Activity 1: Agriculture is a Source for Careers

1. Help students see that agriculture is not only the source of most all of the items we need and use every day, but also the source of many careers. Ask students the following series of questions:
   • What is the primary ingredient of cheese? (milk)
   • What kind of farm is milk produced on? (dairy farm)
   • Beginning on a dairy farm where the milk is produced and ending at your home where cheese is consumed, how many careers played a role in providing cheese for us to eat? (allow students time to begin thinking about the answer to this question.)
2. Begin drawing a career web (example below) on the board. Explain that there is an interconnected web of careers that depend upon each other to produce the food we eat. Using the notes below, briefly describe how these careers are connected to the dairy farm and are necessary to produce the milk that is used to make cheese. Be sure to also explain that the web could be much larger. This is only a small sample.
   • Dairy Farmers: Raise and care for cattle on farms where milk is produced.
   • Veterinarians: Assist farmers in maintaining the health and well-being of animals.
   • Animal Geneticists: Research how genetic traits impact the health and productivity of animals and help farmers make the best decisions regarding the genetics and breeding of their animals.
   • Animal Nutritionists: Formulate the diets of animals to meet their nutritional needs. Nutritionists help dairy farmers provide a healthy diet for their cattle at each stage of their lives.
   • Inspectors: Monitor the transportation of livestock animals and verify livestock ownership.
   • Salesmen: Help in many areas of agriculture by providing the right kinds of tools and equipment to accomplish a variety of jobs.
   • Crop Farmers: Produce feed for dairy farmers, such as corn, alfalfa, soybeans, etc.
   • Soil Scientists/Agronomists: Analyze the quality of soil and help farmers balance the nutrients to enable the growth of healthy crops.
   • Plant Geneticists: Study the genetic traits of plants and use methods of crossbreeding and hybridization to perpetuate desirable traits in plants.
   • Feed or Seed Store Managers: Provide farmers with access to the feed, seeds, and other farm supplies necessary to their farms.
   • Truck Drivers: Transport agricultural goods from production to processing and then to be distributed to consumers.
   • Engineers: Design new technology to improve productivity and sustainability (for example, automated sprinkler systems, robotic milking equipment, etc.).
   • Food Scientists: Study the science of food preparation and formulate recipes (for example, developing different types of cheese-making methods).
   • Mechanics: Repair and maintain equipment such as trucks, tractors, and farming implements.
3. Divide students into teams or small groups and assign them one food. Give each group one large sheet of paper (a section of butcher paper, 11"x17" ledger paper, etc.) and markers.
4. Ask students to create a career web for the food item they were assigned.
5. Once the web is complete, students should color code each career in the pathway it matches best (as seen on the poster). You can project the Discover Agriculture poster for guidance.
6. Ask students questions to help them reflect on the activity:
   • Are there more or less jobs involved in producing our food than you would have guessed?
   • Are the jobs on the web similar or different? Do they fit in the common assumptions of an agricultural career? Are they all located on the farm?
   • Do all the jobs require a college education? 

Activity 2: Discover Careers in Agriculture

1. Give each student or group of students a blank sheet of paper and colored pencils or markers. This activity can be completed individually or in groups of two.
2. Each student or group of students should navigate to the Discover Agriculture Careers website and begin exploring careers in agriculture by clicking on each agricultural career pathway. They should create a word cloud and/or picture collage that would represent the variety of careers they find in the agriculture and natural resource sectors.
   • Option: Your students can also make the word cloud digitally using Canva or other similar software.
   • Option: If you need an option without internet/computer use, get a set of career cards or the Discover Agriculture Careers Resource Bundle from agclassroomstore.com for a hands-on activity.