Farm to Fork

On Tuesday I was able to assist Woodbury County’s Americorps Intern Emily with the Farm to Fork Camp. During this camp, the campers were able to learn about where the food they eat comes from. They learned about the five food groups from MyPlate which are: protein, dairy, grains, fruits, and vegetables. We talked about how exactly the food that they consume every day comes from farms all over the United States. Some of the campers were surprised by this statement, which to me was shocking, but watching them learn something new brought a smile to my face. They also learned how to use a knife safely in the kitchen and all about different utensils that are used when cooking. Once Emily and I were done teaching, we were able to go to Woodbury County’s teaching kitchen to help them make their own mini pizzas before the camp concluded. The mini pizza’s ingredients consisted of pepperoni, cheese, bell peppers, tomato sauce, and we used biscuits for the dough. All of the kids were really excited to get to take what they learned in the classroom and take that into the kitchen to make their own pizzas. They each got to choose what they wanted to put on their pizzas and once they were done baking all of the campers got to enjoy their mini pizzas. Each camper expressed their excitement about how good their pizza tasted!

• Photo 1: Farm to Fork camper adding ingredients to her mini pizza
• Photo 2: Placing all the very unique mini pizzas into the oven
• Photo 3: Campers watching as the tomato sauce is added

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Sioux City Farmers Market: PoP Club

Wednesday brought me to the Sioux City Farmers Market where I was able to teach kids about the PoP Club. PoP stands for Power of Produce and through the PoP Club, we are able to teach kids ages 4-12 about fresh produce. At this PoP Club, I planned a lesson to teach kids about gardening, with the help of Shawn Tabke, Woodbury County’s Horticulture Coordinator. Each of the kids who chose to participate got the opportunity to make and take egg carton seeds. They each had the opportunity to spin the wheel to decide what seed they would get to plant. The wheel was a hit, because who doesn’t like to spin a wheel? After our time at the Sioux City Farmers Market concluded we totaled our numbers and we had a little over 40 kids participate and join PoP Club! Seeing that big of a number was very exciting! Next week I will be bringing the PoP Club to two different farmer’s markets in Moville and Akron! Stay tuned for next week’s posts about PoP Club!

• Photo 1: All set up and ready to go for PoP Club!
• Photo 2: PoP member getting the opportunity to spin the wheel to decide which seed she would get to plant in her egg carton
• Photo 3: Shawn teaching a PoP member about planting seeds

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Recap of the Remainder of the Week

The rest of my time during the week was spent helping with getting everything ready for the fairs. Fair season is in full swing in all three counties! The Monona County Fair is up first and is quickly approaching. Yesterday I was in Onawa, which is where the Monona County office is. I spent most of my day cross-checking paperwork to make sure each exhibitor had everything that they needed to be completed on FairEntry. In two weeks I will be at the Monona County Fair getting to help where I am needed, but I will mainly be at all of the livestock shows. 

On Monday evening I was able to travel to Lemars for the Plymouth County Extension Council meeting. I had the opportunity to sit in on their meeting and get to tell their council members exactly what I have been doing so far over the summer! Plymouth County Fair is a little over a week after Monona’s fair. I am excited to get to help at the livestock shows in Plymouth County as well. The Woodbury County Fair is the last of the three counties, which will be where I am spending the last week of my internship. This week I had the opportunity to design the trophies for the Woodbury County Fair, which will be given to each of the respected winners at all of the livestock shows. 

• Introducing myself to the Plymouth County Extension Council

In the weeks to come, I know that I will be very busy helping with everything that all of the fairs entail, PoP Club, a few summer camps, and finishing up my internship. I am excited for what is coming ahead but this internship has gone by so quickly! 

Autumn, Region 6

Hello everyone! Last week was another busy, but fun-filled week! 

On Monday, I went to Roundy Elementary School in Louisa County to coach at the Soccer For Success camp. I coach the very energetic group of 1st and 2nd graders! This camp is great because they learn not only about soccer, but about healthy eating and nutrition. They have learned so much about both and are improving greatly in their soccer skills. 

On Tuesday, I went to the Mediapolis Library Program in Des Moines County. We read the kids a book called One Red Dot. Then, they were able to put their skills to the test and create a sculpture out of Play-Doh. The kids were so creative and amazed me with their sculpting skills! Then in the afternoon, I went to Lee County to prepare for the Montrose Farmers’ Market later in the evening. At the Montrose Farmers’ Market, we made and served samples of a creamy cauliflower salad. People who tried it loved it! We gave out the recipe and had a few other salad recipes that we thought people might enjoy for the summer. We also had participants spin the wheel to win a prize. The most popular prized was the chip clip. It was a great evening and we plan on going back again in July.

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On Wednesday, I went to Roundy Elementary School in Louisa County to coach at the Soccer For Success camp. I coach the very energetic group of 1st and 2nd graders! They are learning to properly dribble, pass, and all about making healthy decisions when it comes to food! These kids are a blast and have even taught myself so much.

On Thursday, I went to Henry County to plan for our upcoming activity with Lincoln Elementary Summer School in Mt. Pleasant. I then went to Roundy Elementary School in Louisa County to coach at the Soccer For Success camp. From there I traveled down to Des Moines County to the Jefferson Street Farmers’ Market where we do PoP Club. This week kids learned about the difference in fruits and vegetables by playing some trivia. They also were able to try some freshly picked cucumbers.  We had an Armenian cucumber that most of the kids had never seen or eaten before. Most of the kids loved it! 

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On Saturday, I went to Langwood Education Center in Louisa County for the Langwood Outdoor Adventure day. (Pictures to come!) This was for 4-6th graders. They made some dog toys as a community service project that will be donated to the animal shelters. Then they participated in a low ropes course and really worked on learning how to work as a team and how to properly communicate with others. Kids then went on a nature walk in which they learned about edible and non edible plants. The kids loved getting a snack and were so shocked by some of the plants they could eat! They also learned how to canoe and loved being out on the water. We also had a DNR officer come and teach the kids how to fish and we had a couple catch some! Kids then put their feet to use and participated in a kickball tournament! This really brought out their competitive sides and they had a lot of fun. They then learned how to make foil packs and made chicken, potato, and green bean foil packs to grill. They learned how to properly start a fire and while their packs were on the grill, they made s’mores over the fire. Overall, it was a great experience for everyone and they had a blast! 

It was another busy week and this next week is winding down and counties are preparing for fair. Come back to see what I do this week! 

-Catie 

This has been a crazy week here in northwest Iowa. Everything has been kicked into high gear, but we’re still having fun.

First off, I would like to include a link to my blog post from last week. I did something wrong and it didn’t get posted right. So, my apologies about that!

Opportunities and Roadblocks | Week 6 in Region 1

Peas and Mingling

This week was a fun week at PoP Club! The kids played Vendor Bingo! To get a bingo, the kids had to go around to the vendors at the farmers’ market and interact with them. The interactions consisted of asking the vendors questions, learning about the vendors’ operations, and telling the vendors about themselves. The vendors absolutely LOVED this activity. They got to meet the kids, and the kids got to learn more about the production process. Additionally, the kids got to interact with vendors that don’t sell items that can be bought with PoP tokens, such as honey, jam, and soap vendors. After they got a Bingo, they got a balloon and had the opportunity to try sugar snap peas. If they tried the peas, they got to join the official taste tester club and got a sticker to prove it. Most of the kids liked the sugar snap peas, and we only had a few that didn’t like them.

Additionally, I finished creating the July PoP Club booklet, and those will be available soon. We give out booklets every month to our PoP Club members that are full of activities that the kids can complete related to the activities that we are doing in PoP Club.

COWS!!!

For anyone who knows me, they know that I love cows. When I’m driving down the road and I see cows, I always let out a high-pitched “COWS!” squeal. This has even become a game between my boyfriend and myself. Whoever sees the cows first will let out the first squeal, which is sometimes followed by a secondary squeal from the other person. So, when I found out that I got to spend the day with our Beef Specialist Beth Doran, I was beyond excited.

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to spend a day with Beth at the Feedlot Forum in Sioux Center, IA. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Feedlot Forum event had to be postponed from January to June. This event is organized by ISU Extension and Outreach and the Cattlemen’s Association of Lyon, Sioux, and Plymouth counties. I enjoyed having the opportunity to see some of the programs our specialists create every year and see them in action. I learned a lot about beef cattle, the beef industry, and beef policies that I didn’t know before. I would definitely recommend attending a program that is put on by Beth Doran! They are very interactive, informative, and worth it. The day went by so fast!

Festival Latino

So, I grew up relatively close to Orange City, IA, but I had never heard about Festival Latino until this week. This is a festival that occurs annually and celebrates Latino culture and heritage. There were food trucks, horse shows, live bands, and kids’ activities at the event. This is where I came in. Sioux County ISU Extension and Outreach had a booth, and I helped with it. Our Beef Specialist Beth Doran had a table and handed out beef meat cut flyers, coloring books, pencils, and the cutest squishy hamburger keychains. I helped Donna Mills, the Sioux County PROSPER team leader and Master Gardener Coordinator, with her table. Kids and adults had the opportunity to plant hens and chicks succulents to take home. It was a hit, and we planted many plants (I’m not sure of the exact number). It was a lot of fun to spend time with the Latino community and be immersed in their culture. Before I knew it, our time was up, and it was time to clean up and go home. The 2 hours flew by fast, and it felt like we were there for only 30 minutes. I wish that I would have taken more pictures of all the festivities there. If you are ever in the Orange City Area at the end of June, make sure to spend some time at Festival Latino!

This week has flown by so fast, and it was such a fun week. Fairs start for me next week, so wish me luck as I head into the busy fair season!

Have a great 4th of July weekend!

-Alex