LISA HOBBS - News Editor
Third graders were treated to a day on the farm at the fairgrounds, courtesy of Warren County Farm Bureau.
“This is something Farm Bureau does in a lot of different counties,” said Ron Poston, agency manager of Warren County Farm Bureau. “When I was in Cannon County, we offered it to fifth graders. Here, we offer it to third graders.”
There were 13 stations providing students with a variety of hands-on, fun and educational experiences.
One of the stops was Fairfield Grist Mill, which offered the students hoecakes. The mill is operated by Sheryl and Shane Prater, and Henry and Kathy Colwell.
“They are cornbread pancakes,” says Sheryl. “During the week of the fair, we hand out 1,100 to 1,500 hoecakes. This was our 20th year doing this. We love it. For a lot of the kids, this is their first stop. We were their parents’ first stop. So, seeing that is wonderful.”
They grind and sell gluten-free cornmeal and grits, as well as Shane’s jams, jellies, and butters, which has become a staple at the fair.
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service brought an inflatable tunnel that was filled inside and out with educational information.
“We present the children with the work that we do, but we do it on a simple level,” said Soil Conservationist Makayla Johnson. “We ask them if they enjoy swimming. When they say that they do, we ask if they enjoy swimming in dirty water. They don’t. Then, we explain to them what we do. We’ve had some good groups in here today. The children asked lots of questions. We love participating in events like this one.”
Along with farm equipment, live animals were also on hand such as honeybees, two chickens, beef cattle, wool sheep, and one horse.
Beekeeper Donna Hennessee presented a hive encased in a see-through box.
“Most hives just have one queen,” she stated. “This one has two. For some reason, they tolerate each other.”
Third-grader Stokely Newman successfully pointed out one of the two queens. His mother says he loves insects, bugs and “basically, anything to do with entomology.”
The horse is owned by Caydra Parker.
“I’m with Warren Farmers Co-op,” said Parker. “This is my horse, Dancer. I talk to the children about how to care for a horse, their nutritional needs, exercise needs, and things like that. I get different reactions from them, but overall, it has been good.”
The beef cattle station quizzed the children: on which holiday weekend are the most hamburgers eaten. While no one knew. The presenter stated, “There are 150 million hamburgers eaten on Memorial Day weekend.”
McMinnville Electric System offered the students a look at Power Town, an educational tool that demonstrated safety around power poles and electricity in general. Employee Zach Haston asked, “How fast does electricity move through the lines?”
One child guessed that electricity moves at 186,792 miles per second.
“The earth is really big,” said Haston. “Imaging going around it five times in one second. That’s how fast electricity is. We like to refer to it as the speed of light. That’s how fast electricity moves.”
Among others in attendance were Middle Tennessee Nursery Association, Pioneer Grow & Go, Warren County UT Extension, and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
The event took place on Tuesday, Sept. 29, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.