Activity Introduction

Quick summary: In this lesson, students learn about the importance of knowing how our food is produced by investigating the answers to the question: Why do we have the Show in the city? Students learn what agriculture and farming is, before considering how we are all connected to agriculture and farming. Students work in groups to respond to and annotate an image, describing how features of this image relate to agriculture and farming. Students then create a poster that describes how they are personally connected to agriculture and farming. Students present their posters as part of a gallery walk.

This lesson has been developed in partnership with The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria. For over 160 years, The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria (RASV) has been running the Royal Melbourne Show which, like other agricultural shows around the country, works to build the community’s knowledge and understanding of the vital role agriculture plays in our everyday lives. 

This year’s Royal Melbourne Show will be held between Saturday 21st to Tuesday 1st September.

Learning intentions:

  • Students will understand some of the ways we are all connected to farming and agriculture.
  • Students will understand the importance of knowing where their food comes from. 

21st century skills:

Australian Curriculum Mapping

Content descriptions: 

Year 5 HASS

  • Work in groups to generate responses to issues and challenges (ACHASSI102)
  • Present ideas, findings, viewpoints and conclusions in a range of texts and modes that incorporate source materials, digital and non-digital representations and discipline-specific terms and conventions(ACHASSI105)

Year 6 HASS

  • Work in groups to generate responses to issues and challenges (ACHASSI130)
  • Present ideas, findings, viewpoints and conclusions in a range of texts and modes that incorporate source materials, digital and non-digital representations and discipline-specific terms and conventions (ACHASSI133)

Year 5 & 6 Design and Technologies

  • Investigate how and why food and fibre are produced in managed environments and prepared to enable people to grow and be healthy (ACTDEK021)

Syllabus outcomes: GE3-4, ST3-11LW.

General capabilities: Critical and creative thinking.

Relevant parts of Year 5 HASS achievement standards: Students work with others to generate responses to an issue or challenge, and present their ideas, findings and conclusions in a range of communication forms using discipline-specific terms and appropriate conventions.

Relevant parts of Year 6 HASS achievement standards: Students collaboratively generate responses to an issue and present ideas, findings, viewpoints and conclusions in a range of communication forms that incorporate source materials, mapping, graphing, communication conventions and discipline-specific terms.

Relevant parts of Year 5 & 6 Design and Technologies achievement standards: Students explain how social, ethical, technical and sustainability considerations influence the design of solutions to meet a range of present and future needs.

Topic: Consumption.

Unit of work:  The Show – Connections To Farming And Agriculture – Years 5 & 6.

Time required: 60 mins.

Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – lead students in discussion and guide students through poster making and a gallery walk.

Resources required: Student Worksheets – one copy per student. Poster making materials. Pens/pencils. Device for taking photos (optional). Poster Assessment Rubric (one copy per student or equipment to project for the class to view). Treasure Hunt Sheet (one per student).

Keywords: The Show, farming, agriculture, food, fibre, poster.

Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.

Worksheets

Teacher Worksheet

Teacher preparation

Learning intentions:

  • Students will understand some of the ways we are all connected to farming and agriculture.
  • Students will understand the importance of knowing where their food comes from. 

Success criteria: Students can …

  • … explain why they need farming and agriculture for food and fibre, giving examples from their everyday life.
  • … work collaboratively.
  • … create a poster.

Teacher content information: For over 160 years, The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria (RASV) has been running the Royal Melbourne Show. Like other agricultural shows around the country, the Royal Melbourne Show aims to build the community's knowledge and understanding of the vital role agriculture plays in everyday life by providing opportunities for the community to experience and connect with a range of different aspects of farming and agriculture.

Visitors to the Show are given the opportunity to get up close to a range of farm animals, to meet the farmers who r

...
 
- or - to view worksheets

Student Worksheet

Thought starter: Why is farming and agriculture important to you?

A country Show in the city

1. Working in groups, discuss your answers the following questions and record your ideas on this worksheet. Although you should discuss your answers in their groups, each student needs to record their ideas in their own words on their own worksheet.

Question: If the Show is all about agriculture and farming, and most of this happens outside of cities, why do we have the Show in the city?
My answer: 

How are you connected to agriculture?

Working in your groups, have a look at the image below that shows a tasty breakfast.

Work in your groups to look closely at this picture and answer the following questions (again, each student should write their own answers in their own words):

2. What do you see in this picture?

 

3. How are the things in the picture connected to agriculture and farming? 

 

4. Annotate the image by adding labels to show how the items in the ima

...
 
- or - to view worksheets

Leave your Feedback

We appreciate your feedback. Let us know what you like or don't like about this activity:

Sorry. You must be logged in to view this form.