Spring Ag in a Bags
Check out our featured Spring Ag in a Bag Activity kits!
And many more to explore! Click here to see them all!
Category: Ag in the Classroom
Stanko Named National Excellence in Teacher About Ag Award Winner
McLean County teacher, Amanda Stanko, has earned accolades as a 2024 National Excellence in Teacher About Agriculture Award Winner.
Stanko teachers Science, Technology, Engineering and Math at Corpus Christi Catholic School in Bloomington to more than 275 Kindergarten – 6th grade students.
She makes use of project-based lessons on a wide range of topics including plant lifecycles, soil, composting and more.
Her passion for teaching about agriculture has led her to enroll in a Master of Agricultural
Education program with the hope of establishing an FFA chapter at her school in the future.
Stanko will be recognized at the 2024 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. She was also honored as the Illinois Ag in the Classroom Teacher of the Year at the Illinois Farm Bureau Annual Meeting in December 2023.
Video from IL ATIC Teacher of the Year Announcement
For the Love for Agriculture
From Chocolate to Flowers, check out these Valentine’s Day connections to agriculture!
Chocolate:
- Chocolate History – from Florida AITC
Flowers:
- Handprint Flower
- Color Changing Carnations – Museum of Science & Industry
- Cut Flower Fact Sheet – from California AITC
- Parts of a Flower Origami or Video
- Flower Diagram & Dissection Handouts
Videos
Presidents Day: Ag in the Oval Office
President’s Day is just around the corner! Check out these books & activities for hands-on learning about these notable Presidents & their connection to agriculture:
- Farmer George Plants a Nation: Cherry Pie in a Bag activity
- Thomas Jefferson Grows A Nation: Lesson Booklet
- Lincoln Clears a Path: Lesson Booklet
- L is for Lincoln: Lincoln Patent or Lincoln Timeline activity
Winter & Holiday Lessons
The weather outside may be frightful, but these ideas for your classroom are delightful!
McLean County (IL) teachers can request ag mags and activity kits for their classroom: Click here
Online Reading Materials
Ag-tivities
- Illinois Ag in the Classroom Elf on the Shelf – 20 agriculture-themed Elf on the Shelf scenes, supply list, printable notes plus suggested activities & books.
- PreK – 2nd Grade
- 3rd – 5th Grade
- 6th – 12th Grade
Books to Read – set up a FREE account on openlibrary.org to read these online books for FREE!
- From Pine Cone to Pine Tree by Ellen Weiss
- Tell Me Tree by Gail Gibbons
- Christmas Farm by Mary Lyn Ray
- Sugar Snow by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- From Maple Trees to Maple Syrup by Kristin Thoennes Keller
Virtual Field Trip to Helmig’s Tree Farm
More Videos: