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MAITC Teacher of the Year Program | | | |
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NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS!!
Each year at the annual meeting, MAITC recognizes an outstanding Maine elementary or secondary school teacher who uses agricultural education materials and/or activities in the classroom to teach core subjects.
The winning teacher is then required to submit—with our help—an application for a National AITC Excellence in Teaching about Agriculture Award and attends the National AITC Conference.
Applications are due in October. The application (and more info) can be found on our website.
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Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom Opportunity | | | |
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Want to take a road trip? Join Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom for a day of professional development!
Hop on the bus and visit 3 different farms. Work with farmers and fellow teachers to build engaging lessons you can use in your classroom. Open to all teachers PreK-12 grades. Round trip transportation from Acton, breakfast, and lunch included.
When: August 21st
Time: 8am-4pm
Where: Acton, MA
More details and registration here.
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National Teacher Winner Video | | |
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Apply for funding to support ideas that teach through the lens of agriculture. Submit your application to support your endeavor using agriculture as a context for learning!
More information and links to applications can be found on our website.
DEADLINES:
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Category 1 - Agricultural Awareness Grant - Up to $1,000: 4pm on August 30, 2024.
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Category 2 - Agricultural Awareness Grant - Up to $2,000: 4pm on August 30, 2024.
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Category 3 - School Garden & Greenhouse Grant - Up to $2,000: 4pm on August 30, 2024.
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Category 4 - Agriculture Leadership Grant - Up to $1,000: The revolving deadline is 4pm on: August 30, and December 13, 2024.
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Category 5 - Statewide Agriculture Education Organization Grant - Up to $2,000: The revolving deadline is 4pm on: August 30, and December 13, 2024.
For more information about our grants program, contact: maitc@maine.gov
For questions regarding the application process, contact: kelsey.maitc@gmail.com
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Save the Date! Seaweed Workshop | | | |
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Seaweed Educator Workshop!
WHEN: October 4th
WHERE: Belfast, ME
Registration info will be in our September newsletter!
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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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School Garden Caretakers Grants
The Maine School Garden Network (MSGN) is proud to continue their grant program to provide five $2000 mini grants to pay School Garden Caretakers in Maine, thanks to the generous support of the Sewall Foundation. The funds will be issued to school programs and must be used within 1 year of the award. Application Deadline – 4pm on August 30th, 2024. More info and application 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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School Grown Produce at Agricultural Fairs! | | | |
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“School Garden Grown" is an opportunity for local schools to promote awareness of their great work and show off their school garden’s bounty. MSGN encourages schools to enter their produce in agricultural fairs, and we work with volunteers and fair personnel to display stickers on their produce once exhibition hall judging takes place. Since 2016, we’ve seen nearly 1000 School Garden Grown entries across fairs in Maine! More info here. | | | |
Maine Nutrition Council Event | | | |
Harvest of the Month - August is Maine Cucumbers! | | | |
Teacher Resources Section | | |
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Machines on the Farm. NEW! Grades PreK-K. Students identify different machines used on farms and what they do.
Little Red Hen. Grades K-2. Students use the story The Little Red Hen to investigate wheat production and bread making. Students thresh their own wheat and grind it into flour to make bread.
Enjoying the Harvest. Grades 3-5. Students identify the parts of a wheat plant and wheat kernel and investigate the process of milling wheat kernels into flour.
Wheat Germ DNA. Grades 3-5. Using wheat as an example, students explore how DNA determines the genetic traits of a plant and how plant breeders change the DNA of a plant to produce desired characteristics.
Wheat: Ancient and Ageless. Grades 6-8. Students will explore the importance of wheat in the development of culture by learning about the advent of agriculture, discussing wheat cultivation in ancient Egypt, threshing a head of wheat with their hands, and making a corn dolly out of wheat stems.
The Green Revolution. Grades 9-12. Evaluate the agricultural advances of the Green Revolution, discover the contributions of Norman Borlaug, and discuss the impacts of this era from an economic, social, political, and environmental perspective.
Looking for more? Explore the Agricultural Literacy Curriculum Matrix HERE
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Bread in a Bag. This activity details the instructions for making bread in a Ziploc bag. An excellent way to demonstrate bread-making and the properties of yeast within a classroom setting.
The Outdoor Learning School and Store. The Outdoor Learning School & Store is a charitable social enterprise offering excellent outdoor learning training, tools, resources & equipment with 100% of proceeds going back to supporting outdoor learning non-profit initiatives!
Illinois AITC Awesome Agriculture Resource. Awesome Agriculture is a free, web-based, cross-curricular video and lesson series intended to help you bring science topics to life in your classroom through agriculture. There are 16 topics now available online and many more to come throughout the school year.
Wheat Bundle. Wheat is the most widely used grain across the globe. Experience threshing and grinding the wheat with your students to accompany any lesson on wheat, flour, or bread. Each wheat bundle has 35 stalks of wheat. Order this wheat bundle online from agclassroomstore.com.
Wheat Grinder. What is wheat? How is bread made? This kit comes with a bag of wheat seeds, a wheat bundle with 35 stalks of wheat, and a hand-cranked grinder that your students can turn to make flour. Order this kit online from agclassroomstore.com.
Grains Flowchart. This three-page informational sheet describes the process of how grains are grown and harvested, how they get from the farm to the store, and nutrition facts. Words and graphics are used to portray this information for barley, corn, oats, rice, rye, sorghum, and wheat. Print your own or order a set of 30" x 8" printed charts from agclassroomstore.com.
Wheat Germ DNA Necklace. Is there DNA in my food? Absolutely! Each variety of wheat has DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) that gives it certain genetic traits or characteristics. Use this kit to extract and observe strands of DNA from wheat germ. Kit includes test tubes, stir sticks, pipettes, microcentrifuge tubes, and yarn with enough supplies for a classroom of students. The Wheat Germ DNA Necklace kit complements the lesson Wheat Germ DNA. Refill kits are also available. Order this kit online from agclassroomstore.com.
The Food Timeline. Ever wonder what foods the Vikings ate when they set off to explore the new world? How Thomas Jefferson made his ice cream? What the pioneers cooked along the Oregon Trail? Who invented the potato chip...and why? Welcome to the Food Timeline! Food history presents a fascinating buffet of popular lore and contradictory facts. Some people will tell you it's impossible to express this topic in exact timeline format. They are correct. Most foods we eat are not invented; they evolve.
The Man Who Tried to Feed the World. This documentary recounts the story of the man who would not only solve India’s famine problem, but would go on to lead a “Green Revolution” of worldwide agriculture programs, saving countless lives. He was awarded the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize for his work but spent the rest of his life watching his methods and achievements come under increasing fire. This documentary provides context for discussions about the Green Revolution, plant breeding methods, accomplishments in selective breeding, conserving natural resources, responding to political pressures, protecting the environment, and providing food to a growing population. The full documentary is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime.
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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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