Ag I
“What is this Ag-Ed thing all about?”
Situation: This is one of the first lessons that is taught after handing out notebooks, rules/student info sheets, etc. This is intended to be a bare bones overview, not an all-encompassing rationale for the over all scheme of the ag program. Since this is one of the first lessons, the Interest Approach is a critical component.
Time: Prep time: 5 minutes
45-47 minutes class period
Resources: Current Ag Statistics from
Career Clusters brochure from Colorado Ag Ed
Articles of interest from the local newspapers
Instructions, Tools, Equipment and Supplies: Be sure to have the following items ready to go before class starts: Tricycle which should be left in the office, “3 circles” of the Ag Program, copies of the local ag program class offerings and possibly plans of study.
Prior to the start of class, on the left side of the board draw three empty, interconnecting circles which will eventually represent the “3 circles” of Ag Ed.
Introduction of Problem/Question: Ask the students the following question- “How many of you are sitting in this class and have no idea why you are here or what you are going to do in here?” (you usually get shaky hands raised...possibly a few outspoken students might verbally respond.) Then ask-“How many of you remember anything that you learned last year in any one of your classes?” (you may get varied responses here.) Then-“Well, this class is different. You have now entered into a program, not a class. You have the opportunity to take yourself further than you have ever gown before. The only limitation is that YOU are the one that has to do the work. But, you are also the one that gets to reap the rewards.
Interest Approach: Ask for three volunteers to come to the board willing to exhibit their art skills. When they get there, ask-“Has everyone ever seen a tricycle? When I say go, you need to draw your best tricycle in 3 minutes. What questions do you have? (wait for responses) On you marks, get set, go! (when they are well into their drawing, you need to quietly make your way into the office to get the tricycle. Watch the clock and at the end of the three minutes say STOP! Begin riding the tricycle in from the office and ask the volunteers to return to their seats. Remain on the tricycle and ask for applause to determine the winner of the artwork. Say “By applause, lets see whose artwork looks the most like a tricycle. Who likes number 1 the best, number 2, number 3. Great job everyone. It sounds to me like the winner of the great big pat on the back is… (Ride the tricycle over to them and pat them on the back) At this point, all you are probably wondering why I am riding a tricycle around like a 3 year old. Are there any guesses why? (wait for responses) What if I told you that by the end of the day today, you will be able to tell me how this tricycle is like the ag program?
Objective 1: By the end of the day today, the student will be able to complete the 3 circles of the ag program.
Objective 2: By the end of the day today, the student will have a basic understanding of the progression a student can make through the ag program.
Objective 3: By the end of the day today, the student will be able to use the “Career Clusters” brochure to begin thinking about their future in the agriculture food and fiber industry.
Solutions to Problems and Questions: Say-“So back to this tricycle. Any ideas yet how this tricycle is kike the ag program? (wait for responses) As you can see there are three interconnecting circles on the board. On a sheet of paper, in the top 1/3 of the paper below the title of this lesson, I want you to draw these same circles. Be sure that they are interconnected like the ones on the board. While you are doing that, can anyone tell me what the first thing you think of when you think of the ag program is? (write this response near one of the circles. Continue eliciting responses until there are ideas from each area of the ag program and continue writing these responses near their corresponding circles) “Are you guys seeing what each of these circles are representing? So what would be the title of this circle? Classroom/laboratory...correct. And this one would be…FFA. Great. And the last one would be…SAEP. Good job everyone. So now, do these circles resemble anything else in the room? (try to get them to say the tricycle) Correct. As you can see, if one of the wheels of the tricycle is flat, it is not only harder to ride, but also very difficult to get ahead. In the ag program, if one of these areas in lacking, it is hard to be very successful.”(from here go into a discussion of the importance of each one of the areas of the ag program)
Now, go through the ag statistics that you gathered from the FFA website and hand out the career clusters brochure. These are meant to be used for discussion only at this point and let them start the discussion and ask as many questions they would like that deal with anything ag ed related. Briefly discuss with them some of the careers available to them in the ag industry and the vaue of each and every one of them in the ag industry.
Review/summary: Get back on the tricycle and begin to ride around the classroom again. While riding ask these questions- “So how does this tricycle have anything to do with the ag ed program? (wait for responses) And why is it important that I have all three circles or tires inflated and rolling effectively? (wait for responses) How does all of this apply to you as a student in this program? Thanks for coming today and we will see you tomorrow when we will be talking about…………………….
Application FFA Activity:
Application SAE activity:
Evaluation:
Other: