September 2024 | Issue #156 | |
*make sure to click "View entire message" to get access to the full newsletter!* | | | |
MAITC Integrated Pest Management Program | | |
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DEADLINE EXTENDED! There are a few spots left for our classroom IPM program!
This program encourages students to explore and observe garden insects. Students use simple capture and identify devices, sketch insects in journals, and attempt to identify them using provided insect garden keys. Students discuss findings and gain an understanding of how such data can be useful for the school garden.
Register by September 10th by emailing maitc@maine.gov.
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Join us for a teacher training this fall! Earn 6 contact hours or .6 CEUs. There will be garden tours, lesson demonstrations, presentations from teachers utilizing these topics in their classrooms, and resources to take home!
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 27th. RSVP to maitc@maine.gov.
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Growing Gardeners Curriculum! | | | |
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The Greater Franklin Food Council is excited to announce the long awaited sharing of the Growing Gardeners School Garden Curriculum! This comprehensive, standards-aligned, K-8 curriculum, co-authored by four educators who have a passion for all things school gardens, will be available for purchase soon!
In the meantime, there is a preview to give interested educators an opportunity to get a sense of the breadth and depth of this resource. Included is the Table of Contents, all of the documents that make up the Preface, and one sample lesson of the twenty in total. The lesson, like all of the others, is broken into three separate sections for different developmental age groups: K-2, 3-5, and 6-8.
We hope you have an opportunity to explore this resource a bit and encourage you to reach out to Laura with questions at fcschoolgardencoach@gmail.com.
Check out the sample here.
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School Groups at the Common Ground Fair | | | |
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School groups are welcome to attend the Common Ground Fair for free on Friday, September 20th.
Check-in for school groups runs from 9am - 12pm. Tickets secure access to the Fair for the full day on Friday. All school groups are asked to enter through the School Gate which is located near the North/Rose gate.
You can learn more about this offering, and pre-register for a smooth check-in process at this link.
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Seaweed Educator Workshop!
WHEN: Friday, October 4th, 8:30am - 3pm
WHERE: Belfast, ME
The Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center is excited to announce the second Seaweed Educators' Workshop which will be held from 8:30 to 3:00 on Friday, October 4th in Belfast, Maine! At this workshop we will explore the Kelp Curriculum created by MAIC & partners, including talking about available resources, participating in hands-on activities, and learning more about seaweed from folks involved in Maine's seaweed scene. Contact hours for this event are available, and stipends will be provided to attending educators currently employed in Maine K-12 schools (including classroom teachers, ed techs, and librarians).
Registration for the workshop is now open at THIS LINK. This workshop is only open to Maine educators at this time. Please note that if you participated in the workshop in 2023, you will be put on a waitlist and priority will be given to those who have not yet had the opportunity to participate. Priority will also be given to faculty and staff currently employed in K-12 schools, although other educators may sign up to be added to the waitlist. If you are part of either of those two groups (previous attendees or educators not currently employed in a K-12 school), we will make sure to alert you as to your acceptance to the workshop by 8 am on Monday, September 16th.
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Looking for a classroom pet? How about adopting a COW?!
The Discover Dairy “Adopt a Cow” program is an exciting, year-long experience for your classroom, and totally free! Registration is open for the 2024-2025 program. You and your students will watch a calf on a New England dairy farm grow, receiving photo updates and stories about her throughout the school year.
Click here for more info & registration. Enroll by September 15th!
This year the Maine Dairy and Nutrition Council will be partnering with the University of Maine’s Witter Farm for the program!
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MEEA Mini Grants for Outdoor Learning
These grants provide funding for outdoor gear, field trips, guest speakers, building infrastructure, and much more. And educators have told us these grants remove barriers to bring outdoor learning to their students. Applications open September 16th, 2024.
Applications close on Monday, October 14th.
Email Red Fong at red@meeassociation.org with any questions. More information here.
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Bee Grants
These grant programs allow for schools and non-profit organizations to receive support for educational beehives and bee programming so students can observe bees up close and learn about the vital role these pollinators play in our food system. Application closes October 15th. More information here.
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Seed Money Challenge Grants
SeedMoney is thrilled to begin accepting applications for the 10th annual SeedMoney Challenge, a 30-day crowdgranting competition open to any public food garden project anywhere in the world. Whether you're associated with a community garden, youth garden, food bank garden or community farm, the SeedMoney Challenge can help your project raise the funds it needs to flourish. Participating projects receive 100% (i.e. 0% fees) of what they raise whether they reach their funding goal or not. On top of the funds they raise, projects compete for 432 grants ranging from $100 to $1000. The more a project raises, the larger the grant it qualifies to receive. Applications close on November 12th. More information here.
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Fall Field Trips: Find Local Farms | | | |
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Fall is quickly approaching! It is almost time for cozy sweaters, pumpkin spice candles, hot cider, and the cool crisp air. Maine summers are hard to beat, but fall may be a more popular favorite for the locals!
Some favorite fall festivities may be right in your backyard! From apple orchards, pumpkin picking, or a local corn maze. Check out the Real Maine website to learn how to connect to some of these adventures in your own community! You can search for food, farms, products, and more that are close to you!
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Maine Nutrition Council Conference | | | |
Harvest of the Month - September is Maine Tomatoes! | | | |
Teacher Resources Section | | |
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Thank You Farmers. NEW! Grades PreK-K. Students discover what farmers do and how they help their community.
A Search for the Source. Students determine that agriculture provides nearly all of the products we rely on in any given day by participating in a relay where they match an everyday item with its "source." There is an associated lesson kit available for purchase from the ag classroom store.
Grades K-2. Grades 3-5. Grades 6-8. Grades 9-12.
Farmers Market Finds. Grades 3-5. Students explore the value of farmers markets to local communities and discover the benefits of locally-grown food.
Pizza Time! Grades 3-5. Students use pizza as a basis for exploring agriculture, geography, and mathematics.
Can We Have Too Much of a Good Thing? Grades 6-8. In this lesson students will understand that plants require nutrients in the proper concentrations. Students will discover that plants can be damaged or killed by either too many or too few nutrients.
My Agricultural Connections. Grades 6-8. Explore how we are each connected to agriculture through our food, clothing, shelter, fuel, and more. Students will be introduced to agriculture and begin to recognize the depth and complexities of agricultural systems locally and globally.
Where Does it Grow? The Science of Climate and Food. Grades 9-12. Students will discover the connection between climate and our food supply as they answer the question, "Where does it grow?" They will also explore the consequences of climate change on our food supply and discover how advances in science can help farmers adapt to climate change.
Looking for more? Explore the Agricultural Literacy Curriculum Matrix HERE
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Fall Purple Plow Challenge. The newest Purple Plow Challenge, Save the Soil, is now open! With the challenge of losing over 3 billion tons of fertile topsoil each year, your student teams must design a prototype and construct a system that will reduce topsoil erosion. Entries must be submitted by December 1 and winning teams get awesome prizes.
Read ME Guides. Some of our most recent Read ME Guides are now available on our Teach ME Website. Check them out to find lessons, activities, and other resources to accompany our Read ME books!
FUNdamentals of Farming Game. Farming is a risky business. Droughts and severe storms, equipment problems and outbreaks of animal disease can all occur unexpectedly and impact a farm negatively. This printable classroom board game teaches secondary students about animal disease management. Students take roles as a farmer, accountant, purchaser, or veterinarian to manage a pig farm. They will learn and use methods to prevent disease such as vaccinations and quarantine as they buy and sell animals at the auction.
Food Group Puzzle. This activity can be a supplement to any nutrition lesson. Students will complete puzzles by matching food groups to the nutrients the food group provides and examples of foods within the food group. A digital and paper version is included.
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Funding from this plate has impacted up to 200,000 students annually with lessons, materials, volunteers and teacher training. Annually up to $60K is distributed in grants to schools, FFA, 4-H and other Non-profit programs for Ag education initiatives by the Maine Agriculture in the Classroom Council.
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Donate today to The Maine Agriculture in the Classroom Association. The nonprofit, completely volunteer, portion of MAITC. These funds are used directly to support teacher scholarships and recognition, and support volunteer participation for Ag education programs. Your donation is completely tax deductible and you can make a one-time donation or a recurring monthly donation which will support the mission, "to promote the understanding of agriculture and natural resources among students, educators, and the general public." If you have any other questions or would like to join this group please contact the chairman, Laurie Bowen. Donate Here.
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The MAITC Association is organizing a fundraiser for materials and teacher scholarships this year. Hats and T-shirts with the MAITC logo and a picture of the agriculture specialty license plate are available to order for a small donation.
For more information contact Nancy Wright at dnwright191@gmail.com
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Our Mission Statement
"To promote the understanding of agriculture and natural resources among students, educators, and the general public"
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28 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333
(207)287-5522
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