The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture has made available new educational materials to help teachers explain where food comes from to pre-K and first grade students. This activity provides a chance for students to write, draw or create thank you letters or cards for America’s farmers.
“Thank an American Farmer or Rancher” is a Thanksgiving-themed activity. The materials include a free lesson plan and a letter from a farmer, suggestions for books to read, class discussion ideas and more. All are available online.
“Most Americans have never been to a farm and didn’t even grow up near one, but they are ready to learn more about where their food comes from,” said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “‘Thank an American Farmer or Rancher’ is a fun classroom activity that helps young learners make the connection between farms and ranches and the food they eat.”
Thanksgiving is an easy transition to bring up food discussions in the classroom. Teachers can pull up a picture of a Thanksgiving day plate or ask students to name common foods at Thanksgiving. This provides an opportunity to discuss where each item came from, such as turkey, cranberries, green beans, potatoes and stuffing.
Teachers can also invite a farmer into their classroom to discuss their operation.
Other activities could include using the Internet to encourage students to discover where the ingredients—such as pumpkins, butter, sugar and wheat—come from.
There are also several suggestions for books to read, class discussion ideas and other resources teachers can find on the website. Letter format templates are also available for older students to practice writing an official letter.
The letters will be given to farmers and ranchers in January at AFBF’s Annual Convention.