Earth Partners

Is agricultural education something that you would like to incorporate into your current curriculum through fun lessons and activities? If the answer is YES, Earth Partners is looking for you!

We are in search of Champaign County teachers willing to act as an “Ag Champion” in their school.  An “Ag Champion” will be the liaison between Earth Partners and their school, ensuring we supply the right resources and programming to meet the school’s unique needs and objectives for agriculture education.  Our goal is to build this relationship with at least one teacher in each school building in the Champaign County.

If you’re a teacher who exhibits a passion for agriculture and would be willing to be an “Ag Champion”, please call Kirk at the Champaign County Farm Bureau Foundation or email him at: kirk@ccfarmbureau.com

2016-2017 Ag Champions
Champaign Unit 4 –  Kristen Morris
Fisher Grade School – Trina Burk and Amber Sievers
Gifford Grade School – Teresa McClain and Tara Stegall
Heritage Schools – Megan Desmond, Justin Lee, Carly Shonkwiler and Deb Wascher
Mahomet-Seymour Schools – Ben Herriott, Michelle Mitchell and Adrienne Seal
Rantoul City Schools – Roberta Bennet
St. Joseph Schools – Julie Jeffers, Beverly Pridemore and Lindsey Stierwalt
Urbana Unit 116 – Rebecca Cortright, Bryan Lake and Kasey Sanders
Thomasboro Grade School – Sarah Wolken

Summer Ag Institute
Each summer, Earth Partners offers a weeklong teacher workshop designed to increase our local teacher’s knowledge of agriculture and help them incorporate agricultural education activities into existing curriculum.

This year’s Summer Ag Institute (SAI) will be held from June 13-17, 2016 at Parkland College. The course will focus on integrating the Illinois mAGic Kit, which stands for Multidisciplinary AGricultural Integrated Curriculum. The Illinois Kit is designed to bring math, science, social studies and language arts to life through agriculture! Activities and resources shared throughout the week can be integrated into current curriculum while satisfying goals of Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards through hands-on activities about agriculture and the environment.

This summer’s week long workshop will be full of fun, engaging hands-on activities that teachers can take back and do with students in Champaign County classrooms. A variety of guest speakers will be talking with participants about things like nutrient stewardship, economic impact of agricultural commodities and pollinators. Teachers will also have the opportunity to visit Allerton Park to learn about Illinois’ soil and also participate in a local foods luncheon and farm tour at Prairie Fruits Farm!

The CCFB Foundation will be waiving the registration fee for Champaign County teachers that agree to represent their school and become one of our Ag Champions.  The SAI also offers to teachers to opportunity to get course credit from Aurora University and Parkland College, as well as professional development hours.

For more information on the course or to request a registration packet, please call the Champaign County Farm Bureau Foundation Office or email Kirk Builta at, kirk@ccfarmbureau.com.

Ag Literacy Kits (Grades K-5)
Literacy kits cover a broad range of agricultural topics ranging from candy and chocolate to farm machinery. The kits contain books, videos, activities, lessons, information, and other resources relating to their topic. Topics include, but aren’t limited to: Apples, Candy & Chocolate, Corn, Cotton, Dairy, Farming, Farm Machinery, Food & Nutrition, Honeybees, Horses, Maple Syrup, Pizza, Pumpkins, Seeds & Plants, Sheep, Soil, Soybeans, Water and Wheat.

mAGic Kits (Grades 4-8)
Explore agriculture with these Multidisciplinary AGricultural Integrated Curriculum kits. Lessons in the mAGic kits are all-inclusive and are designed to bring agriculture to life in your classroom. The kits address Illinois Learning Standards in Math, Science, English Language Arts, and Social Studies. Topics include: Dairy, Illinois, Insects, Machines, Plants, Poultry and Soil.

Embryology Kits (Grades K-3)
Earth Partners provides Champaign County students the opportunity to learn more about poultry through our chick hatching program. Students explore embryology by caring for fertilized eggs during their 21-day incubation period. Teachers can request incubators, turners, brooder supplies and classroom materials at no cost.

Teachers and students (and parents) love Illinois Ag in the Classroom Ag Mags! The Ag Mags are 4-page colorful and informative agricultural magazines for kids that teach about a variety of topics. Through the use of bright colors and classroom activities utilize them to teach lessons on Careers, Horticulture, Water and many more! Ag Mags come in packs of 30 and are free. While they are generally written at a 3rd-6th grade level, teachers from kindergarten through high school find ways to adapt and use them to meet the needs and interests of their students. For a complete list of Ag Mags available online and in print, visit Illinois Ag in the Classroom or call the Champaign County Farm Bureau Foundation Office for more information.

Schedule an Earth Partners’ representative, local farmer or agribusiness leader in to talk to your classroom. Presentations are hands-on and engaging for students and educate on a variety of agricultural topics.
Call the office or email Kirk at kirk@ccfarmbureau.com to learn more about programming.