April 19, 2023
Dozens of Prince George County Public Schools' second-graders spent the day delving into the vast world of agriculture as part of the Virginia Cooperative Extension's "Farm Day" event, a collaborative venture between the school division, the Virginia Cooperative Extension, Prince George Farm Bureau, and other community organizations.
On Tuesday, April 18, 2023, students from the division's five elementary schools visited Willie Bresko's southern Prince George County farm and spent the day learning about agriculture. Students were able to get up close to farm animals and learn how the products they often see in the supermarket or at home in the kitchen are grown, sometimes in their own backyard. The daylong event also allowed for the story of agriculture to be told to the next generation of producers and consumers in an interactive and engaging way, as it remains a significant part of the local and statewide economy in the Commonwealth.
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Photo Credits: Prince George County Public Schools, Virginia Cooperative Extension
According to recent figures from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS), in 2021, agricultural and forestry exports were valued at over $4 billion and accounted for "more than half of containerized exports" moving through the Port of Virginia in Norfolk. Locally, the most recent Census of Agriculture conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 2017 shows Prince George County was home to over 160 farms that manage nearly 40,000 acres of land. These local producers often grow various crops, including grains and vegetables, and tend livestock and cattle.
While serving as an exciting local field trip opportunity for students, the lessons of Farm Day also closely align with the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) objectives for second-grade science education as they explore living systems and processes for plants and animals.
Interactive opportunities are a cornerstone of learning for Prince George County Public Schools, helping students connect concepts learned in class to the world surrounding them. In October 2022, another group of PGCPS second-graders traveled to J.E.J. Moore Middle School for a nature trail exploration activity where they studied plant life and recorded their findings in special logbooks alongside several Moore Middle School seventh graders, serving as companions and guides to the students. More recently, in late March, the division hosted "Tech Field Day," a weeklong event geared toward fifth graders that focuses on exposing students to advanced technology and manufacturing, including drones, 3D printing, and coding.
The district thanks the Prince George County and Sussex County Cooperative Extension offices, Willie Bresko, Virginia State University, R.D. Radford of the Richmond Beekeepers Association, Prince George 4-H, Prince George Master Gardeners, and the James River Soil and Water Conservation District for their support of Farm Day and Prince George County Public Schools' students and community.
To learn more about the Virginia Cooperative Extension, visit their website at http://ext.vt.edu.