Category: Classroom Spotlights
Maine Teacher Makes Fascinating Connections Between Local Ecosystems and Dairy Farming
August 15, 2024Maine Teacher Makes Fascinating Connections Between Local Ecosystems and Dairy Farming
Dairy farmers rely on a wide range of skills on a daily basis, but especially math and science. Lacey Todd, a fifth-grade science teacher at Mountain Valley Middle School in Maine, has been weaving dairy farming and agriculture into her science and ecosystems curriculum through Discover Dairy’s Adopt a Cow program. “I was at a…
Oregon School Cafeteria Adopts a Cow to Get Students Excited About Drinking Milk
What does it look like when an entire school cafeteria adopts a calf from a dairy farm? For Lynne Shore, Nutrition Services Director at Willamina School District in Oregon, she made this a reality for the 800 students (K-12) her cafeteria serves. After planning a farmer’s markets for students a year earlier, Lynn and her…
Sixth-Grade Teacher Brings Science and Social Studies to Life Through Dairy Connections
February 28, 2024Sixth-Grade Teacher Brings Science and Social Studies to Life Through Dairy Connections
For Julie Cates, a sixth-grade teacher who teaches middle school curriculum in the central valley of California, the Discover Dairy and Adopt a Cow Programs have given her a creative outlet to not only meet some of her lesson standards, but help her students connect with the community around them. Through free lessons, videos and…
Adopt a Cow Program Helps Kindergarten Teacher Show Students Dairy Farmers Are Real People
August 17, 2023Adopt a Cow Program Helps Kindergarten Teacher Show Students Dairy Farmers Are Real People
As a long-term substitute at an elementary school in Washington, Amy Vaagen was looking for a way to engage her kindergarten students and get them excited about learning. Located near the Columbia River Basin where they grow tree fruit, her students were familiar with agriculture but most had never been exposed to dairy farming in…
Indiana Music Teacher Finds Harmony Between Agriculture and Music
Agriculture and music might not seem like they go together, but Michael Klinger, a high school band and choir teacher in south central Indiana, was able to show his students the two worlds have more in common than they might think. Michael signed up his Indiana music department for Discover Dairy’s Adopt a Cow program…
First-Grade Teacher Builds Community Connections and Strong Citizens with Adopt a Cow Program
March 29, 2023First-Grade Teacher Builds Community Connections and Strong Citizens with Adopt a Cow Program
Anna Breitbach, a first-grade teacher in South Florida, is in her first year of teaching at a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) school. To bring some excitement to her classroom and help students build connections with their community, she signed up for Discover Dairy’s Adopt a Cow program after finding a video from another…
Discover Dairy Activities Help Home-School Students Build Greater Appreciation for Agriculture
January 29, 2023Discover Dairy Activities Help Home-School Students Build Greater Appreciation for Agriculture
After growing up in her 4-H program, Becky Norton – a home school teacher in suburban Georgia – was excited to find the Discover Dairy program so she could help her children develop a similar appreciation for agriculture. Discover Dairy is an interactive, cross-curricular educational series that introduces elementary and middle school students to where…
Adopt a Cow Program Helps Pre-School Students Make Early Connections to Agriculture and Environment
December 22, 2022Adopt a Cow Program Helps Pre-School Students Make Early Connections to Agriculture and Environment
In De Pere, Wisconsin, Jayne Black is showing her pre-school students how agriculture connects to so many different parts of their lives. With a personal interest in the environment and “turning schools green,” Jayne works to help her students become green leaders and find ways to make schools more sustainable. When she heard about Discover…
Second-Grade Students Enthusiastic About Adopt a Cow Program in Suburban West Virginia
November 19, 2022Second-Grade Students Enthusiastic About Adopt a Cow Program in Suburban West Virginia
As a second-grade teacher in Wheeling, West Virginia, Bennett McKinley has found a creative way to boost excitement and enthusiasm with his students: by “adopting” a cow from a working dairy farm. With more than 30,000 classrooms participating in Discover Dairy’s Adopt a Cow program this school year, the program is impacting more than one…
Elementary and Middle School Students Tour U.S. Dairy Farms Through Field Trip Grants
A total of 70 grants were awarded to classrooms who planned field trips to dairy plans.