Teacher tours build connections to ag
Over 20 K-12 educators stood near the grain bins at Angela Guentzel’s family corn and soybean farm in Kasota on Tuesday morning, where they learned about the mechanics of grain marketing and storage.
The educators asked Guentzel, a member of the Minnesota Corn Growers Association Board of Directors, how she got into farming and about her role on the farm. Later, Guentzel and her brother Jon highlighted key pieces of farm equipment, including a planter, sprayer, seed treatment system, and combine.
The visit to the Guentzel family farm was part of Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom‘s first Summer Teacher Tours event of 2023. Later in the day, the educators were set to tour an agricultural equipment dealer, a farmer-owned ethanol plant, and a family-owned winery. They were also set to receive curriculum resources from Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom, a statewide organization that aims to build student awareness and understanding of modern agricultural systems.
The Summer Teacher Tours program supports that mission by providing teachers with personal connections to farmers and other agriculture professionals. Those interactions can motivate teachers to incorporate agriculture into their lessons, said Sue Knott, a Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom education specialist.
Through farmers’ investment in the Minnesota corn check-off, Minnesota Corn supports Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom as part of its mission to increase public awareness of corn and corn farming.
Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom has hosted the Summer Teacher Tours program since 2014. Knott said the program aims to reach K-12 educators who do not teach agriculture classes. She said many of these teachers are curious about agriculture and want more information before incorporating the topic into their curriculum.
To learn more about Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom, visit minnesota.agclassroom.org.
