Students can ‘farm’ from school with Texas Farm Bureau this fall

This fall, young students across Texas can once again virtually visit farms and ranches right from their classrooms through Texas Farm Bureau’s (TFB) Farm From School program.

“This program allows teachers and students to learn about agriculture directly from Texas farmers and ranchers,” Falls County Farm Bureau President Renae Willberg said. “Students get to see what’s happening on farms and ranches in real time, and they can ask questions about what they see on the virtual field trips.”

The program is back for its eighth semester. It is open to public, private and homeschool educators who teach kindergarten through fifth grade.

Each visit will feature a different crop and farmer to showcase the diversity of Texas agriculture.

“Many students today are several generations removed from the farm,” Willberg said. “This program helps them better understand where their food, fiber, fuel and other items come from and how agriculture is science, math, social studies, STEM and so much more.”

The unique program is popular in Texas schools. In the spring 2024 semester, more than 2,300 teachers and over 44,000 students from public and private school classrooms and home school settings connected with farmers and ranchers each month through the program.

“Students get to ‘meet’ a real farmer or rancher, which helps personalize the experience,” Willberg said. “Agriculture plays a role in everything we do, and Farm From School helps connect students and teachers with those who work in agriculture every day.”

Classrooms will connect virtually with the farmers and ranchers once a month from September through December. 

TFB will also provide TEKS-aligned lessons, activity books and other companion resource materials for the virtual farm visits.

Interested teachers can sign up on TFB’s Agriculture in the Classroom webpage at https://texasfarmbureau.org/aitc. 

Sign up closes Aug. 14 for the fall semester. For more information, contact TFB’s Educational Outreach team at edoutreach@txfb.org or call (254) 751-2569.