For their science and nature unit, fifth grade students from John Burroughs Education Campus visited Hard Bargain Farm in Accokeek, Maryland.

Students investigate chickens and learn about the special hybrid on the farm..

In the classroom before their trip, students were introduced to the origins of their food. They learned that their food comes from plants and animals, is grown on farms, and travels a great distance to reach us—from farm to table. The lesson also focused on the concept of inheritance and how selection for particular traits in our crops and livestock impacts the foods we eat. Students learned about figurative language through the use of food similes (like peas in a pod) and mathematical computation by calculating how far certain foods travel to reach students’ tables.

While at the farm, students saw first-hand the beginnings of the farm-to-table process as they explored the working barnyard and a production garden. They collected fresh eggs from the chickens, visited and observed other barnyard animals, and planted, harvested and investigated foods in the garden.

Harvesting sweet potatoes

Petting the resident lamb

Observing more chickens

Tilling the earth and planting seeds

Students enjoy a hayride at the end of their visit.