Summer News from New York Agriculture in the Classroom

New York Agriculture in the Classroom | Summer 2024

New York Agriculture in the Classroom

Digging In: An Immersive Food and Farm Tour

A few seats still remain for our unique summer bus tour for NYC teachers to experience a variety of upstate farms and food businesses on a two-day tour.

Apply today to join us for farmer-led tours, interactive discussions, and hands-on activities to gain a comprehensive understanding of the journey food takes from field to table and the direct connections these farms have to NYC teachers and students.

Each participating teacher will earn a $200 grant for a project inspired by the tour experience!

Learn more and APPLY NOW to fill our last few seats of the experience.

Learn More & Apply NOW

Upcoming Events and Important Dates

JULY 31

Digging In Farm Tour for NYC Teachers

AUG 22

Agriculture Career Day @ NYS Fair

NOV 13-14

NY Agriculture Youth Leadership Conference

NOV 21-22

NY Farm to School Summit 2024

New York's Youth Agriculture Leadership Conference

Governor Hochul, in partnership with the Department of Agriculture and Markets and agriculture youth organizations, are excited to host the first Youth Agriculture Leadership Conference in Albany this November 13-14, 2024.

New York students in grades 11 and 12 will envision a future for New York's farms, natural resources, and food system that is sustainable, innovative, and equitable. The conference is seeking applications from student leaders interested in making lifelong contributions to the agrifood system as citizens, consumers, employees, entrepreneurs, or policy makers.

Affiliation with existing agriculture youth organizations is NOT required. All youth are encouraged to apply by July 15, 2024.

Explore Conference Information & Apply

View Tentative Schedule

Open Position: Agriculture Education and FFA Specialist

New York FFA is hiring for a new position who will be responsible for supporting the establishment and onboarding of sustainable new agricultural education programs and FFA chapters. The works will include a strong emphasis on support services to school administrators, teachers, and supporters in the greater NYC Metro Area and other urban centers.

The position will spend significant time providing support for state and district level programs and events including coordinating logistics (hotels, transportation, meals, etc), supporting registration and billing, and other program support as assigned.

Learn More and Apply

Position closes soon! Apply now.

NYC Metro Educator E-mail List

Sign up for the NYC Metro Educator E-mail list to learn about relevant tools, resources, events, trainings, and programs in NYC. Additionally, educators can use the e-mail list to ask questions and share how they are engaging with food and agriculture in their classroom.

Featured Lessons

Grades K-2

The Amazing Honey Bee

In this lesson, students will investigate the three types of honey bees in a colony, identify their roles, and recognize honey bees as part of a community that works together.

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Grades 6-8

GPS and GIS Technology in Agriculture

Students will explore technical careers in agriculture and learn how GPS and GIS technologies are used to improve agricultural production.

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Grades 9-12

Mastering Mindful Eating

Students will explore hunger, satiety, and mindful eating to discover how our eating habits are impacted by our awareness to physiological signals of hunger or fullness. Students will also practice mindful eating practices and explore portion sizes as they sort foods, create meals using portion-size food models, and track their food using mindful eating practices.

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Summer Book Nook

Flower Talk: How Plants Use Color to Communicate

It's true! Flowers use the colors of their flowers to communicate with animals. But why animals? Because they help plants make seeds by moving pollen from one flower to another. Learn the secrets of flower talk from a narrator with an inside scoop. Flower Talk features a cantankerous talking cactus as a narrator, revealing to readers the significance of different colors of flowers in terms of which pollinators (bees, bats, birds, etc.) different colors "talk" to.

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Grandpa Cacao: A Tale of Chocolate, From Farm to Family

As a little girl and her father bake her birthday cake together, Daddy tells the story of her Grandpa Cacao, a farmer from the Ivory Coast in West Africa. In a land where elephants roam and the air is hot and damp, Grandpa Cacao worked in his village to harvest cacao, the most important ingredient in chocolate. "Chocolate is a gift to you from Grandpa Cacao," Daddy says. "We can only enjoy chocolate treats thanks to farmers like him." Once the cake is baked, it's ready to eat, but this isn't her only birthday present. There's a special surprise waiting at the front door...

Read this Book

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