Invite local farmers into your classroom digitally! Each season, Field to Family prepares up to 3 local farmers to connect with classrooms in our area and share information about what’s happening on the farm. Contact [email protected] to arrange a digital visit.
Browse our Farm to Classroom Resource Portal to learn more about bringing the farm to your school this season.
Summer (June-September 2021)
Farming Flowers with Over the Moon
Flowers are all around us, but what makes farmed flowers different than those you might find on the side of the road? What do flowers need to succeed?
Anna and Shae, a couple of young farmers in Coggon, are not only growing beautiful, colorful flowers on their land, but raising animals, eggs, sweet corn and more. Watch this short interview or invite Anna and Shae into your classroom to learn more about…
- What flowers need to grow
- What makes sweet corn different than “field corn”
- The value of following your dreams!
SPRING (March-June 2021)
The Chicken & the Egg with Salt Fork Farms
Eggs: a staple of breakfast and biology. Your students have almost surely enjoyed these single-celled vessels as a meal, but may not know much about the hens who lay them.
Eric Menzel, farmer at Salt Fork Farms, has been raising laying hens for over a decade and has a wealth of knowledge, stories and photos to share. Invite him into your classroom to learn more about…
- Chicken life habits and biology
- The life cycle of a chicken
- Egg anatomy
- A virtual chicken meet & greet (technology allowing)
Eric has been raising chickens since he was a Sustainable Agriculture graduate student at the University of Illinois. His farm, located in Solon, has been producing produce, eggs and poultry since 2007.
The Lifecycle of Fruit with Wilson’s Orchard
April showers bring May flowers, even on the farm! As spring turns to summer, local fruit plants and trees start to bloom in Iowa. The air fills with pollen (achoo!) so that Iowans can enjoy fresh-picked berries, apples and more in the months to come.
Kyle Tester, Wilson’s Orchard’s Farm Manager, is an expert in horticulture and fruit growing. Invite him into your classroom to learn more about…
- The life cycle of a fruit
- The role pollinators play on the farm
- How Iowans can help take care of Iowa’s pollinating insects at home.
Wilson’s is an 88 acre pick-your-own apple and small fruit farm where we focus on great fruit and family fun. With over 40 years of history, Wilson’s has expanded beyond the apples and pumpkins we’re known for to offer a variety of other crops including strawberries and sweet corn, with much more to come.
Kyle was born and raised in Iowa City, and has been farming for about eight years. He studied botany at Humboldt State University in northern California and horticulture at Iowa State University, where he graduated in 2013. Kyle got into farming and plant sciences hoping to make well-sourced local food a more accessible part of everyone’s daily lives.