Curriculum
unit
unit
Meet the bean: soybeans are everywhere!
What is a soybean? Why are soybeans such a valuable crop? Here are some activities that are perfect for agriculture days, county fairs, after-school programming or summer camps! Recipes for soy plastic and soy lip balm …
unit
unit
Growing more food: biotechnology
How will we feed 9 billion people? Grow soybeans using Round-Up Ready seeds to illustrate how biotechnology can be used as a tool to increase production. Introduce students to different options for growing soybeans, investigate …
unit
unit
World hunger and soy
How is international agriculture addressing world hunger issues? Students explore international organizations working to address hunger challenges and the growing demand for protein in these three lessons.
unit
unit
What is Bioinformatics? It’s a BLAST
How can we identify individual organisms in a complex mixture of DNA? What computer tools are needed to decode the source of a DNA sequence? Have you ever done a DNA extraction? Most DNA extractions are done with a known source and students can visualize DNA. The favorite items are strawberries or students’ own cheek cells. This unit …
unit
unit
Watersheds, wetlands and water quality data analysis
Why is water quality important? What factors impact water quality? This unit will discuss the importance of water quality, describe several impacts to water quality, and include a data analysis activity that students complete to determine how wetlands play a role in …
unit
unit
Water quality
What affects water quality in your area? Access to clean water is a critical issue in many countries. In the United States there are few places where we cannot find clean water to drink or swim in. This unit explores some of the potential …
unit
unit
Using ozobots to simulate agriculture technology
How might we use robots to simulate agricultural technology? What role does computer science play in agriculture? The technology innovations in use in the agriculture industry have been touted as second only to those of the US military. What are these innovations? GPS guided tractors, follow-along equipment, …
unit
unit
STEM in agriculture
What do students know about STEM careers in agriculture? Science, technology, engineering, and math are so much a part of agriculture and agriculture careers! In this unit, students will learn about the STEM in agriculture, discover innovations in …
unit
unit
Soybean growth and genetics
How might we predict traits in soybeans? Did you know that there are many traits in soybeans that have an impact on sales and export of soybeans? One of the major ones is hilum color. What is hilum color? What is pubescence? Take a tour of …
unit
unit
Soy-stainable: sustainable products
Are you an informed consumer? Are you aware of more sustainable products? Do you try to buy more sustainable products when you have the choice?
unit
unit
Soy beautiful: applied chemistry
What STEM equipment is used to make soy-based beauty products? Students act as lab technicians working for a cosmetic company and learn the names, functions and units of common lab and measuring equipment by generating soy-based beauty products. Students will …
unit
unit
Soil health and microbes
What do we need to know about soil to determine its productivity? How can we be better stewards of soil health? Soil is an ecosystem, full of both living organisms and nonliving factors. These factors interact within the ecosystem to support one another. Find out what methods are used by soil scientists and …