AGRIscapes Offers Local Schoolchildren “Virtual Field Trips”

Spring is usually a busy time at AGRIscapes.

The agricultural outreach center at Cal Poly Pomona usually hosts an egg hunt, strawberry picking, and field trips for hundreds of local schoolchildren who come to the AGRIscapes Discovery Farm to learn about agriculture and how their food is grown.

But not this spring. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing people to shelter-in-place, AGRIscapes was forced to cancel all field trips. Instead, it is now offering “Virtual Field Trips” with educational material for schoolchildren.

“Since children can’t come to the Discovery Farm, we thought we would bring it to them in the form of some fun and educational videos and activities,” said Craig Walters, the center’s director.

Each week, the center will introduce a different lesson on a farming-related subject with a video, worksheet, quiz, games, and a coloring sheet. Each lesson represents an area covered in the field trips. When the children finish a lesson, they earn a badge.

The first lesson, on insects, was recently posted. Five more lessons are planned. Once the students complete all six lessons, they will become a Discovery Farm Junior Farmer.

“We hope children, teachers, and parents enjoy using these materials,” Walters said. “And hopefully they’ll be able to come back to our Discovery Farm sometime soon.”

Field trips to the Discovery Farm have traditionally included visits to the pumpkin patch in the fall and the Cal Poly Pomona Petting Farm.

During Walters’ tenure, they have expanded to include a tour of the Children’s Garden, hayrides around the 1-acre field, and fun activities learning about insects and nutrition. Huntley College of Agriculture students lead the tours and activities for the schoolchildren.

More than 10,000 schoolchildren and parents visited AGRIscapes for field trips this past fall, with more than half visiting the Children’s Garden.