Author: info@discoverdairy.com
Build a Habitat for Your Adopted Calf
| This elementary classroom put their engineering and STEM skills (plus some creativity) to the test! Students built their own habitats for their adopted calf using Legos. Try this hands-on activity with Legos, craft supplies, blocks or any other item that your students could use to create a structure. |
Dairy-Themed Valentine’s Day Ideas to Try This Week
Valentine’s Day is only three days away! Don’t forget to join the fun and share the love for your adopted calf with our Most Kissable Calf contest. It runs until February 29. For other clever, udder-ly awesome valentines and crafts to share with your students this week, check out these resources and ideas:
- Customizable digital valentines for your adopted calf. For some added fun this month, we have digital versions of Adopt a Cow themed valentines that you can personalize with your own message. Heather shared this sweet photo with us of the valentine she customized and printed!
- Printable Valentine’s Day cards with clever dairy/cow messages. Tell your Valentine they have a spot in your heart and are udder-ly awesome with a one-of-a-kind cow Valentine’s Day card! Download these free printable valentines that feature cute cows and quirky dairy puns.
Age group? These Valentine’s Day activities are ideal for students of all ages.
Join This Virtual Farm Tour LIVE on February 14
If you’re looking for an exciting virtual farm tour this week, join Wil-Roc Farms and Farmer Cody from New York on Wednesday, February 14! This tour is being hosted and planned by American Dairy Association North East, so email Kelsey O’Shea if you have questions. The tour includes three live stops: the cow barn, calf barn, and milking parlor. Partake in check-in questions after each stop to engage students, and get free access to their additional resources including lesson plans, vocabulary sheets, and more! There are two tours broken out by grade level:
Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024, at 10 a.m. EST
Pre-K – Grade 5 | Complimentary Lesson Plans
> REGISTER HERE
Dairy Deep Dive Tour
Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024, at 11:15 a.m. Eastern
Grades 6-12 |Complimentary Lesson Plans
> REGISTER HERE
Age group? These farm tours are ideal for students of all ages (see above).
Make Connections Between Engineering and Dairy Farming During National Engineers Week Starting Feb. 18
Did you know National Engineers Week takes place from February 18-24? Engineers work with dairy farmers to help make operational improvements that are good for the cows and the environment. This is a great time to make connections to potential careers in agriculture, including jobs in the STEM field such as engineering! These resources and videos can help you make some of these introductions with your students:
- View civil engineering resources. This Civil Engineering section of the Pennsylvania Ag & Food Careers website includes a video from a civil engineer and an infographic and one-pager describing the career, responsibilities and education needed.
- Watch this video about a new dairy barn building project. Zahncroft Dairy, a dairy farm in Pennsylvania, worked with White Horse Construction to build a new barn for their cows. This type of on-farm building project includes various types of engineers. Tour the barn in this video.
Age group? These engineering resources are ideal for middle and high school students.
Dairy Fun Fact & Robotic Milking Parlor Video
Did you know there are over 35,000 robotic milking units on dairy farms across the globe? There are engineers and robotic milking technicians involved in bringing this innovative technology to life on dairy farms.
If you’re going to try some of the National Engineers Week activities we shared above, or just want to make some STEM connections with your students, share this fact with them and play this video from Takes Dairy Farm. The video showcases the robotic milking technology they have on their operation! It’s fascinating to watch how robots are involved in milking cows and how dairy farmers can use this technology to their advantage.
“Farmers Fuel the World” Lessons and Activities Available
In these free lessons, students will learn about the environmentally sustainable agriculture practices that farmers implement. They will also learn about food systems and the ways in which farmers work through these systems to deliver food from farms to schools while also caring for the environment. Specific focus will be placed on the careers available throughout food systems in the United States, including scientific, technological, and agricultural fields.
Age group? These lessons are ideal for high school students.
Homemade Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Ice Cream
With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, this homemade chocolate-covered strawberry ice cream is a sweet, creamy treat. While heart-shaped chocolates are a popular choice this time of year, homemade ice cream is a hands-on activity (plus a delicious dairy treat) you can try with your students and/or family!
Equipment
– Stand or hand mixer (for no-churn ice cream recipe)
– Ice cream maker (for churned ice cream recipe)
– Freezer safe air-tight storage container or ice cream tub
– Bowls to serve the ice cream
Ingredients
– 1 1/2 cup fresh strawberries
– 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (no-churned ice cream only)
– 2/3 cup granulated sugar
– 1/8 teaspoon salt
– 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
– 3/4 cup 2% milk (churned ice cream only)
– 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
– 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
– Festive sprinkles or topping(s) of choice
Directions (No-Churn)
1. Rinse strawberries with cool water, cut off the stems and then process them in a food processor to finely chop. For larger strawberry chunks, hand slice the strawberries, or pulse for 5 seconds in a food processor. If you want the strawberry flavor without any chucks or pieces, puree to a liquid consistency in a food processor. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the condensed milk, sugar and salt until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the heavy cream, vanilla and strawberries. Whip to a hard-peak consistency.
3. Stir in the mini chocolate chips once it reaches a hard-peak consistency.
4. Transfer the ice cream into a freezer-safe air-tight container, ice cream tub or pan. Spread to distribute the ice cream evenly in the container. 5. Freeze the ice cream for at least 2 hours before serving. For a harder consistency, allow to set overnight.
Send Thank-You Notes to Your Host Farmer
Katye and her students made these crafty thank-you notes for Farmer Andrew at Miron Farm to thank him for taking good care of Dottie, their adopted calf, this year. This is a simple, yet creative, activity you can try with your class. Consider making valentines, thank-you notes, or other artwork to mail to your host farm. Use our Contact Your Farmer tool to mail them to the farm when you’re ready!
Get Active This Winter & Take a Brain Break with “Mooga”
Designed by the Dairy Council of Florida, Mooga is cow-inspired yoga that is targeted towards teachers, students and their families. Mooga can bring mindful movements to any part of your day to help focus and energize your classroom, especially during these colder months! They have several videos you can use to guide this activity with your students this winter: Fuel Up Your Morning, Loading Your Bones with Mooga, Mooga for Balance, and Mooga for everyone. There are also posters and presentations you can download to plan a fun-filled Mooga activity session!
Age group? The Mooga activities are ideal for students of all ages.
Save the Date for Virtual Farm Tour at Zahncroft Dairy on April 9
We are excited to share that our Adopt a Cow host farm from Pennsylvania, Zahncroft Dairy, is participating in a virtual farm tour with American Dairy Association North East on Tuesday, April 9. These virtual farm tours transport you digitally to a real dairy farm with the farmer serving as your LIVE guide to answer questions. Maybe you’ll even get a glimpse of your adopted calf!
Save the date for one of two virtual farm tours happening at Zahncroft Dairy and RSVP today:
Zahncroft Dairy Virtual Farm Tour: Pre-K – Grade 5 | Click Here for Complimentary Lesson Plans
Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at 10 a.m. Eastern
Click here to RSVP.
Dairy Deep Dive Tour: Zahncroft Dairy: Grades 6-12 | Click here for Complimentary Lesson Plan
Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at 11:15 a.m. Eastern
Click here to RSVP.