Teaching Children about Farming is just like leaning on an open door.
It was my sons 5th Birthday last Saturday. He had a fantastic time, thanks in no small part to our local Ernest Doe and Sons. He wanted a tractor party, so in the best traditions of giving in to our children, a tractor party it was. But how? We don't have a farm, we don't have any local friends with a farm and we had hired the village hall! So pictures of Tractors, Combines and Animals were stuck up on the walls, on the the table cloth and the cake was of course in the shape of? You've guessed it, Tractor.
With the first game of pass the parcel to Old Macdonalds Farm, we were off to a flying start. After that 30 children walked outside to see a Shiny New Holland sat in the car park. All of them wanted to sit in the tractor. So did one of the parents! They all thought it was great. Not least my sons, the one whose party it was and his younger brother, who were in 7th heaven. As the chidren sat in the tractor I asked them if they wanted to be a farmer and if they knew what a farmer did? A few wanted to be a farmer and a few more knew what a farmer did. More importantly they were all interested.
So after the look at the real tractor, it was back inside for a game of musical tractors. After some home cooked ham and cheese rolls, homemade sausage rolls, carrot sticks, grapes, jelly and ice cream, and a few more farm themed games the children went home having had a great time. During the afternoon thay had all looked at all the pictures around the room of tractors, combines, tillage, cows, sheep, pigs, goats, many of them with a "wow" as they studied the photo's. It's amazing if you just stimulate the interest of children they are completely like sponges at learning. There are so many areas of farming that can be brought into education. Maths, Food Science and Biology to name just three subjects off the top of my head.
Leaf and many others do a great job in promoting Agriculture in schools but isn't it time our government actually put our childrens education first and teach them by stimulating them with something they find interesting? I'm sure they will remember this party for a while to come.