parts of plants and how they work together. It could be used in a foundations or plant science course.
• Poultry Industry Webquest: This assignment provides an overview of the poultry industry.
• Precision Agriculture Lab: Students will look at how precision agriculture works in the United States.
• SAE Foundation: The foundations SAE project assignment gives agricultural education students a guide to beginning their foundational SAE with products they can find around their home.
• Scientific Method: Worksheets are provided to help students better understand the basics of the scientific method.
• Slope Estimation: This resource engages students in measuring various slopes around their home. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Soil Introduction and Lab: This worksheet provides an introduction to soil. It is designed to get students' hands dirty with the soil they have around their home.
• Soil Observation Lab: This self-guided lab has students collecting soil from areas around their home and conducting observations of the soil properties. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Soils Ribbon Test: This worksheet guides students through using a ribbon test to determine soil texture. This could used to have students find soil to conduct their own ribbon test on soils they find around their home.
• Stewards of the Land: This assignment provides an overview of terminology common to natural resources and environmental sciences. (Johanna Davis, FL)
• Swine Breed Sorting: This self-directed activity allows students to explore swine breeds on their own.
• Swine Science Assessment: A quick swine science assessment is provided to test students' knowledge.
• Texture Triangle Worksheet: This resource provides practice problems for students related to the soil texture triangle. (Brad Coleman, FL)
• USA Farm Resource Scavenger Hunt: This assignment guides students through a scavenger hunt to explore how agricultural products they have around their home have been grown, produced, and distributed in the United States.
• USDA Agency Research: This assignment asks student to create a pamphlet for a branch of the USDA.
• USDA Farm Resource Regions: This worksheet uses USDA data to have students examine farm resources in the United States.
• Value Chain of AFNR: The value chain of agriculture, food and natural resources is an important concept for all students in agricultural education to understand. The National FFA Organization created teacher resources that explore the value chain of the AFNR industry.
• Weed Collection: This assignment guides students through collecting and identifying species of weeds around their homes.

Agriscience Foundations Unpacked:

• Agriscience Standards Unpacked
• Agriscience and Science Integration Unpacked
• Animal Systems Unpacked
• Food Science Unpacked
• Plant Standards Unpacked
• Power, Structural, and Technology Unpacked
• Science Standards Unpacked
• History of AFNR Unpacked
• Natural Resources Unpacked
• FFA Unpacked

Animal Science

• Agriculture Promotional Poster: Creating a promotional poster can combine aspects of content related to agriculture courses and design principles. This assignment was created for an animal science course but could be modified for any discipline.
• Anatomy of a Pig: This worksheet guides students through learning terminology and location of various parts of the pig.
• Animal Accidents: This assignment is designed to have students examine various risk factors related to working with animals in a veterinary setting.
• Animal Byproducts: This webquest guides students' exploration about animal byproducts, how they are developed and how they are marketed.
• Animal ID Practices: Worksheets included guide students through practice for ear notching pigs and other animal ID practices.
• Animal Science Distance Learning Grid: This learning grid provides multiple choices for assignments related to animal science. Learning grids can be used to give students options for their learning or assigned as individual assignments to engage students over multiple weeks. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Animal Science Terms Letter Writing: This assignment provides a creative way for students to apply their knowledge of animal science terms by writing a letter to their parents, persuading them to be allowed to raise a pig.
• Artificial Insemination: This resource provides a link to an EDIS publication related to artificial insemination and provides some questions for the worksheet.
• Canine and Feline Handling: Safely handle and restrain dogs, cats, and other animals for exams, procedures, and treatment to prevent undue stress or harm to either animals or humans. This assignment provides an overview on how to handle animals safely.
• Careers in Animal Science: This worksheet guides students through the agriculture career explorer website to examine various animal science careers.
• Economically Important Livestock Breeds Chart: This worksheet is focused on livestock breed identification. (Johanna Davis, FL)
• Equine Management Safety Video: Students will create a safety video related to equine management.
• Equine Safety and Behavior: This worksheet provides a quick overview and questions about safety related to working with horses.
• Favorite Swine/Beef Breed Teaching Project: This resource allows students to choose a breed of livestock (beef or swine) and investigate the breed more in-depth.
• Feed Label Activity: The feed label assignment guides students through breaking down information on feed labels for animal science courses.
• Horse Colors and Descriptions: This assignment is designed to teach students the physical description and colors of horses.
• Jo Bo Holstein Virtual Field Trip: These documents support the virtual field trip of a dairy farm for students, complete with a question worksheet and answer key.
• Livestock Choice Board: This resource gives students several options to complete an assignment related to animal science. They can be used as multiple assignments or by allowing students to select assignments from the given choices.
• Male Animal Reproductive Systems: This worksheet tests students knowledge of the major terms associated with the anatomy of male reproductive systems.
• Master's of Beef Advocacy: Self-guided lessons for a certificate in beef advocacy.
• Muscular and Skeletal Systems: This resource guides students on instruction related to the muscular and skeleton system of animals.
• Monogastric Digestion System: This worksheet provides an overview of the digestive system of swine.
• Nervous System: Understanding the structures of the nervous system is important when trying to understand how an animal acts and behaves. This worksheet teaches students about how the nervous system works in animals.
• Reproduction Quiz: This resource provides a quiz used to test students' knowledge of reproductive physiology and the hormones involved in the reproductive system.
• Review Games for Animal Science: The included items are review games for animal science content.
• Ruminant Digestive System: This assignment is meant to give students a hands-on approach to learning about and understanding the digestive system of agricultural livestock. Students will be able to think rationally and creatively to compare the digestive system with every day products using critical thinking processes. (Kamryn Davis, Brent Helms & Karlibeth Leitheiser, FL)
• SAEs in Animal Systems: Time at home can be a good time to explore new ways to engage in SAEs. This assignment asks students to think about SAE ideas in animal sciences and create idea cards. This assignment can be modified for any content area.
• Sheep Production Facility: This assignment guides students to design a facility for sheep production but could be modified for any species.
• Sheep Shearing: Videos and questions which are designed to provide an introduction to a sheep production unit.
• Swine Breed Sorting: This self-directed activity allows students to explore swine breeds on their own.
• Swine Breeding: This worksheet guides students through breeding decisions for a swine production operation at a school. It examines gestation length and breeding decisions related to animal science concepts. (Colby Fleet, FL)
• Vaccinations: Pets in need of routine vaccinations are some of the most frequent visitors of veterinary clinics. Understanding the purpose and principles of vaccines, as well as common vaccines used will help boost your knowledge of animal health. This worksheet teaches students about the importance of vaccines for pets.
• Vet Assisting - Dog: This resource guides students' exploration and research of dog breeds.
• Vet Assisting - Sheep: This resource guides students' exploration of sheep breeds through online resources.
• Veterinary Science Distance Learning Grid: This learning grid provides multiple choices for assignments related to veterinary science. Learning grids can be used to give students options for their learning or assigned as individual assignments to engage students over multiple weeks. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Virtual Horse Farm Tour: The horse farm virtual tour assignment gives students an inside look at a working horse farm. The worksheet that accompanies the assignment will hold students accountable for watching the tour.
• Zoonotic Diseases Activity: This poster activity has students create a wanted poster for various zoonotic diseases related to animal science.

Biotechnology

• Biotechnology Webquest: This resource is designed for students to explore biotechnology terminology. (Johanna Davis, FL)

Food Science

• Food Safety at Home: Food safety at home is a very serious issue and can have significant consequences. This assignment guides students to investigate their home kitchen according to CDC guidelines. This can be used for middle school students.

Middle School

• Breeds 101: This assignment provides an overview of what a breed is and guides students to conduct research on breeds they choose.
• How to Care for an Animal: This assignment provides an outline for an assignment to learn about providing basic animal care.
• How to Read a Food Label: This assignment provides an overview and practice on how to read a food label.
• Plant Structures Scavenger Hunt: The plant structure scavenger hunt activity gives students an overview of basic plant parts by having them explore resources on the internet.

Plant Science

• Career Exploration in Horticulture: This assignment guides students through career exploration in horticulture.
• Cell Phone App Plant ID: Designed to engage students through inquiry-based process by investigating various smart phone apps to identify plants, the assignments reinforce plant identification skills while embedding technology concepts.
• Flower Dissection Lab Guide: Students can adapt this traditionally-classroom lab by finding examples of flowers in their landscape or from flowering weeds. Details of the lab to be conducted at home are described in the worksheet. (Brad Coleman, FL)
• FNGLA Irrigation Guided Notes: This resource provides guided questions from the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association manual commonly used in horticulture/plant science courses.
• For the Love of Soil: This website has several soil science resources for teachers to use to educate about soil science concepts.
• Horticulture Choice Board: This resource gives students several options to complete an assignment related to horticulture. They can be used as multiple assignments or by allowing students to select assignments from the given choices.
• "In the Garden with Bryce Lane": This video, created by North Carolina State University's Dr. Lane, explains various concepts related to horticulture and landscape design for the home garden. Students can apply video concepts and document the application through video, picture, written reports, or other methods.
• Landscape Design: Students working from home can use time to design a plan for the landscape around their house or apartment. This assignment was designed for middle school but can be adapted for plant science or landscape design.
• Ornamental Trees and Shrubs: For this lesson students will be preparing a chart of popular ornamental trees and shrubs in their community/yard.
• Pesticide Labeling: This assignment is designed to teach students how to read and use information on pesticide labels correctly. This project can be conducted by finding information from labels around the home and documenting information gleaned from labels. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration: This foldable activity allows students to create a model of a leaf to explain the photosynthesis and cellular respiration processes. (Brad Coleman, FL)
• Plan a Garden: This assignment is designed for students to plan a garden at their home.
• Plant Identification: This worksheet provides an introduction to plant identification for the plants students have around their home.
• Plant Parts: This worksheet provides practice for students learning parts of plants and how they work together. It could be used in a foundations or plant science course.
• Plant Selection: This resource uses real pictures of various plant issues to have students make decisions about which plants to purchase to install in a landscape.
• Plant Taxonomy: This worksheet guides students through the basics of plant taxonomy and binomial nomenclature.
• Pruning Cuts: This provides a brief overview of common pruning cuttings used in landscaping. (Colby Fleet, FL)
• Recycled Paper Seed Bomb Lab: Students will plant seeds in their home without the use of potting soil or other supplies in this lab. (Natalie Ferand, FL)
• Weed Collection: This assignment guides students through collecting and identifying species of weeds around their homes.

SAE For All Toolbox

This toolbox is comprised of resources that were developed by agricultural educators. Some may be similar in format to each other. Feel free to peruse and select the ones that are more pertinent for your program.

• SAE for All: Having students work from home is a great time for them to work on their foundational SAEs. Several modules students can complete on their own are on the SAE for All website.

• Career Exploration and Planning (Davis): This activity begins the SAE for All Foundational project at the awareness level, using the Council's resources as well as others while they explore their interests, abilities and career possibilities.
• Employability Skills (Davis): Students complete a self evaluation of skills and abilities, reflect on how others evaluate them and determine skills necessary for their top career interests from Activity 1: Career Exploration.
• Personal Financial Management (Davis): Students explore the whats, whys and hows of developing a budget, create a personal budget and evaluate whether their career choice will meet their future goals financially. They will then track their own income and expenses over time.
• Workplace Safety (Davis): Students explore the United States Department of Labor Fact sheet as it relates to student employment in agriculture and then identify specific safety precautions for their career interests.
• Agricultural Literacy (Davis): Students explore trends related to employment and salaries for their career interest. (optional brochure assignment on Council web site)
• Final Project (Davis): Brings Activities 1-5 together for a final product.

• Career Exploration and Planning (VanHeusen): This activity looks at the skills required for each job they were given in A1 on the online course. It also relates it to FFA Career Development Events and opportunities.
• Employability Skills (VanHeusen): Using their previously selected careers, this activity guides students to look at the forecasted openings in the field in the next few years. Students will select one for a final hands-on activity.
• Personal Financial Management (VanHeusen): This activity guides students through the basics of finances following the SAE for All online course. The course is broken down into step by step pieces.

Miscellaneous Resources

• Additional Resources: A document of links and additional resources for the use in agricultural education. (Cynthia Gallegher, NY)
• Additional Resources by Minnesota Team Ag Ed: Along with teachers across Minnesota and the country, resources have been compiled and organized by AFNR career pathway.
• Ag Mechanics Games: This document provides several links to agricultural mechanics simulations and games students can do from home to simulate welding.
• Ag Mechanics Safety: Students will use a picture of a laboratory and use different symbols to identify potential safety hazards. Students will provide an explanation of how that area can be a potential safety hazard and how the hazard can be avoided. (Katie Ray & Kaleigh Gonzales, FL)
• Agribusiness Marketing: Iowa PBS has an agribusiness marketing program with resources developed for agriculture teachers.
• Agricultural Mechanics Resources: CTE Coalition has opened their access for free for the next 30 days, and they have many resources specific to agricultural mechanics.
• Agriscience Fair Projects: This website has a resource that could help prepare students to create agriscience fair projects. (Krista Williamson, MN)
• Developing Welding Technique: This worksheet provides an great overview of basic welding positions and other foundational parts of welding.
• Ear Notching Lab: Ear notching lab for students in an agritechnology course. (Katy Locke, Amy Kunzinger & Sierra Haight, FL)
• EDIS: This every day information source is a comprehensive, single-source repository of all current UF/IFAS numbered peer-reviewed publications. UF/IFAS academic departments develop and maintain a collection of publications available for universal free distribution on the web.
• Extension Online Courses: UF/IFAS Extension has several online learning courses available. Some require a fee, while others are free. A few topics available for free include citrus greening, exotic pests of ornamental plants, or plant biosecurity.
• Farm Tour: This resource provides another farm tour students can do from their home.
• Full Online Lessons: Multiple online lessons spanning across different subject areas developed by One Less Thing: Ag teaching made easy.
• Georgia FFA Distance Learning Resources: This webpage houses a section specific to distance learning and online learning resources for agriculture teachers.
• Insect Scavenger Hunt: A scavenger hunt activity to find types of insects for middle schoolers. (Antanese Griffith & Theorie Minarchik, FL)
• Marketing Plan for Agriculture Programs: This resource provides an outline for developing a plan to market an agriculture program.
• Milestones and Innovations: Students will explore some of the major innovations related to agriculture by writing a press release for the innovation. The assignment explores important agricultural innovations and embeds English/Language Arts standards.
• Streaming Science: Developed by AEC assistant professor Dr. Jamie Loizzo, this resource is designed to connect students with real-world scientists and STEM concepts. The resources include photo essays, podcasts, videos, and archived virtual field trips.
• Washington FFA Owl's Nest: The state of Washington has created an agriculture teacher shared resource page.