Ethan Shelden – Vermicomposting
This FFA lesson plan explores vermicomposting (composting with worms) through the story of student Ethan Shelden’s supervised agricultural experience (SAE) program. Students watch a video, complete worksheets, and learn the parts and functions of the worm digestive tract and how to build their own bucket-based vermicomposting system. The 90-minute lesson includes a bell ringer, activities, follow-up discussion, optional extended construction activity, and an exit ticket.
At a glance
- Learning objectives
-
- Label the worm digestive tract.
- Explain the function of each part of the worm digestive tract.
- Discover how to create their own vermicomposting system.
- Time required
- 90 minutes
- Grade level
- 9-10
- Materials
-
- A copy of the "A Bin of Worms" worksheet for each student
- A copy of the "From Scraps to Black Gold" worksheet for each student
- Internet access to play the video in real time or embed it in a PowerPoint ahead of time
- Technology access for students to do additional research into worms and vermicomposting
- Cross-Curricular Connections
- Science — Identify and explain the parts and functions of the worm digestive tract
- Partnership for 21st Century Skills
- Critical Thinking and Problem Solving; Environmental Literacy; Global Awareness; Information Literacy; Initiative and Self-Direction; Productivity and Accountability
- Resources/References
- Video: "Vermicomposting SAE | Ethan Shelden," https://vimeo.com/328434623; Website: "How Do Red Worms Eat and Make Compost?" https://unclejimswormfarm.com/red-worms-eat-compost/; Website: "Make a Worm-Composting Bin From Plastic Buckets," https://www.thespruce.com/inexpensive-worm-bin-from-plastic-buckets-2540077
Downloads & Links
Aligned Standards
AFNR Career Ready Practices
- CRP.02Apply appropriate academic and technical skills. Career-ready individuals readily access and use the knowledge and skills acquired through experience and education to be more productive.
- CRP.04Communicate clearly, effectively, and with reason. Career-ready individuals communicate thoughts, ideas and action plans with clarity, whether using written, verbal and/or visual methods.
- CRP.05Consider the environmental, social and economic impact of decisions.
- CRP.07Employ valid and reliable research strategies. Career-ready individuals are discerning in accepting and using new information to make decisions, change practices or inform strategies.
- CRP.08Utilize critical thinking to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. Career-ready individuals readily recognize problems in the workplace, understand the nature of the problem, and devise effective plans to solve the problem.
- CRP.11Use technology to enhance productivity. Career-ready individuals find and maximize the productive value of existing and new technology to accomplish workplace tasks and solve workplace problems.
AFNR Performance Element
- CS.01Analyze how issues, trends, technologies and public policies impact systems in the agriculture, food & natural resources career cluster.
- ESS.03Develop proposed solutions to environmental issues, problems and applications using scientific principles of meteorology, soil science, hydrology, microbiology, chemistry and ecology.
Common Career Technical Core
- AG-ENV3Develop proposed solutions to environmental issues, problems and applications using scientific principles of meteorology, soil science, hydrology, microbiology, chemistry and ecology.
Common Core – Literacy in Science & Technical Subjects: Writing
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9-10.7Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9-10.8Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9.10.2Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/experiments, or technical processes.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9.10.4Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
- WHST.9.10.9Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Common Core – Reading: Informational Text
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.8Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.
Common Core – Science & Technical Subjects
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.1Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.10By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend science/technical texts in the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.2Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; trace the text's explanation or depiction of a complex process, phenomenon, or concept; provide an accurate summary of the text.
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.5Analyze the structure of the relationships among concepts in a text, including relationships among key terms (e.g., force, friction, reaction force, energy).
Common Core – Speaking and Listening
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1.CPropel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
FFA Precept
- FFA.CS-MCommunication: Effectively interact with others in personal and professional settings.
- FFA.CS-NDecision Making: Analyze a situation and execute an appropriate course of action.
- FFA.PG-JMental Growth: Embrace cognitive and intellectual development relative to reasoning, thinking and coping.
- FFA.PL-AAction: Assume responsibility and take the necessary steps to achieve the desired results, no matter what the goal or task at hand.
NASDCTEc
- AGPF01.03Apply scientific principles to the study of environmental service systems in order to facilitate development of solutions to environmental issues, problems and applications.
Next Generation Science
- HS-ETS1-2Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.