At a time when so few Canadians have direct ties to a family farm, Prairieland continues to connect our communities with agriculture
In a province as vast and diverse as Saskatchewan, it’s of significant importance to educate as many people as possible on the value of agriculture. Saskatoon Prairieland Park Corporation understands this and, for many years now, has held the Ag-Experience for Grade 4 Students to “teach them while they’re young.” The program aims for participants to gain an understanding of why agriculture is necessary and the many ways agriculture is a part of their everyday life.
The Covid-19 pandemic prevented the in-person program from running in the fall of 2020, where normally some 700 fourth grade students from Saskatoon and surrounding area would have taken part in a unique hands-on day of learning at the Prairieland Ag Center. Interestingly, the pandemic has renewed interest in where our food comes from, so it was a top priority for Prairieland’s Agriculture Department to creatively continue to provide this information.
A new “virtual” Ag-Experience website was launch in October to include video presentations and resources from a variety of industry organizations. Topics covered on the website include sheep, canola, beef, chicken, plants, water and many more. As of February 2021, 86 registrations for over 1,800 students from 32 communities across Saskatchewan have been received. These numbers far surpassed the organizers expectations and has had the added bonus of reaching students from all areas of the province for the first time ever.
Teachers and at-home students can register at the following link on the Prairieland Park website. https://prairielandpark.com/agexperience/