The governments of Canada and Manitoba are providing $84,000 for Ag in the Classroom–Manitoba (AITC-M) to develop a Manitoba Seed Kit.
“As we celebrate Farm and Food Awareness Week in Manitoba, I am pleased to support the development of this educational tool that will help increase awareness about agriculture through the Ag in the Classroom program,” said Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development Minister Ralph Eichler. “Our government’s support for this program means more and more youth will have the opportunity to understand the importance of agriculture, the diversity of crops produced, modern farming practices and the wide range of exciting career opportunities in the sector.”
The Manitoba Seed Kit will engage students in learning about the top cereal, oil, specialty and pulse crops grown in Manitoba. Each Manitoba Seed Kit will feature seed samples from 15 crops commonly grown in the province, as well as lesson plans for teachers linked to grades 3 to 6. Some of the crops included are barley, canola, sunflowers, wheat, soybeans and wild rice. In addition, the kits will include activities that expand the learning opportunities to other subjects such as math, social studies, health and science, and responds to the demand for hands-on learning resources that link students to agriculture in fun, curriculum-oriented ways.
“This is an excellent vehicle to connect students to agriculture and show how it is ingrained into their everyday lives,” said Sue Clayton, executive director of AITC-M. “We are so grateful to receive this funding to help create these kits, which will ultimately increase agriculture literacy in more than 20,000 students each year. These students are Manitoba’s future consumers, customers and decision-makers.”
The Manitoba Seed Kit will be available in English and French. It will be a foundational resource for AITC-M that will allow for other activities and learning opportunities to be added in as the program grows.
The completed kits will also include a seed-related book and will be distributed by industry volunteers in Manitoba as part of AITC-M’s annual Canadian Agriculture Literacy Month (CALM) program in March 2022.
Funding for this initiative is provided under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership.
Click here to see more...