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Oklahoma Agriculture in the Classroom

Calendar


August

Oklahoma Farmer's Markets

Farmer's Market
Farmer's Market Week

Oklahoma farmer's markets are an explosion of great home-grown produce this month. Plan a trip to the farmer's market so students can talk to fruit and vegetable growers and get excited about eating the delicious, nutritious produce that grows in our state. Many markets across the state are open through mid October. Some are even open through the winter. Oklahoma students need to eat more fruits and vegetables. We remain near the bottom of all states for eating what is recommended.

Farmer's Market Activities
  • Consider applying for an AITC/Oklahoma Pork Council grant to cover your expenses for a trip to the farmers market. Applications for fall semester are due September 15, so you still have time.
  • Use the lesson Fresh From the Farm to conduct surveys at the farmer's market.
  • Learn how far food from the grocery store travels, in comparison with food from the farmer's market, with this online lesson, How Far Does It Travel?
  • Read about a young boy who earns money for a skateboard by selling vegetables at the farmers market - A Lending Hand
Books
Ehlert, Lois, Market Day: A Story Told With Folk Art, Voyager, 2002. (Grades PreK-2)
The illustrations are from folk art around the world, with bright visions of chickens, veggies, farms and the road to the market.
Lin, Grace, The Ugly Vegetables, Charlesbridge, 2009. (Grades 1-4)
A little girl is distressed by the ugly vegetables her mother is growing, compared with the pretty flowers grown by their neighbors, until her mother uses the vegetables to prepare a delicious soup. The neighbors are soon trading their flowers for the soup. Includes a list of the "ugly" Chinese vegetables and a recipe for the soup.
Parks, Carmen, Farmer's Market, Sandpiper, 2003. (Grades 4-8)
The story, set in the American Southwest, is of a family trip to the farmers market through the eyes of a young 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. 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.