The short-term goal of the AITC SoyScience lessons, created utilizing the curriculum on
www.nourishthefuture.org is to serve our educational community during a challenging time.
This endeavor will also allow us to turn a seemingly challenging situation into one we can
capitalize on for the benefit of our farmers and agricultural professionals. We will take
advantage of this opportunity to share the science involved in soybean development,
production, and environmental sustainability. Our science teachers have asked for our help in
these areas and we aim to deliver quality educational programming to meet the needs of today’s
students as well as the needs of students for years to come.
Through this project the Livingston County Agriculture in the Classroom program in
collaboration with the Monroe County 4-H program will develop lessons with guided science
materials and kits, delivered asynchronously and will be able to be shared and used for years to
come. Our AITC and 4-H Program will use the high school science curriculum from
www.nourishthefuture.org in the area of biotechnology to help educators meet their educational
standards while highlighting the science adopted and supported by our New York State soybean
growers. Students and educators will be provided the opportunity to develop their own
impressions of this New York commodity and the science behind its production. With
asynchronous lessons, supported with printed materials and hands-on content for learners, the
program has the opportunity to help dispel the large amount of misinformation gathered in the
periphery.
In the long-term, we are growing and developing educated consumers and community
members. The materials created through this SoyScience project also have the capacity to be
utilized for years to come. Our program can use this content every year when reaching middle
and high school populations with hands-on science lessons. With sharing this content on social
media the reach will go even further and be utilized throughout New York. This will lead to
interminable support for the science behind the farming. Many have a negative view of
agriculture, still equating it with archaic technology and antiquated thinking. Programs like
SoyScience will help dispel the misconceptions that students and teachers have, as well as,
develop the next generation of science and agricultural supporters.

Update:

View uploaded report

2021 New York Corn & Soybean Association Grant
End of Project Final Report
CCE Livingston County Ag in the Classroom Program: Soy-Science

PROJECT SUMMARY

The CCE Livingston County Ag in the Classroom Program (AITC) implemented the Soy-Science Lesson Project during the fourth quarter of the 2021 and the first quarter of the 2022 grant year. Utilizing the Nourish the Future Curriculum (www.nourishthefurure.org), hands-on classroom lessons with educational videos were created and offered to all ten public and three private schools in Livingston County to help educate students on the importance of soil to the soybean industry and to the environment. The combination of in-person and video instruction platforms provided the flexibility for our lead educator to offer instruction to classrooms regardless of current COVID regulations and/or teacher needs during a very fluid situation for classrooms. Lessons and videos focused on the important roles that soil and science play in soybean growth & production, as well as the practices of environmental stewardship and sustainability implemented by New York State soybean growers.

Our lead AITC Educator created three high-quality soil educational videos that included content from local agriculture professionals and a collaboration with CCE Monroe for video production. These videos were created with the purpose of being multi-functional for numerous applications: 1) A stand-alone introduction to the specific soil topic, 2) a supplemental piece to the in-person or asynchronous lesson, and 3) the ability to be utilized by teachers online for years to come providing an impact to future students. Please find the titles and links to the three videos below:

“Population Growth” https://cornell.box.com/s/upv9n2tb9fhtm8vufiaco0xtxri2kyua

“Soil is Alive” https://cornell.box.com/s/af5z0bwvddieu0z6n4imsmhyr6g4w54d

“Soil Texture” https://cornell.box.com/s/2n7wvkgqbkr84bw31px29qk56m8nv2xf

Five engaging and grade-appropriate lessons were created by our lead educator for grades 3-12 using the Nourish the Future Curriculum as the educational foundation for each lesson. These lessons included “Soil Texture I & II” a two-part soil texture lesson, “Population Growth”, and a two-part soil health and microorganism lesson and activity titled “Soil your Undies”.

All five lessons were offered to all ten public and three private schools in Livingston. Each of the five lessons focused on a specific aspect of soil and the critical role it plays in the world’s soybean (and food) production. “Soil Texture I & II” Lessons” lesson introduced students to the process of how soil is made up of sand, silt, and clay, how the percentage of those can play a role in growing crops. This lesson touched on how farmers may change their management practices based upon the soil texture, and showcased the Web Soil Survey and how it can be used by farm and agricultural professionals, to make field and cropping decisions based on science and data. Students were able to research the soil at their homes and in their communities. The “Population Growth” Lesson provided an eye-opening experience for youth to better understand how very little of the earth’s is available for food, fuel, and fiber production for an ever-increasing population. The realization that more land and soil cannot be produced to increase food production and the only way to increase food production on a large scale is to maximize the ability of the land and soil was very impactful on students. The “Soil your Undies” two-part lesson provided students the opportunity to learn what a soil microbiome is, how soil is an ecosystem of living and nonliving that supports life. Student’s grew soil organisms in a petri dish, after digging a hole to “plant” a pair of underwear. Students were able to observe the growth of the soil microorganisms overtime on their petri dishes. The role of the microorganisms grown in their petri dishes will be reinforced when students dig up the underwear in the spring. They will be able to observe how much of the underwear is decomposed and learn the health of the soil by the amount of decomposition, seeing firsthand the importance of a healthy soil microbiome.

*IMPACT REPORT

Total Lessons Instructed 103
Total Student Contacts
(1 Student = 45 mins. of Instruction Time) 1,676
Total Students Reached 485
Total Instruction Hours 76.25

*This report includes classrooms that have committed to completing the second part of the “Soil Your Undies” lesson.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

We will have exceeded one of our primary Key Performance Indicators once all lessons are completed – Total Student Contacts. We have commitment from all classrooms that completed the first of two “Soil Your Undies” lessons that they will complete the second lesson with our lead educator as soon as weather allows for digging up the soil microbiome. The final Total Student Contact number will be 1,676, exceeding our goal of 1,500. Other Key Performance Indicator results are incomplete as of the time of this report. In addition to the above-mentioned lessons yet to be completed, other lessons have just recently been completed due to classroom schedules and timing of lesson content and final survey data is still being received. However, initial data and feedback is indicating we are on target to meet or exceed most of our key performance indicators. A Complete and final report of Key Performance Indicators will be provided as soon as possible.

EXPRESSION OF GRATITUDE

We sincerely want to thank the New York Corn and Soybean Association for your support of our work. Agriculture science education and literacy among youth throughout New York State is necessary, as our youth are further removed from the production of their food. Our goal is to provide our local youth with the knowledge and science literacy to understand what is happening right on our communities’ farms. In addition to this, we are working to encourage and provide the knowledge for our youth to make future informed decisions regarding their food. We appreciate this opportunity to share the practices of our New York State soybean farms, the science & technology they are using and the positive strides they are making in sustainability and conservation. We also appreciate the opportunity to further help farms and farmers create a future in which the population is equipped with the knowledge and wisdom to both make healthy informed choices in the grocery store, as well as appreciate the impact of New York agriculture on individuals each and every day. Again, thank you!