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Farms2Schools

Farms2Schools operated from July – December 2020 and used online school incursions to provide students with an insight into how agricultural products got from the paddock to their plate.

The program introduced students to farmers and agricultural industry workers from their local area, who shared information about farming through a range of visual and practical activities.

Three Farms2Schools Officers worked with the schools and farmers to deliver the program across the Port Phillip and Western Port region.

This project was delivered by the Port Phillip & Westernport CMA in partnership with AUSVEG VIC and is supported by the Victorian Government’s Working for Victoria initiative.

Farms2Schools resources

A range of resources and links have been developed as part of the Farms2Schools program. These aim to help teachers continue their lesson around sustainable agriculture with students. Please note that some resources are for specific ages levels so please read the descriptions.

‘A Better Way To Farm’ school education kit

A Better Way To Farm: The Benefits of Integrated Pest Management is an education resource developed by the PPWCMA in partnership with PeeKdesigns as part of the Farms2Schools project.
The resource provides a series of fact and activity sheets that introduce students to the idea that we can use a variety of better, more sustainable methods to help control pests in our farms and gardens.

This resource, which is aimed at Levels 5 – 8 of the Victorian curriculum, breaks down the technical sounding topic of IPM into lessons and ideas that are manageable by students in this range. The cross-curriculum priorities
‘Learning about sustainability’ enables the resource to be used at any level.

‘A Better Way To Farm’ school education kitDownload (PDF – 7.5MB)

Comparing Apples to Earth

This simple activity illustrates how precious soil is as a natural resource, and just what little of the Earth’s surface is available for growing food for a whole world of people

Comparing Apples to Earth activity sheet (PDF – 340kb)Download

Paddock to plate

The following resources show students how farmers grow produce and the supply chains deliver it to our plate. The below videos have been developed for specific year levels (as indicated).

Foundation to Year 3 students

Year 4 to Year 12 students

This video can be used in conjunction with the below activity sheet when teaching Year 4 to Year 8.

Buying Local Produce: Broccoli Activity Sheet (PDF – 1.9MB)Download

Bees and honey

From Flower to Honey – This video is a reading of the book ‘From Flower to Honey” Robin Nelson. It features imagery from Pure Peninsula Honey and is suitable for Foundation to Year 3 students.
In this video, Mornington Peninsula based apiarists Pure Peninsula Honey tell us all about the life of bees and how honey is made. This video is suitable for Year 4 to Year 12 students.
In this video, Mornington Peninsula based apiarists Pure Peninsula Honey tell us all about the life of bees and how honey is made. This video is suitable as an extension activity to the All About Bees video.

Plant production resources

The following resources will show students how some farms propagate and look after their own seedlings to plant out as crops in their paddocks.

Videos

In this video Tom from Mossy Willow Farm talks about the plant production side of their farm and the work that is involved in growing healthy seedlings to plant in their fields.

Activities

All of the following activities relate to plant production and growing. The recommended student age for each activity is noted in brackets.

Nursery & Garden Industry Victoria also has some great curriculum-based resources for schools through their Victorian Schools Garden Program website.

Careers in agriculture

The following videos provide an insight into the career opportunities in agriculture and are a great starting point for in-class conversations around this topic.

Coming soon!

A ecosystem services activity sheet as well as a Farms2Schools virtual farm excursion are coming soon. Subscribe to the PPWCMA enews to be notified when they are available.

Other helpful resources

Below are links to other website that offer useful educational resources for students and teachers.