March 25, 2025
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A day of agriculture

Area fourth graders enjoy Kids Day at the Farm

By Tiffany Blanchette
Fourth graders from Manteno listen as Brittany Wyatt, of St. Anne, talks about her 2-year-old horse, Jester, during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds.

Fourth graders from Manteno listen as Brittany Wyatt, of St. Anne, talks about her 2-year-old horse, Jester, during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds. (Tiffany Blanchette)

Cover crops, beef breeds, embryology and honey bees were just a few of the topics area fourth graders learned about on Thursday as the Kankakee County Farm Bureau hosted its 22nd Kids Day at the Farm event.

The two-day event welcomed 668 local students from 12 grade schools to learn about the vast world of agriculture as they traversed nearly 20 educational stations at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds.

Students heard from local farmers and agriculture businesses about a wide variety of topics, including how the corn and soybeans around them are grown and used.

“Our goal is to educate students about the importance of agriculture to them and our community, to help them consider future career opportunities in agriculture and to develop future advocates for the agriculture community,” said Sherry Spencer, Kankakee County Ag in the Classroom coordinator.

Brittney Muschetto, of the University of Illinois Extension, gives a presentation to fourth-graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds.

Brittney Muschetto, of the University of Illinois Extension, gives a presentation to fourth graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds. (Tiffany Blanchette)

Each month, Spencer visits 37 fourth-grade classrooms throughout the county to teach kids about a wide variety of topics relating to agriculture.

The monthly lessons include a variety of topics, including corn, pumpkins, Christmas trees, pollinators, soybeans and dairy.

Spencer also presents an Ag and Football lesson exploring how the game relies on agriculture, and Tassel to Table exploring farm-related careers that play a role in getting food to tables.

“These lessons help students to understand where the products they use and foods they eat come from,” Spencer said. “Kids Day at the Farm is a great opportunity to reinforce many of the lessons we have learned about during the year and also learn about some new topics.”

Cody Rollins, of Rollins Ag in St. Anne, gives a presentation about vermiculture, the practice of cultivating composting worms, to fourth-graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds.

Cody Rollins, of Rollins Ag in St. Anne, gives a presentation about vermiculture, the practice of cultivating composting worms, to fourth graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds. (Tiffany Blanchette)

Other presentation topics included precision farming, soil conservation, vermiculture, beekeeping, farm machinery and grain elevators.

Livestock farmers also welcomed the students into the barn to learn about and interact with cows, goats, chickens and a friendly horse named Jester.

Numerous volunteers, many from the Future Farmers of America clubs from six area high schools, were on hand to run the event, guide the students through the stations and give presentations.

Tri-Point FFA members Madison McNeil, right, Adriana Hummel, center, and Aylin Lucero share poultry facts with fourth-graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds.

Tri-Point FFA members Madison McNeil, right, Adriana Hummel, center, and Aylin Lucero share poultry facts with fourth graders during the Kankakee County Farm Bureau's 22nd Kids Day at the Farm held Thursday, March 20, at the Kankakee County Fairgrounds. (Tiffany Blanchette)

Schools attending included Grace Christian Academy, St. Anne Grade School, Momence’s Je-Neir Elementary, Bradley West Elementary, St. Paul’s Lutheran School, St. George Elementary, Herscher Intermediate, Bishop McNamara, Manteno Elementary, Grant Park Elementary and Lorenzo R. Smith School.

With over 74% of Kankakee County’s acreage being dedicated to agriculture, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service’s 2022 report, the Farm Bureau’s annual event returns each year to drive home the impact of agriculture in everyday life.