Now that you received your calf announcement, we hope you can utilize these resources and activities to enhance your classroom experience! 

• Pumpkin Palooza: Pumpkins aren’t just great in recipes, they are also an important part of dairy farming! When the pumpkin season winds down and leftover pumpkins start to pile up, farmers put them to good use by mixing them into cow feed. Cows are often called the “ultimate recyclers” for good reason. Thanks to their unique digestive system, cows can break down pumpkins and get valuable nutrients from them, including proteins, fiber and vitamins A and E. By incorporating leftover produce, like pumpkins, into their feed, farmers reduce feed waste and contribute to environmentally sustainable farming practices. It’s a full-circle process that benefits everyone. Pumpkins stay out of landfills, cows get a healthy energy boost, and we all enjoy the delicious, creamy results in our dairy products. Learn more about pumpkins and the dairy industry here!
  
• Fall Dairy Activity Guide: As the days grow cooler and the leaves change color, we have a variety of fall-themed activities that will keep your students busy and introduce them to dairy in creative ways. Age group? These activities are ideal for elementary and middle school students.
  
• Halloween Trick or Treat Recipes: From a spooky Halloween snack spread to a witches’ brew smoothie, try some of these dairy recipes! Age group? These recipes are ideal for teachers of all grade levels.

Deep Dive Virtual Tour

This is a “Deep Dive” tour of Elmer Richards & Sons, featuring specialists along with the farmer such as veterinarians, nutritionists, or environmental scientists. Students will get a closer look at how farms use technology and experts to provide the highest care for their animals and land. Check-in questions after each stop will engage students. Additional resources including lesson plans, vocabulary sheets, and past tours available here!

Date: Thursday, October 31Time: 11:15 a.m. ET
Length: 60 Minutes
Location: New York
Questions: Click here to learn more.

Age group? This farm tour is ideal for grades 6-12.

Did you know that newborn calves weigh between 60-100 pounds at birth? The average calf weighs 90 pounds.

Share this fact with your students so they can see how their calf grows and gains weight throughout the program year!

This 3-Ingredient DIY Yogurt Tubes would be an easy recipe to make in the classroom and freeze for a snack at a later time! 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 2 cups fruit (blueberries, raspberries, mango, kiwi)
• 1-2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup (optional)

Preparation:

1. Place everything into a high-speed blender or food processor for 2-3 minutes and blend until smooth. If you are using frozen fruit, be sure to defrost it beforehand
2. Using a small funnel, pour the flavored yogurt into squeeze tubes (or popsicle molds).
3. Leave room at the top when filling to allow for expansion if storing in the freezer. Seal well.

This October, American Dairy Association North East (ADANE) has two virtual farm tours planned for students of all ages! These are a great opportunity to introduce your students to dairy farming and what they’ll be experiencing through the year-long Adopt a Cow Program. Recordings of the tours are made available after the live events from ADANE

Register at the links below for one tour, or many! You will be emailed your custom link to join. Each tour is unique and LIVE. If you can’t join ADANE live, you will always be given a link to the recording on YouTube.

Grab your device of choice the day of the tour and join live. You can use a Zoom link, Facebook Live link, or YouTube link.

If you have questions about the farm tours, contact ADANE directly by emailing Kelsey O’Shea koshea@milk4u.org

Elmer Richards & Sons Virtual Tour

In this virtual tour brought to you by American Dairy Association North East, Farmer Marcus from Elmer Richards & Sons will explore three primary areas of the farm: where the calves live, where the cows live, and where the cows are milked. There will be check-in questions after each stop to engage students. 

Access additional resources including lesson plans, vocabulary sheets, and all of the past tours!

Date: Thursday, October 31
Time: 10:00 a.m. ET
Length: 60 Minutes
Location: New York
Questions: Click here to learn more.

Age group? This farm tour is ideal for Pre K – 5th grade.

Deep Dive Virtual Tour

This is a “Deep Dive” tour of Elmer Richards & Sons, featuring specialists along with the farmer such as veterinarians, nutritionists, or environmental scientists. Students will get a closer look at how farms use technology and experts to provide the highest care for their animals and land. Check-in questions after each stop will engage students. Additional resources including lesson plans, vocabulary sheets, and past tours available here!

Date: Thursday, October 31
Time: 11:15 a.m. ET
Length: 60 Minutes
Location: New York
Questions: Click here to learn more.

Age group? This farm tour is ideal for grades 6-12.

Did you know National Farmer’s Day is happening this week on October 12? Here are two creative ways to celebrate!

• Chef Meets Farm Special Video
  We celebrate our hardworking dairy farmers not just on National Farmer’s Day, but each and every day of the year!
  
  The Chef Meets Farm special features Emmy award-winning culinary producer and chef, Anthony Contrino, and farmer Nate Chittenden of Dutch Hollow Farm. What happens when a city chef travels to a farm to cook outside of his element? Watch to find out!
  
  Age group? This video is open to all classrooms but it is ideal for middle school students.

• Write a message to your host farmer. You’ll be finding out who your host farm is in only two days on October 8! Once you do, your students can celebrate National Farmer’s Day by using our Contact Your Farmer tool to send a personalized message to your host farm. The tool allows you to mail handwritten letters/drawings or send an e-message to the farmers. *Note: Our host farms love receiving mail, but they may not have time to respond. Please know that they appreciate all of the fan mail!
  
  Suggested messages: 1) A thank-you message for being your host farm 2) A few things students are excited to learn 3) An appreciative message about how farmers spend so much time caring for their land and animals.
  
  Age group? This tool is open to everyone but is ideal for elementary and middle school students.

Did you know that newborn calves start “moo-ing” shortly after birth? Within a few hours they will be walking around and find their voice!

Share this fact with your students as you introduce your adopted calf to them this school year.

This BUTTER IN A CUP would be an easy recipe to make in the classroom and send home with students for them to share with family in making fall recipes and desserts.
Ingredients:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream (cold)
• 1 oz plastic cups (with lids)

Preparation:

1. Pour It: Pour 2 tablespoons of heavy cream into each portion cup. Place the lid on each cup, and distribute to students.
2. Shake It: Shake the container until butter forms a soft lump. Continue to shake until buttermilk separates out of the lump and the container contains a solid lump of butter and liquid buttermilk. The process should take 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Strain It: To strain, pour off or drink the buttermilk, leaving only the solid butter. You can save the buttermilk with future uses, like baking!

Serve It: optional: Remove the lump of butter and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.