Newsletters (NWSISD) NWSISD newsletter - February 2015 | Page 3

Rockford Middle School - Center for Environmental
Studies adds Cows, Chickens and Buckthorn oh my!
Cows, chickens, flowers, and buckthorn are all part of new activities at Rockford Middle School-Center
for Environmental Studies (RMS-CES). RMS-CES has many opportunities for agriculture experiences in the
classroom, during exploratory, and in clubs outside of school
hours.

!

RMS-CES offers an agriscience class for all students in
grades 5-8. Keri Sidle teaches the middle school curriculum
and also runs the local FFA chapter. In her classroom,
students learn about United States and Minnesota
agriculture including gardening, animal science, energy and
agriculture, food science and safety, leadership, agriculture
history, careers in agriculture, and soil and water science.
Agriscience covers a wide range of interests and
opportunities for students. Sidle’s future plans for her
classroom include a school
and community garden,
high tunnel, and
greenhouse on the property
across the street from the
middle school building.

!

FFA provides an after school opportunity for RMS-CES middle school students to
experience different aspects of agriculture. FFA is the largest youth organization in
the world with over 600,000 members across the United States. It encompasses all
areas of agriculture, including non-traditional areas like forestry, aquaculture, turf
fields, golf courses, as well as traditional areas, such as plant and animal science.
The Rockford Middle School chapter is the first and only middle school chapter in
the state of Minnesota! Students have worked on career development events in
poultry, floriculture, dairy, and meats; they have the chance pursue interest and
career exploration in these fields. Their group was the only middle school to
compete, and they qualified for the State competition on poultry. The RMS-CES
chapter has grown to over 35 students in a short period of time, and some even
had the chance to attend the national FFA conference in Kentucky this fall.

!

In addition to classes and clubs, students at RMS-CES also experience agriculture connections in their Exploratory
classes, which meet on a weekly basis. McKenzie Gregory teaches 5th and 6th grade writing, and she is using her
experiences of growing up on a farm to help students understand the question “How does milk get from grass to
glass?” in her Exploratory class. Gregory has attended the Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom Project and uses
this experience in her lessons. In her room, students investigate the world of agriculture and dairy products,
including production, processing, distribution, and consumption. She has also invited local farmers to talk to
students about the dairy industry.

!

Keri Sidle also has an agriculture focus to her Exploratory class, working with
students in the area of food science. Her 6th grade class had the chance to
act as a product development team in the food industry, conducting taste
tests and exploring standards for taste with different vendors. Other
connections to agriculture in RMS-CES Exploratory classes include asking
“What good are trees?” as well as examining fishing practices and examining
how mining has shaped Minnesota.

!

Agriculture in the classroom covers many topics, from production, land use,
plants and gardens, legislature, and leadership. Students at RMS-CES have a
wide variety of authentic, hands-on agriculture experiences to choose from
as they make their way through the middle school years. Submitted by Beth Russell
Communication Teacher/STEM Curriculum Integration Coordinator RMS-CES