Companion Resources

This work of fiction is a great tool to introduce nutrition to younger audiences and encourage them to eat vegetables. This title might mislead you to think the vegetables in the book are spoiling but the story is really about vegetables behaving badly because Ivy refused to eat them. Instead of eating her vegetables, Ivy stuffed them into her pocket. At night when she is sleeping, the vegetables form a taunting chorus in Ivy's sleep and invade her dreams with nasty songs. No matter how Ivy tries to run from this nightmare, the vegetables chase her down and continue their harassment. Once she admits she likes vegetables, the nightmare stops.

Make cheese in your classroom using the same fast methods as industry. This kit includes the recipe to make cheese (also available to download), cheesecloth, and two different types of rennet - one from an organic animal source and one from a genetically modified yeast source. You add water, powdered milk, and buttermilk. This is a great activity for exploring enzymes and chemistry as well as the benefits and concerns surrounding genetic modification. Order this kit online from agclassroomstore.com.

What is Agricultural Biotechnology and how is it used? This informative text breaks down the questions surrounding biotechnology and how it is used for agricultural production. The article breaks down four topics: Genetically Engineered (GE) Crops, How Other Countries Gain Access to GE Technology, How Crops and Foods are Assessed for Safety, and Developing a Biosafety System.

We pay less for food than citizens of other nations; the United States enjoys the cheapest food in the world. Each year, dozens of improved products and new varieties of fruits, nuts, and vegetables emerge from the laboratories and greenhouses of the Agricultural Research Service. But walking through the grocery store, do we ever consider where such an abundance and variety of food and products come from? View the Science in Your Shopping Cart eReader or order copies from agclassroomstore.com. Learn about ARS research and how it affects your food using the Science in Your Shopping Cart Factsheets and the Science in Your Shopping Cart Podcasts.

One day, Kansas wakes up grumpy. The other 49 states are stretching, yawning, and pouring maple syrup onto each other's pancakes, but irritable Kansas announces to his neighbor Nebraska that life is dull and changes must be made. This fun book describes the initial excitement and new arrangements made when the states decide to trade places. Read the book to find out if they ever get back home in the right place.

A nationwide interactive map geared for elementary students which displays state agricultural facts.

These full-color, life-size photographs showcase 200 commonly eaten foods with portion sizes. Each card includes nutrition facts in label format on the back, making it a perfect hands-on tool for teaching food and nutrition concepts. Download a PDF of the Food Models from the National Dairy Council by clicking the View Graphic button.

This activity details instruction for making butter in a small baby-food sized jar.

Never. Not a chance. Annalisa wouldn't dream of kissing Luella the cow, even though her mother kisses her every day after singing her a song and milking her. Still, inquisitive Annalisa is awfully interested in milking Luella, and one day she sneaks off and does everything just the way her mother does - except for the kiss on the nose. Will Annalisa's innate curiosity get the best of her?

When Annabelle gives birth to her calf, she also begins to produce milk. The milk is then processed into cheese, and from the cheese, pizza is made. An excellent nonfiction look at milk production.

Dairy cows are amazing animals. This printable student reader takes kids through the basics of milk production, how dairy cows are cared for, important vocabulary, and why milk is part of a healthy diet.

Alice doesn't need a weather forecast to tell if it's going to snow. She can feel it in her toes and elbows and nose. Each time she feels a twitch or a tingle, she warns her neighbors. 'There's snow coming,' she tells Etta and Gretta Grillo. 'I can feel it in my toe!' Like Alice's other neighbors, the Grillo sisters laugh and ignore her warning. But sure enough, the snow falls and catches everyone by surprise— everyone that is except Alice, who has loaded in her supplies. But now she feels a big snowstorm coming. And still her neighbors ignore her warnings. What will Alice do?