Farming: Seasons on a Wheat Farm (Lesson 4)
Grade Level(s): K, 1-2
By: Sherian Waggoner, 2nd grade teacher

Students identify the seasons on a wheat farm, and identify the use of a grain elevator.

Objectives:

1. TLW understand the seasons on a wheat farm.
2. TLW understand why a grain elevator is important.

Materials:

Picture or posters
Worksheets
Dry-erase board and markers

Plan:

SET:

ATTENTION GETTER:
Write the names of all the seasons on the board, beginning with Fall.

STUDENT INVOLVEMENT:
Have the students talk about our seasons here.

RELATE TO PRIOR KNOWLEDGE:
Read about the seasons.

RELATE TO REAL LIFE:
Students know how our seasons are in Tennessee (or wherever you are from).

INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURE:

TEACHER:
Ask the students what we have been studying about.
Review: livestock, crop, bar graph, soil, weather, climate, temperature, thermometer, and precipitation.

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
Look at the picture on the board. (farmers working in a big wheat farm)
What kind of machines are they using to plant wheat? (drill)
Did you know that the farmers are performing a service?

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
After the wheat is planted in the fall and the snow falls. What do you think happens to the wheat? Will it die?

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
When the wheat is resting, what time of the year is it? (winter)

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
During the Spring the snow melts and gives the wheat lots of what? (moisture)

STUDENT RESPONSE"

TEACHER:
Then the plants begin to grow about two or three feet high and forms a large head at the top as in the picture I am showing on the board.
Then the grain has to be picked or harvested by a large machine called a combine. Do you know what harvested means?

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
Did you know that a combine picks other crops? Can anyone name one?

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
As the wheat is combined the grain is poured into a grain tank inside the combine. Then the stalks or straw comes out of the back of the combine on to the ground. When the tank is full, the grain is poured into the truck and it is taken to town and stored into a grain elevator so it can be sold. After the grain is sold to wheat mills it is ground up into flour. What do we use flour four?

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
Back in the olden days they didn't have mills like we do today. Does anyone know what they used to grind up their wheat? Grist Mills I was a large stone that was rolled over and over the wheat to make the flour.

STUDENT RESPONSE:

TEACHER:
Let's review what we have learned about (drill, harvest, combine, and grain elevator) and do our worksheet.

CLOSURE:
Tomorrow we will learn more about services of farming and the community.

INDEPENDENT STUDY:
Vocabulary words - drill, harvest, combine, and grain elevator
Worksheet

Comments:

This is a wonderful lesson. The students are eager to learn about different places and how different or alike the seasons are. This lesson can be modified to fit any need from the very intelligent to the very challenged. You as the teacher can change how you use the lesson you can throw any idea that come through your head and make any lesson better. That is what I do.

Related Pages:

Introduction to Farming in the United States (Lesson 1) ( K, 1-2 )
Identify where food comes from, and the four basic food groups.

Farming: Natural Resources (Lesson 2) ( K, 1-2 )
Students identify natural resources, and weather & climate, temperature, and precipitation.

Farming: Raising Winter Wheat (Lesson 3) ( K, 1-2 )
Students name some uses of wheat, and identify the uses of a line graph.

Farming and the services of a Community (Lesson 5) ( K, 1-2 )
Students identify different types of farms, and different services of a community.