Students of the First Baptist Christian School in Apalachicola, FL attended the 4-H Ag Adventures Day on Tuesday September 23, 2014 at the North Florida Research and Education Center in Quincy. This annual event involves many hands-on learning activities to educate students in third through sixth grade about agriculture in Northwest Florida. The day started with an exciting ride on a tractor-pulled wagon to their designated field trip area in the midst of the farm fields.

Extension agents, researchers, and volunteers had a variety of booths set up to demonstrate different aspects of Florida’s agriculture ranging from pumpkins, peanuts, and pollination, to cotton, corn, and soil types. The students were able to touch, smell and even taste some of the products. Activities for the students included walking through a pumpkin field, digging up peanuts, picking cotton, walking down into a soil pit, and finding their way through the corn maze.

Learning about this side of the agricultural world gives these students a connection to the food they eat and see in the grocery store and where it all comes from. “This is a great hands-on learning experience for these kids. Seeing their faces light up with excitement is a reward in itself.” says Jamie Johnson, UF/IFAS Franklin County Extension Program Assistant/Office Manager, who also attended the field trip with the Franklin County 3rd and 4th graders.

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