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Oklahoma Agriculture in the Classroom

Calendar


April

Made in Oklahoma Month

Photo
Visit a Farmer's Market

Many farmer's markets open mid-April in Oklahoma. Find the farmer's market nearest you, and introduce your students to Oklahoma-grown fruits and vegetables.

Oklahoma Food Cooperative

Oklahoma also has a food cooperative from which members can buy food grown in Oklahoma. Members buy shares in the cooperative and order food monthly via a web-based order delivery system.

  • Compare the fruits and vegetables farmers can grow in Oklahoma with those grown in other places. Have a look at this map from Epicuriousshowing what fruits and vegetables are available at what time of year in all the 50 states.
  • Students draw maps from the school to the nearest farmer's market.
  • Discuss occupations related to farmer's markets.
Student Advocates:
  • Support local growers and Oklahoma agriculture by promoting farmers' markets.
  • Visit local growers and discuss how to promote their sales.
  • Make a schedule of farmers' markets in your area.  If none are nearby, find out how to get one in your neighborhood.
  • Develop a promotional flyer inviting students, friends and families to visit there markets.
  • Distribute flyers or contact the local newspaper to include information about the time, place, and produce available at local farmers' markets.
Books
Ehlert, Lois, Market Day: A Story Told With Folk Art, Voyager, 2002. (PreK-2)
The illustrations are from folk art around the world, with bright visions of chickens, veggies, farms and the road to the market. The varied countries of origin for the folk art are listed.
Parks, Carmen, Farmers Market, Sandpiper, 2003. (Grades 4-8)
The story, set in the American Southwest, is of a family trip to the farmer's market through the eyes of small girl.
Rendon, Marcie R., and Cheryl Walsh Bellville, Farmer's Market: Families Working Together, Carolrhoda, 2001. (Grades 3-6)
An introduction to farmers' markets, with photos, as seen through the eyes of two successful truck-farming families. A brief overview of a Minnesota farmer's market leads to introductions of two local families: the Thaos, of Hmong descent, and the Kornders, of Polish-German ancestry. Emphasizing the family cooperation required to keep a farm going, and with a special focus on the children's participation, the book also concentrates on moments in the growing season, from the planting of greenhouse seedlings to fall harvests, noting farming techniques and equipment. Nice attention is also given to the international variety of foods and specialties available at market. Readers, particularly urban kids, will learn much from this attractive photo-essay that shows what's so special about farmers' markets: you meet the people who grow the food.
Silverman, Buffy, Follow That Food: Distribution of Resources (Raintree Fusion: Social Studies), Heinemann-Raintree, 2007. (Grades 4-6)
How food gets from farm to table.