High Steaks!
Welcome to High Steaks!
The High Steaks! Beef Learning Unit encourages students to creatively develop a marketing strategy for a beef centric product of their choice, while learning about the multitude of agricultural careers and skills it takes to develop and sell a product. Students also learn about the beef production industry and beef nutrition. It is funded in part by the Iowa Beef Industry Council.
Previously a statewide marketing contest, our 2024 redesign of High Steaks! is intended to better meet educator and student needs and interests. With specialized units for grades 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12, we aim to provide an opportunity for every classroom to learn more about one of Iowa's biggest industries while meeting Iowa Academic Standards. Each unit is accompanied by a pacing guide to give teachers the ultimate flexibility of implementation with activities ranging from 20-90 minutes.
Access your grades' unit below or by searching for High Steaks! in our Iowa Lesson Plans matrix.
High Steaks! Beef Learning Unit Lessons
- High Steaks! – Elementary (New lesson plan available now!)
- High Steaks! – Middle School (New lesson plan available now!)
- High Steaks! – High School (New lesson plan available now!)
Curriculum Connections:
Students who fully participate in this competition have the opportunity to learn about health literacy, nutrition, food safety, writing skills, financial literacy, careers, and many aspects of animal agriculture. The below PDF includes standards met by the High Steaks! lesson plans (linked below in the Resources section).
Curriculum Connections for High Steaks
Resources
Use these lessons and resources to help teach the marketing and beef concepts and prepare students to enter the contest.
Beef FarmChat® Series:
- Hawkeye Breeders - Explore genetics, reproduction, and seed stock for the cattle industry (best for 7-12 grade)
- Bull Breeds - Learn about the different breeds of cattle at Hawkeye Breeders (best for 3-12 grade)
- Beringer Family Farms - Explore Beringer Family Farms and learn about their cow/calf and feedlot operation.
Complementary Lesson Plans:
Science
3-5
- Beef Basics (agclassroom.org)
- Beef Science (iowaagliteracy.org)
- Build a Calf (iowaagliteracy.org)
- Roll of the Genes (agclassroom.org)
6-8
- Create Your Own Herd (iowaagliteracy.org)
- At Home on the Range (Grades 6-8) (agclassroom.org)
- The Remarkable Ruminant (agclassroom.org)
9-12
- A Tale of Two Burgers: Beef and Plant-based Protein (agclassroom.org)
- Carbon Hoofprints: Cows and Climate Change (agclassroom.org)
- Average Daily Gain (iowaagliteracy.org)
Social Studies
3-5
- From Field to Table (iowaagliteracy.org)
- At Home on the Range (Grades 3-5) (agclassroom.org)
- Where Does It Come From? (agclassroom.org)
6-8
- Entrepreneurship in Agriculture (iowaagliteracy.org)
- Source Sleuth: Investigating Credible Sources About Beef (agclassroom.org)
- The QUEST for the Whole Enchilada (agclassroom.org)
9-12
- A Tale of Two Burgers: Beef and Plant-based Protein (agclassroom.org)
- The Cattle Drive and Westward Expansion (agclassroom.org)
- Research, Debate, and Persuade: Food Issues (iowaagliteracy.org)