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Send us any of your ideas for using the project AG resources in your classroom and we’ll send you a project AG buff! Get in touch at contact@projectagriculture.ca.

DID YOU KNOW? We send class sets of  project AG buffs to teachers who submit student projects on our SHARE webpage. Bookmark us here to plan a unit with a project-based learning approach and share your students’ learning about our food system and agriculture! There are lots of big idea connections to your curriculum!

ANNOUNCING updated elementary science resources!

Plan to include project AGRICULTURE in your planning for this school year! We’re excited to announce three new elementary project AGRICULTURE topics aligned with the new Alberta Science curriculum for grades 3 to 6 students! New topics support outcomes for the organizing ideas of Matter and Earth Systems!

food MATTERS encourages grades 3, 5 and 6 students to explore the states of matter, properties and interactions of everyday foods and drinks. Students use examples of food products produced by Alberta farms and farmers to experiment and investigate the properties of foods and drinks, consider what happens when they are heated and cooled and apply the particle model of matter to their investigations.

feeding THE earth encourages grades 3 and 4  students to explore the relationship between agriculture, the land and its resources. Students investigate how the human activity of agriculture sustains life and feeds the world and how people involved with agriculture take responsibility for the resources our food system depends on.

changing EARTH encourages grades 5 and 6 students to explore the relationship between farming and climate and assess how climate change and weather events affect, and are affected by, agriculture. Students investigate conservation agriculture practices that protect the land, use fewer resources and address climate challenges.

find an implementation approach

project AGRICULTURE is designed for project-based learning, but also provides opportunities for discrete, easily implemented one-to-two class activities that can support specific concepts and themes.

Some examples of ready-to-implement one or two class activities were posted on social media last school year. We’re sharing them here – along with some new ideas – to provide you with some starting points for using the project AGRICULTURE topics. SCROLL DOWN to find these activity ideas!

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AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON HISTORIES & IDENTITIES

Introduce students to changing identities and histories by exploring some changing roles and images of farmers, agriculture and our food system.

1. Introduce and discuss a guiding question in the agriculture HISTORIES topic: What makes ways of life, the food system, and the land sustainable?
2. Watch the Meet a Farmer video called Changing Identities included on the carousel slide.
3. Have small groups of students focus on one of the following subheadings on the carousel slide, then review and discuss the questions found with each:

• • Building diversity in the food system
  • Changing roles and images of farmers
  • Indigenous perspectives on agriculture today
  • Food sustainability, past and present

4. Download the Learning Source and the Evidence of Sustainability Build Competencies PDF handouts. Select and assign one or more of the activities in the handout. 
5. Check for more implementation ideas in the Agriculture HISTORIES Project and Activity Guide.

AN ACTIVITY THAT CELEBRATES WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE

Celebrate contributions and accomplishments of Alberta women in agriculture. Visit some different carousel slides to spark discussions, assign mini-research tasks or debate topics. Select from the following ideas to build a one-to-two class lesson around.

1. Meet Alberta women farmers in many of our videos on our Meet a Farmer webpage here.
2. Find perspectives on the changing roles of women in farming – including two videos – here. Plan a movie screening of the Picture a Farmer video about three Alberta women farmers, found on this Agriculture HISTORIES topic slide!
3. Explore a timeline of Women in Canadian History – and challenge students to research and add the accomplishments of women in agriculture.
4. Explore the Women of Impact in Canada Profile how women in Alberta or your community contribute to our food system – through farming, sustainability, food science, food services, technologies and more to create your own Women in Ag gallery.
5. Research what is involved with digital agriculture – an important aspect of the United Nations theme of “DigitALL – Innovation and technology for gender equality” for the 2024 International Day of Women.
6. Dig deeper on project AGRICULTURE in our Food Democracy and Smart Agriculture topics. 

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON FACT CHECKING

Challenge your students to fact check their knowledge and understanding of agriculture in Alberta. There are a lot of options for integrating project AGRICULTURE evidence-based and curriculum-centred activities and topics into your junior or senior high classroom!

1. Explore the role of science and tech in agriculture by starting with the Role of Science and Research Meet a Farmer video.
2. Find a ready-to-implement activity centred on the guiding question and this video in How does plant science affect crop diversity?
3. Download the Learning Source and the Exploring Plant Diversity Build Competencies PDF handouts. Select and assign one or more of the activities in the handout.
4. OR find a project-based unit that focuses on fact-checking agriculture, technologies, climate and more in the smart AGRICULTURE topic and project challenge here.
5. Expand the learning by selecting and combining activities to implement a smart AGRICULTURE project with your grade 9 and 10 Science students. Have them take a smart AGRICULTURE challenge to fact-check information about modern agriculture, farming, technologies, climate and the food system.
6. Find the smart AGRICULTURE project challenge planner with the project question How can you use evidence-based information to promote smart food systems? OR subscribe to download teaching supports for this topic found here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON CLIMATE AND CHANGING WEATHER 

Explore the impact of climate and changing weather on agriculture, farmers, farming and our food system.

1. Introduce and discuss a guiding question in the food DIVERSITY topic: How is plant diversity affected by agricultural landscapes?
2. Explore the information and images on this carousel slide and encourage students to brainstorm connections they see between our food system, agriculture, soil, climate and weather.
3. Watch the Meet a Farmer video called Weather Challenges, included on this carousel slide.
4. Assign the Learning Source and select an activity from the Finding Crop Locations Build Competencies PDF handouts.
5. Check for more implementation ideas in the food DIVERSITY Project and Activity Teaching Guide.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON SUSTAINABILITY 

Investigate examples of sustainable farming and learn how ag and the environment work hand-in-hand to produce food for your table.  

1. Start with the Meet a Farmer video called Exploring Sustainability on Alberta Farms from the sustainability MATTERS topic.
2. Expand students’ understanding of what sustainability means and involves with the information and activities for the guiding question, How can agricultural environments contribute to sustainability?
3. Download the Learning Source and the Sustainability Practices Build Competencies PDF handouts and explore these farmer’s approaches to environmental footprinting.
4. Carry on learning from the other guiding question carousel tiles in the sustainability MATTERS topic. 
5. Challenge your students to start a sustainability MATTERS project with the project question How can you support sustainable agriculture and food systems?
6. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON AG CAREERS

Challenge students to brainstorm careers connected to agriculture with any of our project AGRICULTURE topics and dig deeper into the adventure of ag!

1. Start with the Meet a Farmer video called Finding Careers to identify and brainstorm the wide range of careers connected to agriculture. Challenge students to also make connections to the subjects they are learning today!
2. Have groups of your junior or senior high students select one or more of the other Meet a Farmer videos here to dig deeper. Create a classroom or digital word board that visually shares the different jobs, careers and activities that are part of the great adventure of agriculture!
3. Brainstorm questions that students may have for farmers or ag professionals. Use the “Ask a Farmer” links on this webpage to submit them to Alberta egg, chicken, wheat or dairy farmers…or use the project AGRICULTURE topics to research questions, inquiries, curiosities and wonders that students may have.
4. Encourage students to make connections between their daily activities and the work that farmers and agriculture professionals do! It’s all part of the food system that we all depend upon!

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON PLANT AND CROP SPECIES

Challenge your students to find out what Alberta farmers grow and why it’s important to know! Use our food DIVERSITY topic to investigate the plant species that the world’s crops depend upon

1. Watch this Meet a Farmer video called Plant Diversity and the Food System video and challenge your students to identify the plants and livestock that contribute to our food system.
2. Did you know that much of the world’s food supply depends on fewer than 200 plant species? Investigate the difference between crops and plants with a self-contained Science lesson activity in the food DIVERSITY topic carousel slide focused on the guiding question, What are some of the crops that feed the world?
3. Download the Learning Source and the Finding Diversity in Crop Plants Build Competencies PDF handouts in this carousel slide and explore why plant, crop and seed diversity are essential to our food system.
4. Carry on learning from the other guiding question carousel tiles in the food DIVERSITY topic. Challenge your students to start a food DIVERSITY project by using the project planner and project question, How can crop diversity feed the world?
5. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON CONSUMERS AND URBAN COMMUNITIES

Find out how farmers are connected to consumers and urban communities and explore why it matters – including how agriculture meets past and present issues and challenges.

1. Plan a lesson focused on the connections between agriculture, population growth and urbanization with an agriculture HISTORIES topic carousel slide focused on the guiding question, What does agriculture have to do with urbanization?
2. Watch the Meet a Farmer video called Farming and Urban Communities.
3. Download the Learning Source and Farms and Cities – Cause and Effect Build Competencies PDF handouts in this carousel slide to explore prairie towns and farms, railroads and grain elevators. Challenge your students to find examples of connections between urban and rural communities.
4. Celebrate the contributions that farmers make to all Alberta communities. Share your learning with an agriculture HISTORIES project, using the project planner and project question, In what ways have changes in agriculture over time affected your food choices?
5. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON INNOVATION

Have your students explore ag innovation with our sustainable PRACTICES topic to learn how innovation uses smart farming and contributes to sustainability.

1. Build a classroom lesson around this Meet a Farmer video called Innovation, Technology and Growing Food by focusing on these big ideas and the guiding question: How do plant science technologies contribute to sustainable farming practices? Find teaching supports in this self-contained lesson.
2. Download the Learning Source and Following the Science Build Competencies PDF handouts in this carousel slide to make connections between plant science and sustainable farming practices. Challenge your students to compare ag innovation and technologies to other examples in their communities and daily lives.
3. Debate how ag innovation, technologies and farming practices make our food and food system sustainable. Share your learning with a sustainable PRACTICES project, using the project planner and project question What makes your food and the food system sustainable?
4. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON BIODIVERSITY

Make connections to the concept of biodiversity with project AGRICULTURE’S smart AGRICULTURE and food DIVERSITY topics to explore how agriculture and biodiversity go hand in hand.

1. Download the Learn and Do PDF handouts in any of these carousel slides to build awareness and understandings of biodiversity issues and their connections to climate, technologies and our food system.

How do traditional plant foods increase food diversity?

What are some of the crops that food the world?

How can biotechnologies protect biodiversity?

How do biodiversity and climate change shape smart agriculture solutions?

2. Challenge students to share their learning with an smart AGRICULTURE project, using the project planner and project question, How can you use evidence-based information to promote smart food systems? …or a food DIVERSITY project by using the project planner and project question, How can crop diversity feed the world?
3. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.

AN ACTIVITY THAT FOCUSES ON SOIL HEALTH AND SUSTAINABILITY

Build a classroom lesson around a Meet a Farmer video called Protecting the Soil video by focusing on the guiding question: What are indicators of sustainable farming?

1. Find teaching supports in this self-contained lesson.
2. Download the Learning Source and Finding Sustainable Practices Build Competencies PDF handouts in this carousel slide to explore the importance of healthy natural and agricultural ecosystems and the contributions that sustainable farming practices make to them. Challenge your students to consider how current environmental issues are affecting our food system and their own food choices.
3. Share your learning with a sustainable PRACTICES project, using the project planner and project question What makes your food and the food system sustainable?
4. Find this and other project-based learning supports here.