Youth Environmental Ag Days reaches 22 years

May 1 through May 4, the Wright County Fairgrounds were busy with fifth grade students from Wright, Hamilton, Humboldt, and Webster counties, who each came for one day to learn about agriculture and the environment. It was the 22nd year of the Youth Environmental Agriculture Days.

The Youth Environmental Ag Days help youth develop an understanding of the impact of agriculture upon their environment, their everyday lives, and health and safety. In each session students got a hands-on look at everyday ag processes and had fun seeing how they applied to their lives.

The sessions included one all-new lesson, an “Ag Technology” session focusing on the use of programming and robotics in agriculture. Other sessions included “Food, Fuel, and Fiber,” a lesson on the non-food uses of corn and soybeans; “From Farm to You,” a look at all the steps it takes for raw farm product to reach consumers; “Sun Smart,” a session on sun safety; “21^st Century Ag,” where students got to experiment with plant DNA; “Why Water?” a look at how conservation offices work with water in the landscape; and “Now and Then,” a session on chemical safety.

For more photos, see the May 11 edition of the Monitor.