NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665

June 6, 1999

N.D. Teacher Courses will Help K-12 Students Learn about Food, Land & People

North Dakota K-12 teachers can learn how to integrate agricultural information into the classes they already teach through new summer courses focusing on food, land and people.

"Project Food, Land & People is a national resource that features 40 lessons covering topics such as seeds, raw to processed foods, pollination, soil erosion, cattle by-products, fabric production and nutrition," said Jill Vigesaa with the Foster County Soil Conservation District in Carrington. Vigesaa is a member of the national Food, Land & People steering committee and the North Dakota Agriculture in the Classroom Council.

"Each lesson includes grade levels, subject matter topics and skills learned. The lessons use ag and natural resource examples to teach science, social studies, math and other subjects rather than adding a new subject. The material was developed and reviewed by teachers from across the nation."

Food, Land & People training sessions will be held July 12-13 in Minot and July 14-15 in Dickinson. For a $65 fee, teachers receive one hour of 600-level credit from North Dakota State University plus resource materials. The fee is $30 if no credit is desired. Class sizes are limited to allow for hands-on involvement.

More information and applications are available from Vigesaa at 701 652-2551 ext. 5 or jill.vigesaa@nd.usda.gov, or by calling the N.D. Department of Agriculture at 1-800-242-7535.

An intensive course with lab experiences and field trips will be at North Dakota State University June 28 - July 1. This course is three hours of credit in Human and Community Education 790 from NDSU for a $125 fee. For more information or an application form, contact Anissa Wilhelm, NDSU, at 701 231-7439 or wilhelm@prairie.nodak.edu.

The North Dakota Agriculture in the Classroom Council is leading the Food, Land & People effort in the state. The Council recommends that farm and ranch families and organizations encourage and possibly even sponsor local teachers to attend the training for their schools. Educators other than classroom teachers may also attend the courses.

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Source: Agriculture Communication (701) 231-7881

Editor: Becky Koch (701) 231-7875