Hit the Easy Button for Ag Education Resources

Back to school is an exciting time: New backpack, new shoes, new pencils! But back to school also brings a new chance to connect students to where their food comes from. The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture wants to be the easy button for educators and volunteers when it comes to ag education resources.

The Foundation produces standards-aligned, ready-to-use educational resources for students of all ages.

• Ag Mags – Nonfiction magazine-style readers for grades 3-5, on a variety of topics including bees, corn, soybeans, apples, sheep, careers, biotechnology, school gardens and more!
• My American Farm – Online games, activities, e-comics and videos to engage students in curriculum topics such as math, science, history and agriculture.
• Bringing Biotechnology to Life – A free downloadable project-based learning guide for grades 7-12 explores biotechnology and agriculture.
• Learn About Beef – A plethora of free lessons, activities and resources for educators interested in teaching about beef cattle.

There are even more resources featured in the Food and Ag Resource Guide. This database includes lessons that can be filtered by age and by Pillar of Ag Literacy. With only a select number of lessons per category, you don 't need to dig too deep to find something useful.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed? You don 't need to be an expert on agriculture to teach about it. A simple way to start is by reading a book with your students. We offer a searchable database of recommended accurate ag books. You can search by grade level, topic and publication type. We specifically recommend this year 's Book of the Year Award winner: "First Peas to the Table."

Back to school means new opportunities for learning, but it doesn 't need to mean new reasons to stress about finding accurate resources. At the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, we 've got you covered!

Julia Recko is assistant director for the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture.