The Children’s Agricultural

Literacy Wing

Growing a Legacy

A Real Ag-Venture!

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Definition: A person who is agriculturally literate possesses knowledge and understanding of our food and fiber system. They would be able to synthesize, analyze, and communicate basic information about agriculture.

What is Agricultural Literacy?

Why is it important? With many area children being two to three generations removed from the family farm, there is a need to educate our youngest citizens on the vital role agriculture plays in our society. While this area is designed for 4th grade and younger, everyone needs to understand where their food and fiber comes from. Here, the whole family learns the story of Amercian Agriculture through hands-on interactive exhibits, gross motor play and storytelling.

The children‘s wing is an educational necessity. It expands the museum‘s outreach and programming while enhancing the overall visitor experience, making our facility a place where there is truly something for everyone and every age to enjoy.

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ALTON BRAZELL HALLCENTRAL

EXHIBIT HALL

PLAINS COTTON GROWERS

CONFERENCE CENTER

CHILDREN’S AGRICULTURAL

LITERACY WING

CLASSROOM

COTTON HERITAGE CENTER

ROTATING EXHIBIT

GALLERY

ARCHIVES

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1. Entrance2. Agricultural Occupations3. Crop Cycle - Plant, Cultivate, Harvest, Process, Store, Produce4. Cultivate Water Table5. Animal Barn6. Farm Vet Barn7. Story Barn8. Discovery Silo 9. How Big is an Acre?10. Farm Tech11. Farm House12. Farm Garden - Crawler, Planting Field, Haystack, Scarescrow 13. Market 14. Pedal Tractor Park

Bubbles of Activity

ENTRANCE FROM CENTRAL

EXHIBIT HALL

TOUCH - SEE - FEEL EXPERIENCE

The Crop CycleAn Adventure from Dirt to SHirt & from Farm to Table

Ever wondered where the vegetables you eat come from? How do they get to the store? Someone grew my t-shirt?

Crop Cycles has all these answers and more. Use balls, mechanical gadgets, air and gravity to explore the steps of the Crop Cycle: Plant, Cultivate, Harvest, Store, Process and Produce. Activate screws, levers and launchers as your seed ball becomes an everyday household product.

Located in the center of the area, a series of video monitors show footage of real crops going thru the cycle from seed to market. Spin a wheel at the bottom to slow down, speed up or jump to any part of the video to learn more.

Air &

Ball Maz

e illu

strating Harvesting

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Spin Browser- Real Footage of Various Crops

Controlled by Visitors

Harvest Ball Maze

Produce Air

Propulsion Tubes to Market

Air &

Ball Maz

e illu

strating Harvesting

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Pivot Irrigation Area

Growing Plant Mechanism

Windmill Pump Flowing onto Terraced

Water Area

Animals Watering

Rain Showers

Dams

7

Win

dm

ills - C

enter

Pivots - Terracing

Cultivation Water TableGrowing plants and minds.

Water is vital to Agriculture. Whether you water crops or hydrate animals, come splash and learn at the Cultivation Water Table. Operate a windmill to pump water for livestock. Rotate a Pivot Irrigation system to cultivate your crops. Learn howdams, dykes and terracing direct water to America’s farmlands.

This exhibit compliments the History of Irrigation exhibit found in the Central Exhibit Hall and allows children to interact with water and irrigation technology.

Rain Showers

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Vet Exam Tables with Medical Tool Storage

Exa

min

ing - T

reating - Problem S

olvin

g

Farm Veterinarian OfficeHands on care of animals

Visitors can pick up a medical chart, put on a vet coat and get to work. Examine, treat and groom farm animals

as you learn about animal anatomy and healthcare.

Don’t like the limp on that goose? Look at the x-ray to see if anything’s broken. Compare the x-ray of the goose to other animals

to see how their body works and why.

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X-Ray Boards with Animal

X-Rays

Vet Exam Tables with Medical Tool Storage

Patient Kennels with

Animals

Lamb Grooming & Shearing

Station

Reception Area with Dress-up & Patient Charts 10

Denim Weaving Panels with Denim Strips & Other Decorations

Grocery Area: Products Labeled and/or

Contain RFID Chip - Identifies and Tallies their Source at

Checkout

Healthy Eating: Build a Balanced Lunch -

Digital Activity w/ RFID Chip Technology, Eating & Sorting

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It d

oesn’t a

ppea

r on

the shelf by magic

The MarketThe Culmination of all our hardwork

Learn how Agriculture is sustaining America at the Market. Make the connection between the farmer, the food we eat and the clothes we wear.

Shop at the grocery store and pharmacy to be amazed by what your plants have become. In the mood for arts and crafts? Weave a pair of customized jeans at the weaving walls.

Learn about nutrition while assembling a balanced meal at the Healthy Lunch Counter and learn about different cuts of meat and where they come from in the deli.

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Plant

ing Garden behind Farm

House

Farm House and GardenFor our youngest farmers.

Toddlers can play in the contained Garden Crawler while caregivers can sit watching older siblings nearby. Toddlers buzz around as a busy bees, pollinating the garden with large

rolling balls or finding a quiet spot along the garden wall to play a sensory interactive.

2-4 year olds head into the Farmhouse to cook, eat, dress up and play games. Nestled behind the farm house is the planting field. Children dig, plant and cultivate their pretend vegetables. Watch out for bugs! Some bugs are good for the plants, some are bad. We’re sure you will sort them out.

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Sunflower Interactive - Touch and Feel Panels & Spinners

Scarecrow Dress-Up

Enclosed Crawler Area

Farmhouse:Play Kitchen, Dress Up Area,Flower Garden, Reading Porch

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Bio Fuel Fill-up Station

Weight Pulling Activity with Distance Markers to Learn

Units of Measure

Race & Obstacle Course with Seating for the Fans

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Pu

tting K

ids o

f a

ll ages

in the driver seat

Pedal Tractor ParkTractors powered by Imagination

Have you ever dreamt of driving a tractor?

Journey outside and climb into a real tractor or head to thePedal Tractor Course. See how much weight you can drag at the tractor pull. Time your speed as you race your friends on the track.

Don’t forget to pull over and re-fuel using the Bio-fuel pump. Load the trailerwith material and haul it. The Pedal Tractor course is also a great gathering place for community events.

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Additional ActivitiesHands on learning for the Young and those young at heart.

Let’s start at Ag Jobs where we learn the occupations making agriculture happen. Whether it’s the lab technician working on a new scientific break thru or the truck driver delivering needed supplies- discover the vast web of people making feeding and clothing the world possible.

Find community resources to expand the adventure outside of the museum. Ready to work? Pick a job, put on a badge and let’s get going.

Agricultural Occupations

Farm TechDiscover cutting edge agricultural technology at Farm Tech. Try your hand at steering a combine using GPS navigation; create a composite aerial image of your farm showing water use, crop growth and heat. Work as a team on the large touch screen table to create and sustain a simulated farm.

How Big is an Acre?Learn math skills and concepts with imaginary play on our model acre. Arrange your barns and tractors and play farm as you visualize how big an acre is. Built to scale with other buildings for comparison. For example - How much of the museum building would fit on an acre?17

Story BarnThe Story Barn stands in the center of the room inviting us to come play and perform. Become an actor, audience, puppeteer or participant as you learn and tell the story of American Agriculture.

The Story Barn provides a flexible, changing space which can be used as a classroom without walls for facilitated groups; performance area for puppet, dance and theater shows; or learning stations for changing activity kits. The open structure allows visibility to the room and provides lighting and sound equipment to enhance performances.

Animal BarnWhy don’t we meander over to the Animal Barn? Play with a life size Mama Pig. Help take care of piglets and learn how pigs are raised at the touchscreen interactive.

Step over to the cows to try your hand at milking. Wow! I never knew milk was made that way. Learn how milk is processed and the multitude of products it makes at the Amazing Milk kiosk.

Silo Slide/ Observation BridgeHead on over to the Silo Slide for a vista view of the Farm. Twist your way up the silo climber or spiral stairs.

From the observation bridge, see if you can discover all the hidden items in the gallery while playing AG Eye Spy. Try your hand at an activity station or slide down to continue your Ag-venture.

Learn math skills and concepts with imaginary play on our model acre. Arrange your barns and tractors and play farm as you visualize how big an acre is. Built to scale with other buildings for comparison. For example - How much of the museum building would fit on an acre? 18

www.agriculturehistory.orgMuseum: 806-744-3786Director: 806-239-5796

director@agriculturehistory.org

1121 Canyon Lake Dr., Lubbock, TX 79403Mailing: PO Box 505, Lubbock, TX 79408

“Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious

learning. But for children, play is serious learning.”

- Mr. Rogers