News: Teacher stories

How does the number of corn plants per acre affect yield? How can one be sure about the validity of assessment? Thanks to last summer’s Tech in Ag workshop, Kelly Mikhail of Worthington Christian High School was able to teach her Molecular and Cellular Biology Honors students how to assess data and determine its reliability. Dr. Alex Lindsey of OSU provided 10 corn stalks from each of the experimental variable seed …

by Anthony Wayne FFA Reporter Maggie Burkett On Wednesday, October 2nd, the Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources, or AFNR, 1 and 2 classes went and collected water samples. The AW schools are lucky to have Swan Creek run through the property! The AFNR 1 and 2 students have been studying water quality in their classes and went down to Swan Creek to take water samples. They also identified other things they found in the …

Chris Klemm’s Northland High School Principles of Engineering class recently learned about fermentation and its applications to ethanol and more. The students went through the Corn fermentation in a bag lesson, part of the Energy and ethanol unit on our website. Klemm said, “My students were excited to make ethanol and did considerably better with lab safety and technique. We were not able to use glucoamylase, but amylase was available. …

Donald Matthews at Findlay High School worked with his college prep biology class, observing live cells and bacteria under a microscope and bacteria as they interact with their environment as part of the Ohio Corn & Wheat-sponsored Feed the World biotechnology lessons. Matthews said, “Many of my students were shocked at the the properties of small microorganisms. Many had questions about the power of bacteria. I explained to them that …

What kind of soil do you have? And how good is your water quality? Samantha William’s advanced biology students at Williamsburg High School used the soil slake test from Feed the World’s Soil and sustainability unit and chemical tests from the Water quality unit to test samples they brought from home. Williams said that providing their own sample increased their interest and investment in the lesson. “They were really excited …

Clermont County homeschool students from age 5 to 15 benefitted from Kristine Brookover’s participation in the summer Feed the World workshop! Brookover teaches a group class for homeschoolers at the New Richmond branch, and she shared the water quality lessons with the students. When teachers did this activity at the Feed the World Workshop she attended last summer, Brookover knew immediately this would be a great lesson to use with the homeschool …

Students at Global Impact STEM Academy observed National Ag Day on March 14 with a variety of agriculture-related lab activities. Students rotated through sessions on: Food affordability/quality Food waste Local and global markets Agriculture systems Livestock Big Data Water quality Bioeconomy/biofuels and byproducts Government policy and farming Biotechnology/food science State representative Kyle Koehler, Ohio Department of Agriculture director Dorothy Pelanda, Ohio Department of Natural Resources director Mary Mertz …

Commodity Classic is “America’s largest farmer-led, farmer-focused agricultural and educational experience”. Ohio Corn & Wheat sponsored a trip for Plymouth High School teacher Laura Ringler. Thank you, Ohio Corn & Wheat, for sponsoring my attendance at the 2019 Commodity Classic. The vendors I visited and the sessions I attended there are relevant and important to my classroom and the future of agriculture. More efficient farm machinery, data collection and management, the …