Agriculture Around The World
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* AGRICULTURE *
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* AROUND THE *
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Picture your students at a grocery store asking themselves
the following questions:
1. Is this sugar from Brazil or Louisiana, U.S.A.?
2. Are these bananas from Ecuador or Honduras?
3. Is this Australian beef or beef from the
U.S.A. state of Nebraska?
4. Is this Wisconsin, U.S.A. cheese or cheese from
New Zealand?
5. Was this rice grown in India, Japan, or Arkansas
in the U.S.A.?
Throughout the world more people live by farming than by any
other occupation, and the people of the world are dependent
on the products of farming more than on the products of any
other occupation. In spite of this dependency, most people
know very little about agriculture and how agriculture is a
vital part of their lives.
No matter where your school is located there is probably
some type of farming being done within a short radius. Many
students (and adults) are unaware of why that type of
farming is done in that locale, why certain methods are used
in that area, why specific crops are grown in certain
localities, and what factors affect a successfully grown
crop. This project is designed to create an awareness of
geographical, climatic, and cultural factors that affecxt
from where food comes and to provide students with the
opportunity to apply academic skills.
This project, designed by Mrs. Oliver's seventh grade social
studies classes at North Ridge Middle School in Danville,
Illinois, has the following objectives:
1. to create an awareness in the students of their
immediate environment
2. to help students realize how their life is connected to
the rest of the world
3. to provide data that can be manipulated
4. to use agriculture as a tool to practice geographic
skills such as map reading, longitude and latitude,
continents, country location, and landforms
5. to use agriculture to practice other curricular skills
such as reading and writing, computation, inductive
and deductive reasoning, problem solving, measuring,
graphing, and use of scientific tools
WHAT IS THE PROJECT? Read the attached file from
Mrs. Oliver's students
<dedingto@uiuced.uiuc.fred.org> ---------------- 40.07.05N, 88.14.48W
EDINGTON DONNA
K-12 Teacher at all in Danville, 118 Danville, IL
(>FrEd: 1 attached Files
(>FrEd: file.1
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We are 7th graders at North Ridge Middle School in
Danville, Illinois. We would like students around
the world to collaborate on an agricultural project.
We want to exchange information about the environment,
technology used, methods of farming used, chief
crops, etc.
Following is a questionnaire that can be answered and
forwarded to the network by those classes who
participate. Then, those classes that want to use
the information can retrieve it.
Questionnaire:
1. What is the latitude and longitude of your location?
latitude ________________ longitude _____________
2. What is the climate of your location?
Icecap Mountain Subpolar Subarctic Oceanic
Continental Wet Subtropical Wet Mediterranean
Desert Continental Dry Tropical wet and dry
Tropical Wet
3. Can you describe the weather in your location?
4. What is the average annual precipitation for your
location?
5. What landform best describes the surface of the earth
in your area?
Mountains Hills Plateaus Plains Valley
Other __________________________________
6. What is the elevation of your location?
7. What is the major kind of farming done in your area?
Grain Vegetables Livestock Fruit Flowers
Trees Other ____________________
8. What are the chief agricultural products raised?
9. Is agriculture in your area mainly subsistence or
commercial?
10. Does your country import foods?
What kinds:
11. Describe the growing season(s) in your area?
12. What is the main type of soil in your area?
13. Describe the technology used for farming in your
locale.
14. Do the farmers in your locale feel they get a fair
price for their products?
This is for the teacher to use until we (the students)
figure out where you are:
Your locale is:_________________________________
Suggestions for using the above information?
a) make a graph of various responding locales showing
precipitation, landforms, growing seasons, types of
farming, technology used, chief products, etc.
b) locate on a world map each locale that responds and
attach the FrEDMail message
c) compare landform of area to type of farming done
d) compare soil type to type of crops grown
Other activities you can do:
a) use a rain gauge to register daily precipitation;
make a graph
b) graph daily maximum/minimum/mean temperature
c) calculate growing degree days/cooling degree days
d) invite immigrants into class to discuss agriculture
in their native land and how it is related to the
culture
e) measure and graph soil temperature
f) select a country and become an expert on its geographic,
climatic, and agricultural aspects
g) exchange soil samples, seeds, leaves with another class
through the U.S. mail
h) invite an agronomist to speak about effect of land
relief, soil types, and weather on agriculture
i) compare soil textures, soil colors, soil permeability,
soil compactability
j) plan a fieldtrip to a farm
k) design a farm with various reliefs and a plan to save
the soil from erosion
l) take soil samples
m) calculate profit and loss for a fictional farm with
the help of a farmer or farm manager
We look forward to hearing from all interested participants.
And, if you have suggestions on how we can expand this
project, we would be happy to receive them.
Mrs. Mary Jean Oliver's social studies classes
North Ridge Middle School
1619 N. Jackson
Danville, IL 61832
Phone 217-431-5505
