Farmers in Rock Island County welcomed rain and second and third graders at the ninth annual AgXperience at the Rock Island County fairgrounds Wednesday, September 18, 2013.
Amy Saddoris and her husband helped start the program nine years ago to teach kids about the importance of agriculture.
“Agriculture is a part of our world and they need to know where their food comes from,” Amy said. “A lot of the products their parents by from the grocery store are made from corn and soybeans that the farmers are growing right here in our area.”
Not only did children learn about the different crops, they were able to plant their own corn and soybeans.
In a different station, children were learning about livestock and how dairy products are taken from the farm to their refrigerator. Children walked to the next barn and learned how horses aid farmers.
Student Cheyenne Stockton has helped with AgXperience for three years and she continues to come back.
“It’s a blast. I love seeing how excited they are about corn and beans growing,” Cheyenne said about the kids. “Most of them didn’t know that corn was used in gasoline so they were excited when they heard about that.”
Instructors showed that learning about agriculture can be both interesting, and fun.