Classroom Visits
Kindergarten through eighth grade classrooms are invited to participate in grade-specific, hands-on lessons where students can learn agriculture is their source of food, clothing, and shelter. Each lesson is aligned to Nebraska State Education Content Standards for science, social studies, math, or language arts.
Join a Nebraska Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) Education Specialist for an in-person or virtual lesson to provide students an enhanced learning experience in your classroom. In an ever-changing world, AITC understands every classroom has unique needs. When signing up, please select whether you would like the lesson delivered in-person in your classroom or virtually. AITC prefers to use Zoom to connect virtually but can accommodate many other video-chat platforms!
Who can participate in a Classroom Visit?
- Public Schools
- Private Schools
- Homeschools
By participating in a Classroom Visit, students will:
- Engage in a socially distanced, hands-on activity.
- Understand that agriculture is essential to everyday life
All lessons align to Nebraska State Education Standards.
There is no cost associated with this program.
Materials are provided by Nebraska Agriculture in the Classroom.
Lessons are presented by a professional educator.
Lesson Opportunities
Apples Inside & Out!
This lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom time.
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS K.3.3.b Identify the four seasons.
Sweet, nutritious, and delicious; this lesson illustrates the life cycle and seasonal changes of an apple tree. Students will listen to a sweet story and create their own apple to attach to an apple tree poster while they use their five senses to explore apples. Students will get to sample different apple varieties in this lesson with a taste test.
Found on the Farm, In the Barn, Field, or Pasture
This lesson requests 30 minutes of classroom time.
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.K.7.2.C Use a model to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants or animals (including humans) and the places they live.
Where are plants and animals found on the farm? The barn, the field, or in the pasture! Students will explore the relationship between the needs of different plants and animals on the farm and discover where plants grow and animals live! Students will create their own mini storybook as they explore where different plants and animals live on the farm.
Milk or Meat? You Tell Me!
This lesson requests 30 minutes of classroom time.
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.K.7.2.B Construct an argument supported by evidence for how plants and animals (including humans) can change the environment to meet their needs.
Milk or meat? Beef or dairy? Learn how farmers can change the environment to meet the needs of two of Nebraska’s top livestock industries by exploring the products that each of these types of cattle provide. Students will test their newly gained knowledge with a hands-on product matching activity!
Each first-grade lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom instruction time.
Farm Animal Match
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.1.6.2.D Make observations to construct an evidence-based account that young plants and animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents.
What do chicks, calves, lambs, and piglets have in common? They are all farm animal babies! In this lesson students will make observations to discover that animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents. Students will play a card game encouraging students to match farm animals with their young while learning the terminology for males, females, and baby farm animals.
Lunch Around the World
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 1.3.4.a Identify cultural traits. For example: languages, religions, foods, music, sports, clothing
What’s for lunch in your country? Trace regional cuisines to different cultures around the world and read “How Did That Get into My Lunchbox? The Story of Food.” Students will break into groups to explore seven foods completing a food supply chain.
My Farm Web
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connections:
SS 1.2.3.a Categorize human and natural resources used to create goods and services.
Have you used agriculture today? In this lesson students will identify items they use daily and compete in a relay race to learn that all our daily necessities can be traced back to the farm! They will then create a visual farm web to connect all those products to their specific sources on the farm.
Each second-grade lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom instruction time.
A Slice of Agriculture
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 2.3.3.c Match resources to their sources. For example: food from farms, wood from trees, minerals from the ground, fish from bodies of water.
Extra cheese, please! Did you know that every ingredient on a pizza can be traced back to the farm? In this interactive lesson, students will explore how farmers and ranchers help supply the demand for our pizza ingredients by creating their very own “Slice of Agriculture” pizza!
Perfect Pollination
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.2.7.2.B Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.
What do bats, bees, and birds have in common? Pollination! Pollination is essential in the lifecycle of a plant. Students will explore pollination in Nebraska crops by developing a simple model using their own bag of Cheetos to pollinate their own flower. This lesson is sure to create a buzz in your classroom!
Farming in A Glove
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.2.7.2.A Plan and conduct an investigation to determine if plants need sunlight and water to grow. Assessment is limited to testing one variable at a time.
Have you ever wondered what makes corn grow so big and tall? In this hands-on activity, students will explore the necessary living environments for Nebraska’s crops and create their own “farm in a glove” for the classroom!
Wad-a-Watershed: Human Environment Interactions
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connections:
SS 2.3.3.d Describe how people adapt to their physical environment. For example: soil conservation, build levees, grow plants and raise animals.
Discover how water flows and how the actions of everyone – farmers, homeowners, and businesspeople can impact the water resources. Students will develop an understanding of agricultural conservation practices by creating a visual ‘water’ representation of a watershed and identify actions they can take to protect our water supply.
Each third-grade lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom instruction time.
Chicken Little to Chicken Big!
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.3.9.3.B Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms.
This egg-cellent activity allows students to identify different breeds of chickens, examine physical traits, and determine how farmers select certain breeds based on inherited traits. This lesson is accompanied by a chicken matching game to help students summarize their learning!
Pig Habitats
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.3.7.2.C Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat, some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
Like humans, pigs have four basic needs – air, water, food, and shelter. Pigs raised on farms live in environments that are designed to help farmers meet these needs. Students will explore the basic needs of pigs and find evidence that in a particular environment some pigs can survive well, some survive less, and some cannot survive at all. In groups, students will work together to make a realistic pig barn that will meet the needs of pigs.
Topsy Turvy Soybeans
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 3.3.3.a Describe how the environment influences human activities and how humans alter the environment to suit their needs. For example: climate, water cycle, soil fertility impact agricultural production, usage of land and energy – land formation impacts transportation and communication, agriculture, transportation, industry, use of natural resources, regulations/practices to protect the environment.
Did you know plants are able to sense their environment and respond accordingly? In this hands-on activity, students will explore how soybeans are grown by farmers in Nebraska, examine how the environment affects soybean growth, and learn the many uses of soybeans! Students will work in groups to plant soybeans, discovering the effects of gravity, sunlight, and water.
Each fourth-grade lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom instruction time.
Beef it Up with Technology
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 4.2.4.b Discuss how technology has affected the specialization of Nebraska’s economy and surrounding states.
Did you know more cows live in Nebraska than people? Through an interactive game of Beef Jeopardy, students will explore the history of Nebraska beef ranches, discover the specialization of farms today, identify ways farmers and ranchers utilize technology to care for their livestock, and recognize the impact beef cattle have on Nebraska’s economy.
Engineering Irrigation
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 4.3.3.d Describe how humans have adapted to Nebraska’s physical environment and use available natural resources. For example: progression of home construction materials, agriculture, irrigation, introduction of trees, soil conservation, soil, timber, surface water and ground water.
More people = more food! By the year 2050, it is expected that our world population will reach nearly 10 billion! To ensure a stable food supply for humans, farmers must continually improve farming methods. In this hands-on activity, students will explore how farmers use precision agriculture to improve the amount of food grown in even the smallest of fields! Students will work together in groups to engineer a water irrigation activity using cups, straws, and water!
Farm to Fuel
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.4.4.2.F Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and that their uses affect the environment.
Corn is an A-Maize-ing crop! Popcorn, sweet corn, and candy-corn are some tasty treats-but did you know that corn can also fuel vehicles? In this lesson students will engage in an interactive matching game to discover how corn travels from the farm to local gas stations, all while exploring the hands-on process of ethanol production by creating ‘ethanol’ in a bag. (Just the fermentation process!)
The Nebraska Adventure
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connections:
SS 4.3.1.c Determine why things are located where they are in Nebraska.
Sandhills cattle and river valley soybeans: Have you ever wondered why things grow and live where they do in Nebraska? In this hands-on lesson, students will slice up fractions of play-doh to discover the soil used around the world to produce food, then compare it to Nebraska’s land to understand the soil, weather, and landforms of each region in the state.
Each fifth-grade lesson requests 35 minutes of classroom instruction time.
Competitive Farming
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 5.2.6.a Describe how international trade promotes specialization and division of labor and increases the productivity of labor, output, and consumption.
Trade increases competition and lowers prices, but who sets those prices? Predicting the price of the futures market can be both complicated and risky. In this lesson students will learn farmers seek to earn a profit when they sell their crop, markets can influence trade relationships with other countries, and the necessity of keeping positive relationships with other countries who purchase Nebraska commodities. Students will gain an understanding of the futures market and how Nebraska soybean farmers trade and export soybeans in an interactive guessing game using critical thinking and M&Ms.
Fantasy Farming
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 5.2.6.b Explain how trade impacts relationships between countries.
How many miles does our food travel to make it to our dinner plate? In this lesson, students will explore agricultural commodities from all corners of the globe while learning how trading these products with American grown products can impact relationships and markets around the world. Students will complete a hands-on trading activity to connect Nebraska commodities to different regions in the world.
High-Tech Farming
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 5.2.4.a Describe the historical role of innovation and entrepreneurship in a market economy.
Did you know that if the world’s farmers would have continued to grow crops at 1961 productivity levels, they would need almost 2.5 billion acres of new farmland to maintain today’s food supply? That is more total land area than the entire United States! In this lesson students will discover technologies used on farms to increase efficiency and decrease environmental impacts. Students will team up to complete an interactive agricultural invention timeline.
From Sun, To Moo, To You!
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.5.8.2.A Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, and motion to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
Eating beef provides humans with many nutrients such as zinc, iron and protein. Did you know that the beef you eat was once energy from the sun? In this lesson students will learn how ruminant animals in Nebraska convert grass into nutrient-rich foods such as beef. They will identify the necessary nutrients in a ruminant animal’s diet by creating their own ration snack and explore the connection between energy that comes from the sun to grow grass and the beef products that are a result of that energy.
Each lesson requests 40 minutes of classroom instruction time.
DNA Discovery!
Subject: Science
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SC.6.9.3.B Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how environmental and genetic factors influence the growth of organisms.
SC.7.13.5.C Construct an argument supported by evidence for how increases in human population and per-capita consumption of natural resources impact Earth’s systems.
SC.8.9.4.B Gather and synthesize information about technologies that have changed the way humans influence inheritance of desired traits in organisms
Like all living things, every plant and animal used in agriculture has DNA! Signup and let’s extract DNA from strawberries! Plants can be engineered to be more nutritious, more resistant to pests, and even drought tolerant! In addition to extracting DNA, students will match crop cards to the challenges faced in growing them to potential solutions that could be reached with genetic engineering.
Humans Race for Technology! (The Green Revolution)
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 6.3.3.b Summarize how early humans utilized and adapted to their physical environment. For example: irrigation, levees, terraces, fertile soils, mechanized agriculture, changes in land use, clothing, sewage systems, scarcity of resources.
SS 7.3.3.b Research and describe how humans have utilized and adapted to their physical environment. For example: rivers, floods, precipitation, drought, use of natural resources.
SS 8.3.3.b Analyze how humans have utilized and adapted to their physical environment. For example: rivers, wetlands, forests, treeless plains, precipitation, drought.
“Food is the moral right of all who are born into this world.” A quote from Norman Borlaug, who helped lay the groundwork for agricultural technological advances that alleviated world hunger. Join us as we extract DNA from wheat and learn more about how farmers have adapted to their environments over time to help produce food for our world.
Where Does It Start: Store, Factory, Farm, or Natural Resource?
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 6.2.3.b Explain how the interaction between producers and consumers satisfied economic wants and needs.
SS 6.3.3.b Summarize how early humans utilized and adapted to their physical environment.
SS 7.3.2.b Interpret the impact of land and water features on human decisions.
SS 7.3.3.b Research and describe how humans have utilized and adapted to their physical environment.
SS 8.3.2.b Determine the impact of land and water features on human decisions.
SS 8.3.3.b Analyze how humans have utilized and adapted to their physical environment.
AFNR (Grades 6-8) Natural Resource Systems Career Pathway
NRS.01.01 Apply methods of classification to examine natural resource availability and ecosystem function in a particular region.
NRS.04.01 Demonstrate natural resource protection, maintenance, enhancement, and improvement techniques.
Everything we make and use in society can originally be found somewhere in our environment or it is produced on farms by using natural resources such as land and water. In this activity students will compete in a relay race to trace everyday items back to its original source and will then cut up fractions of play-doh to see how much soil is available to produce our most basic needs connecting it back to Nebraska’s agriculture industry and renewable and nonrenewable resources.
Linking Logistics- Food Supply Chains
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection:
SS 7.3.2.c Identify how humans construct major world regions and the impact on human societies. For example: geographic factors that influence international relationships and economic development-trade, communication, transportation, infrastructure
SS 8.3.2.c Identify and justify how humans develop major world regions and the impact on human societies. For example: geographic factors that influence international relationships and economic development-trade, communication, transportation, infrastructure
Explore the complexity of global commodity chains that link the production and consumption of agricultural products. Discover how economics, politics, infrastructure, and other conditions affect the distribution of food throughout the world.
Sugar Shakedown
Subject: Social Studies
Nebraska State Standard Connection: SS 6.3.3.b Summarize how early humans utilized and adapted to their physical environment.
The battle of the sugars can be traced back to early civilization. Humans learned to adapt to their physical environment using different plants but producing the exact same product, sugar! In the lesson students will explore sugar production in the United States and compare sugar cane and sugar beet production.
Have you participated in a Classroom Visit? Please volunteer feedback and comments about your recent participation in a Nebraska Agriculture in the Classroom Visit. All feedback is welcome and will help us to improve the program. In addition, stories are an important tool for education and fundraising efforts. Please share your story with us!
