1.1 Agriculture by the Numbers
This upper-elementary lesson, “Agriculture by the Numbers” (Unit 1: Production Agriculture, part of the Food for America program), teaches students how agriculture provides food, clothing, and shelter and how science and technology have allowed fewer farmers to feed more people. Through encyclopedia research, class discussion, and graphing activities, students explore how U.S. agriculture has changed over the past 100 years, including charting the declining farm population and the rising number of people fed per farmer.
At a glance
- Learning objectives
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- Explain why agriculture is the business that provides all food, much of our clothing and some shelter.
- Explain how so many people can be fed with so few farmers and so little land.
- List ways that science and technology have helped the U.S. agriculture industry produce more food and fiber with fewer people.
- Describe how agriculture has changed over the last 100 years.
- Time required
- 50 minutes
- Grade level
- Upper elementary
- Materials
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- Writing surface
- Copies of Activity Sheets 3:1, 3:2, 3:3
- Note cards
- Tape/glue
- Encyclopedias (as current as possible)
- Colored pencils
- Markers
- Key Term(s)
- Byproducts