Farmers are Superheroes, Too!
Author
Published
12/5/2019
Target Grade Level / Age Range:
1 st grade
Time:
30 minutes
Purpose:
Students will gain a basic understanding of who farmers are and what they do while strengthening language arts skills.
Materials:
- Farmers are Superheroes Too! By Trish Hafkey (Farmers are Superheroes Too.pdf or Farmers are SUper Heros Too.pptx)
- White board and markers
- Paper
- Markers/crayons
Vocabulary:
- Duplication – an increase in numbers, making more of the same
- Flock – a group of animals such as chickens or ducks
- Greenhouse – an indoor building for growing plants
- Herd – group of animals such as cattle or sheep
- Nutrients – food within the soil for plants to grow
Background – Agricultural Connections:
Farmers are a very important part of our lives – in fact, without them, it would be much harder to live! Farmers provide us with a vast array of products, from corn to cabbage to cotton, that feed, clothe, and fuel us every day. Without a farmer, we wouldn’t have anything to eat or wear! In many ways, a farmer is like a superhero, because a farmer saves people from starving. They will use their superpowers to raise healthy animals and crops for healthy food for us!
Interest Approach or Motivator:
Ask students to name a superhero and their power, making a list on the white board.
Procedures:
- Ask students to name a superhero and their power, making a list on the white board. Ask students:
- How do these superheroes help people?
- Why are they important?
- Are they real?
- Are there real life superheroes?
- Talk with students about real life superheroes. Make a separate list on the white board.
- Some examples could include a firefighter, a teacher, a policeman, etc.
- Ask students if they think a farmer is a superhero. Why or why not? Possible answers might include:
- They are strong and can lift bales of hay or straw. They lift large feed bags, carry buckets, and fix big equipment
- They can fix things when they break and always have the right tool for the job.
- They can make one corn seed turn into 800 corn seeds.
- They have healing powers and can care for sick animals.
- They have a green thumbs and can grow a lot of different things
- Read the book
Farmers are Superheroes Too to students.
- Project the Farmers are Superheroes Book PowerPoint and read the book. A hard copy can also be printed from the PDF or Publisher files attached. If using the PDF or Publisher files, be sure to pay attention to page numbers.
- Ask students to draw a picture of a farmer superhero doing a superhero activity. Have them share their drawings and what their farmer superhero is doing with the class.
- Discuss with students:
- How are farmers different than other superheroes?
- Have farmers affected your life today? (Yes – breakfast, clothing, fuel to come to school)
- What do you use that comes from farms? (clothing, food, fuel)
- What would life be like without farmers?
Essential Files:
- Farmers are Superheroes PowerPoint, PDF, or Publisher file
Did you know? (Ag facts):
- There are approximately 86,104 farms in Iowa.
- One U.S. farm produces enough food to feed 166 people.
- Major crops that are grown in Iowa include corn and soybeans.
- Major livestock that are raised in Iowa include pigs, hens for egg laying, beef cattle, dairy cattle and turkeys.
Extension Activities:
Have farmer come in and visit with the class about what they do.
Sources/Credits:
- Book written by Trish Hafkey, Jasper County Farm Bureau OR Lesson adapted from program and book designed by Trish Hafkey, Jasper County Farm Bureau.
- American Farm Bureau Federation, Fast Facts: https://www.fb.org/newsroom/fast-facts
- 2017 Census of Agriculture Iowa State Profile, USDA NASS: https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2017/Online_Resources/County_Profiles/Iowa/cp99019.pdf
Authors:
Trish Hafkey, Jasper County Farm Bureau
Kelsey Faivre, IALF
Organization Affiliation:
Iowa Agriculture Literacy Foundation
Jasper County Farm Bureau
Agriculture Literacy Outcomes:
- Theme 3: Food, Health, and Lifestyle Outcomes, K-2
- Recognize that agriculture provides out most basic necessities: food, fiber (fabric or clothing), energy, and shelter
- Theme 5: Culture, Society, Economy and Geography Outcomes
- Discuss what a farmer does
- Identify the people and careers involved from production to consumption of agricultural products
Iowa Core Standards:
- English Language Arts:
- SL.1.2 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.
- RI.1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
- RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
- RI.1.10 With prompting and support, read informational texts appropriately complex for grade 1.
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.