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Ag Literacy

After Internship, It’s Back to College

My name is Ava Splear and I am currently studying Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications (ALEC) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and minoring in Public Relations. I’ve held the position of the Agricultural Literacy/Communications Intern at DeKalb County Farm Bureau this summer and last summer! I’m pleased that the skills ...read more

Goodies & Grants Galore

DeKalb County Farm Bureau’s Ag Literacy program and Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom are offering valuable teaching resources for educators! Check out these upcoming opportunities to acquire books, Ag Mags and more. DeKalb County Farm Bureau New Teacher Totes Building principals or Ag Literacy Ambassadors are invited to request tote bags for new ...read more

Teacher Feature – Josh Dodge

Teaching Schools: Hiawatha Jr. & Sr. High SchoolsGrades: 7-12Subjects: AgricultureNumber of years teaching: 10Farm Bureau/Ag Literacy connection: My students help present the Ag in the Classroom lessons every year and I have served as my school’s Ag Literacy Ambassador.What is your favorite unit to teach? I love to teach plant propagation ...read more

Interacting with Insects

The 2022 Summer Agriculture Institute (SAI) theme was “Pollinators, Pests and Protein: Insects in Agriculture” and was held June 8-10 and June 13-15. This year 11 teachers participated in the Summer Agriculture Institute (From left) Dana Mallar, Southeast Elementary; Maria Campbell, Indian Creek Elementary; Kelsey Gilmore, South Prairie Elementary; Melissa Irick, ...read more

Farm Safety First

Kids learn how important safety is on the farm Farm safety is important! By educating our youth about it we can prevent accidents from occurring. If children are educated and know the appropriate safety precautions, the hope is that they can use this knowledge to prevent accidents and stay safe on ...read more

Teacher Feature – Emily Weller

Teaching Position: Elementary Instructional CoachSchools: Jefferson Elementary & Littlejohn Elementary, DeKalbGrades: K-5Subjects: AllNumber of years teaching: 16Farm Bureau/Ag Literacy connection: I previously worked with Ag in the Classroom as a classroom teacher. Currently I work closely with the Farm Bureau, DeKalb County Soil and Water Conservation, DeKalb Area Agricultural Heritage Association, ...read more

Art is Her Thing

Twenty years ago Katie Hunt won DeKalb County Farm Bureau’s design contest. Then, she was a fifth grader at Waterman Elementary. Now, she is an art teacher at DeKalb High School. In 2002, Katie Hunt won Farm Bureau’s T-Shirt Design Contest with her Ag Careers design. Katie still has her winning ...read more

Creative Minds & Cover Designs

Every picture tells a story When you ask a young person to draw a picture you readily see their creativity and originality in their artwork. So when Farm Bureau asked students to illustrate their connection to agriculture for their Cover Design Contest, you guessed it, so many remarkable drawings were received ...read more

AITC Update

COVID once again complicated—but didn’t curb—our Ag in the Classroom adventures this year. As of early April, 144 classrooms had received Ag in the Classroom lesson supply kits or hosted presentations, reaching over 3,000 students. A third grader works intently to dissect a kernel during the It’s an Earful Ag in ...read more