The Agriculture in the Classroom events include a number of virtual tours of farms throughout Canada. (File photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Program extended to April

Agriculture in the Classroom offering farm tours

Mar 16, 2022 | 12:00 PM

CANADA-WIDE — Youth have a chance to learn more about the business of farming during Agriculture Literacy Month in March, and now also into April since the program has been extended.

As part of the experience, The Great Canadian Farm Tour is offering virtual tours of 11 different farms across the country hosted by Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) and its member organizations.

More than 7,000 students from Saskatchewan alone were registered for the virtual farm tours. In total about 30,000 students from across Canada were expected to watch the tours.

For the Saskatchewan portion, the live tours kicked off profiling a dairy farm near Regina. Later in the month, beef producer Arnold Balicki will provide a tour of his ranch near Shellbrook on March 17.

“He will talk about beef production and what happens on his farm,” Agriculture in the Classroom Saskatchewan (AITC-SK) executive director Sara Shymko told battlefordsNOW. “He will be sharing everything to do with caring for the animals, feeding them. It’s calving time out on his ranch, so if the kids are lucky maybe they will get to see a newborn calf.”

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The recorded tours will also be able to be viewed after March as well. Once students are registered they will be able to access the link for one year.

Shymko said the aim of Agriculture in the Classroom’s events is to help students see the connection between agriculture and what’s on their plate.

“For young people, children today, to get an understanding of not just where their food is grown but how it is grown and who is involved in that will ultimately result in a better appreciation for the food they are eating, which will hopefully lead to reduced food waste, and an appreciation for the farmers and the people in agriculture working hard to grow food in a sustainable manner,” Shymko said.

She added that as young people grow older they may be interested in pursuing a career in agriculture also.

Shymko noted as another component of the month’s activities across Saskatchewan, many volunteers, who are farmers or agriculture industry professionals, will be involved in providing either in-person or virtual presentations to students on a variety of topics related to agriculture.

“We really encourage them to share their personal stories about agriculture, and their experiences, and to build that connection,” she said. “We have over 100 volunteers who come from both the crop and livestock sectors of agriculture.”

About 5,000 students were expected to participate in the classroom presentation program in some format across the province.

Extended to April

Due to some COVID-19 restrictions that were in place earlier in the year, the Agriculture in the Classroom program for Literacy Month has been extended into April.

“There is still an opportunity for teachers and volunteers to get involved in the program if they would like a presentation or other [educational] resource,” Shymko said. “The virtual tours will also be available to be viewed after March. So hopefully more teachers and volunteers get involved with the program, even if they haven’t yet.”

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow