Preparing for the feast

I don't know about you, but my kids are ready for Thanksgiving. Whether it's the turkey, the pumpkin pie, the days off school or the "official" start of the Christmas season, they are ready. So while their minds are on the upcoming feast anyway, it's a perfect time to practice reading charts, interpreting data and learning about how important agriculture and food production are to state's economies. Here in Ohio, agriculture is the largest industry in the state. That makes it pretty important!

Let's start by taking a moment to look at just a few of the "staples" of a traditional Thanksgiving feast:

Turkeys
The United States is the world's largest producer of turkeys. So where are these birds raised? Here are the top 10 turkey producing states in the country with the number of birds raised in each

1. Minnesota: 48 million
2. North Carolina: 40 million
3. Arkansas: 31 million
4. Missouri: 21 million
5. Virginia: 18 million
6. California: 16 million
7. Indiana: 14.5 million
8. South Carolina: 12.5 million
9. Pennsylvania: 11.5 million
10. Iowa: 9 million

Source: United States Department of Agriculture 2008 numbers. Print off the chart from the USDA, page 7, and ask students to rank the top 5 or top 10 turkey producing states either by total dollar value, number of turkeys, or even the average price per pound in each state. 

Follow up by asking age-appropriate questions, like how many turkeys are raised on farms in Indiana? Which state produces more turkeys, Arkansas or Virginia?  Which state produces the most turkeys? Which state produces fewer turkeys, Missouri or California? How many more turkeys are produced in Indiana than South Carolina? How many turkeys are produced in the three top turkey-producing states?

Even more fun? Take a look at the blog On the Banks of Squaw Creek to hear the tales of our teacher and blogger friend Katie,  who lives on one of those turkey farms responsible for making Iowa a top-ten turkey-producing state. She tells lots of turkey tales and has cool pictures of what modern turkey production looks like.

Education World has a worksheet available for download on sweet potato and cranberry production that explores similar questions, too.

Another great tool to look at is the American Farm Bureau's annual Thanksgiving basket survey. Each year they shop for the same list of Thanksgiving feast staples to estimate the cost of preparing a Thanksgiving dinner. The list remains the same from year to year, so students can look at the relative costs over time and chart those as well. They can also track inflation over time and compare those results as well.

Back to School: Lessons in Economics

So we told you last week that we were going to spend August sharing some great resources with you for bringing agriculture into your classrooms. I mean, after all, shouldn't everyone know where there food comes from and how it got from the farm gate to their plate? But if you thought we were only going to share science lessons with you, think again!

Everyone is talking about the economy these days. In fact, it seems that about all adults have talked about for the last two years. But kids need to learn about economics, too...about supply and demand and the industries that keep our state and our country running. And folks, some of those key industries are agriculture.

Yep, you heard me right. While farmers account for less than 2 percent of our country's population, agriculture is the largest industry in Ohio today. And it's not "just farming." It's biotechnology and research. It's green energy. It's food processing and animal care. It's an industry that touches your life each and every day in more ways that you can count. I promise.

So it only makes sense to talk about agriculture when you're teaching students about economics. But how do you merge the two? Easy! Producing Ohio: Creating our Economy has everything you need to teach 5th - 8th graders about economics. It's an interactive, multimedia economics curriculum with dynamic and entertaining cross-curricular lessons designed to give students the knowledge and tools they need to succeed in the classroom and in life.

The curriculum includes real-life applications representing a range of industries and enterprises as it explores key economic principles from the inside out. Students go to the farm, get on the production line with manufacturing, and visit the education and service sectors. As they make their way through 11 lesson and five segmented video, students will meet 16 essential economic standards recommended by the National Council on Economic Education. Each unit includes structured lesson plans, black line masters, Web-based activities and opportunities to integrate economics across the curriculum:

• In Factors of Production students look at a rural school district to determine the factors involved with delivering a service: education.
• Markets and Prices takes students to a farm in America's Corn Belt to study the supply & demand chain, and students explore how a consumer purchasing corn flakes is linked to the cereal producer, grain buyer and ultimately the farmer.
• The telecommunications industry is a perfect example for students to learn about Monopoly & Competitive Markets.
• Markets & Competition  are driven by targeted market research, trends, product innovation and advertising in this example featuring a popular drink targeted to tweens.
• The gloabl market takes center stage as students explore International Trade through design, manufacturing and comparing the competitive advantage U.S. suppliers of specialized machinery enjoy & the various advantages that support imported materials and products from Brazil.

Producing Ohio kits are available for online ordering ($65 each). Producing Ohio is a collaborative project of the Greater Cincinnati Television Educational Foundation/CET and the Economics Center for Education and Research at the University of Cincinnati.