FaceTime a Farmer - connecting classrooms and farms across the UK

Posted on: 22/11/2018

A new initiative is educating young people and the wider public regarding the agricultural industry as a whole.

At a recent event Chris Danks, of the KTN Agri-Food Team, was very impressed by a presentation  about the FaceTime a Farmer initiative, which included a live demonstration.

A surprising number of children (and even some adults) simply do not understand how the food on our plates is produced, let alone how much technology is now deployed on UK farms. Through the FaceTime a Farmer initiative children are able to learn about food production direct from the frontline of agriculture.

FaceTime a Farmer started with one farm linking up with a class once a fortnight through the spring and summer terms to discuss farming issues with the children, running in tandem with relevant aspects of the curriculum. It has since been successfully piloted across the East of England and is now being rolled out nationwide.

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The FaceTime a Farmer team have joined forces with LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) and FACE (Farming and Countryside Education) to expand the program and allow more teachers and their classes to connect with their own knowledgeable farmer. They are offering to facilitate FaceTime or Skype calls between farmers and schools across the UK.

Chris Danks said:

“Farmer Tom presented at the YFFRN Conference ‘Defining a Future for Yorkshire Farming’ last Thursday, 15th November, alongside¬†debates¬†on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and Brexit¬†with questions for ministers. The excitement¬†from the audience of Yorkshire farmers, when they got to see the kids responding to questions and giving their¬†feedback, live, was palpable.”

The FaceTime a Farmer website has information for farmers who would like to share their knowledge of the countryside and the UK’s modern, high-tech agricultural industry, and for teachers who feel that their classes would benefit from this interaction.

You can find out more on the FaceTime a Farmer website by clicking here.

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