Essay Contest "From
the Farm to My Home"The 2007-08 Wisconsin Farm
Bureau- Ag in the Classroom's Essay Contest will help students learn how various
commodities are grown, raised or produced. They can research how the commodity
is processed and packaged, and follow transportation to the consumer. This guide
will provide additional subtopics for essays, resources for students and teachers
to explore, and activities that teachers can incorporate into lesson plans.
The
essay contest is sponsored by the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, the Wisconsin
Milk Marketing Board and Wisconsin Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grower Association. Downloadable
Resources: Contest
rules (pdf)
Student
Entry Forms (pdf)
Essay
Contest Promotion Ideas (pdf)
Promotion
Flyer (pdf) Contest
Rules: - The essay contest is open to 4th and 5th grade students.
- The
essay topic is: "From the farm to my home."
- Essays must
be handwritten in ink (manuscript or cursive) or be computer generated on one-side
of the paper only.
- The essay must be between 100 to 300 words
in length.
- Essays will be judged on content (25 points), grammar
and spelling (15 points), and neatness (10 points).
- Essays must
include: student's name, grade level, parent's name, teacher's name, school name
and address, school phone number, and county. Students who are participating as
an individual (not part of a classroom project) should inform their teachers.
- Entry deadline: Postmarked by January 15, 2008 and sent to the
county Farm Bureau or to the Wisconsin Ag in the Classroom office. PO Box 5550,
Madison WI 53705
NOTE: Teachers and parents should make copies
of the essays before sending them in. Original entries will not be returned. Contest
Prizes - Nine district winners will be chosen. District and State
Winners will be announced in March 2008.
- Each district winner
will receive a classroom presentation in the spring of 2008 for their entire class
(or homeroom).
- A state winner will be chosen and will receive
a special award.
Contest Deadline
- Essays are due to the county Farm Bureau or the Ag in the Classroom
office postmarked by January 15, 2008. PO Box 5550, Madison, WI
53705
Items to consider as students
research and write the essays: - Describe how a Wisconsin product is grown, raised or produced
on the farm.
- Follow a crop from seed to harvest.
- Follow animal agriculture and/or aquaculture from farm to plate.
- Follow locally produced food from farm to home.
- Show how food is sold through your grocery store
- Discuss the processing steps and how it is prepared for the
consumer
- Show how the product is transported, shipped and moved from
one place to another
- Statistics, economic impact, nutritional and other benefits
of the product.
Resources that would be
helpful to teachers and students: Optional Lesson Plans and
Activities 1.
Classroom lesson plans, including:
- How
did that get into my lunch
- Our
school's farmers' market
- How
do you help produce my food
- Wisconsin
food production
- Farm
to home - Steps in Production
2.
Speakers and tours: Invite speakers to discuss their role in food productions
or visit their places of operation. i.e. farmers, cheese makers, canning factory,
beekeepers, farmer's market participants, grocers, meat cutters or processors,
maple syrup producers, truck drivers, ethanol plants.
3. Have each student
identify one item from their lunch. They should research the item- How and where
does it grow? How was it processed and transported? How was it marketed to them
(i.e. store, farmer's market, school lunch)?
4. Create a school "Farmer's
Market". Each student has a stand which has a poster identifying the product
they are selling, a collage/display of how it was grown or produced, a flow chart
of the processing steps, and a marketing plan or example of how it could be marketed
or packaged.
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