Farm Field Studies

For Educators

The Farm Field Studies Program offers farm field trips to K-12 school groups from throughout the Bay Area in the Spring and Fall. The program is made possible thanks to the support of Autodesk, Bank of Marin, Clover-Stornetta Farms, Earl's Organics, Good Earth Natural Foods, Veritable Vegetable, Straus Family Creamery and Gerald Thompson on behalf of the C. M. van Vlierden Trust.

For information about our Education Program, contact Constance Washburn, Director of Education at 415-663-1338 or cwashburn@malt.org.

Farm Field Studies Program

How to Apply for a Field Trip

Download an application, and follow the instructions for submitting the form:

2011–2012 Field Trip Application (PDF)

Once you are registered for a field trip, you’ll receive a packet in the mail with forms and info you need. Copies of these forms can also be downloaded here:

About the Farm Field Studies Program

MALT offers the Farm Field Studies Program (FFS) to Bay Area schools. Fifty percent of Marin's land-use base is tied to agriculture, yet many Bay Area children have never set foot on a working farm. Our program offers an opportunity for hands-on learning at a local farm or ranch about the natural world, our food supply, nutrition, the local economy, and our rich California history.

We offer curriculum aids, including maps of Marin agriculture, science and nature activity kits, and lesson plans which correlate to the California Department of Education Frameworks for math, science, history-social science, and English-language arts.

In-classroom presentations are offered to all teachers to prepare students for their on farm experience. The in classroom presentation greatly increase the educational value and quality of the farm field trip. Please contact Farm Educator Sandy Dierks at sdierks@malt.org or 415-868-0205.

Our standard fee is $175 per class per field trip; financial assistance is available by request. Farm field trips are offered September through November; and March through June by application. Participating schools are selected on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information please contact Education Department staff, at ffs@malt.org, or 415-663-1158.

In Classroom Presentations

Sandy Dierks, farmer and educator for the Farm Field Studies Program, is available to come into classrooms for half hour presentations to prepare students for their farm visits.  This includes why Marin Agricultural Land Trust preserves farm land using a map of the county, information about the farm visit with interactive materials, and Eating the Rainbow, the nutrition component with a colorful poster and quilt.  She will be at the farm to greet children, teachers and parents for their tour. Teachers have found this in-classroom introduction to the farm greatly increases the educational value and quality of the on farm experience

Please contact Sandy Dierks to schedule a presentation at sdierks@malt.org or 415-868-0205

Why I Teach About Farming and Agriculture

Lisa Hanley, Loma Verde Elementary School, Novato, CA

“What is that?” asked the curious third grader. “That is a green bean,” replied the farmer. “No, that can’t be a green bean because it didn’t come out of a can!” insisted the misinformed student. This was one a-ha moment for me as an educator; Students need to learn about the importance of healthy food. I have been teaching about agriculture for the past 10 years. I was inspired by the Teacher’s Summer Agricultural Institute put on by MALT. I was enthralled with West Marin, meeting dedicated farmers, and learning how agriculture is a critical part of our communities. During that inspiring summer I was allowed the time to plan looking at state science and social studies standards. I noticed that a farm field trip would meet many of the standards expected at my grade level. Over the years I have incorporated more reading and writing to develop project-based learning units. I have an extensive library of farming/ag books used in fiction and non-fiction reading. Students write narrative and expository text as well as poetry based on projects we are exploring. We have developed a class garden that we use for bi-monthly cooking classes. Because of this work, students are more aware of where their food comes from, how farmers create healthy habitats for plants and animals and provide healthy products for healthy communities. Students learn they are stewards of the land also and each of us has a responsibility to care for our planet.

Teacher In-service and Staff Development Tours

Over the last few years MALT has offered very successful tours for school staff. We visit several local farms and educate about Marin agriculture as well as teach how to link the food and farm experience to California Content Standards from science and nutrition to social studies and literacy. We would be happy to accommodate your school staff in this exciting and fun way to learn directly from the farmers who grow our food. MALT Education Director, Constance Washburn, M.A. in Education, has taught at Dominican College and can arrange for continuing education credits for teachers.

Core Participating Farms & Visual Lesson Plans

Paradise Valley Farm – Dennis & Sandy Dierks, Bolinas, California
Sandy and Dennis Dierks

Dennis and Sandy grow and sell organic row crops. They work hard to build healthy soil in order to grow vegetables and greens of the highest possible nutritional value. The tour normally starts with a lecture from Dennis near the enormous compost pile as he explains the soil nutrient cycle.

After the lecture, students will visit the greenhouse to plant seeds and discuss the plant life cycle, followed by a lesson on the restoration of salmon-spawning habitat in adjacent Pine Gulch Creek, and a visit to the creek to capture and study various life forms. Other seasonal, hands-on activities might include planting beds or harvesting fruits or vegetables.

Click on the titles for visual lesson plans on the The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Bugs (7.4 MB), Basic Nutrient Cycle (PDF 3.3 MB), Soil Nutrient Cycle (PDF 2.8 MB), Parts of a Plant (PDF 2.9 MB), and Coho Salmon Life Cycle (PDF 3.6 MB) that are appropriate for this farm location.

Tresch Dairy – Kathy & Joe Tresch, Two Rock, California
Kathy Tresch

The Tresch family has been in the California dairy business since Joe´s family emigrated from Switzerland to California in the 1870s. The dairy at Two Rock has been worked by four generations of the Tresch family, and was certified organic in 1996. All the milk goes to the Straus Family Creamery in Marshall, where it is used for the Straus product line of milk, cream, butter, and yogurt.

Students will learn the farm-to-market process of an organic dairy´s milk, bottle-feed a calf, visit the milking barn, and have the chance to churn and taste butter. During a walk out to the heirloom apple orchard, they will learn about the life cycle of dairy cows, sustainable agricultural methods that care for the environment, and the important role farms play in preserving watershed and wildlife habitat.

Click on the title for visual lesson plans on The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Bugs (7.4 MB), Cows and Milk Production (PDF 3.2 MB), Chicken Life Cycle (PDF 2.5 MB), Parts of a Plant (PDF 2.9 MB), and Pond Life (PDF 4.2 MB) that are appropriate for this farm location.

Windrush Farm – Mimi Luebermann, Chileno Valley, Petaluma, California
Windrush Farm

Windrush Farm is an old-fashioned farm where Mimi raises much of her food, including goats, chickens, and vegetables. Mimi raises sheep, alpaca, and llamas for their wool, which she cleans and cards, then spins into yarn, which she dyes. The students will get a lesson on this process, as well as a discussion of wool products.

The students will learn about the frog life cycle at the farm pond, where they can capture and release tadpoles and small frogs. Pond kits will be provided for study of other water creatures. The MALT docent will also conduct a lesson on the food chain, from grinding wheat for flour, to baking bread, time permitting.

Click on the titles for visual lesson plans on The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Bugs (7.4 MB), Sheep (PDF 3.1 MB), Chicken Life Cycle (PDF 2.5 MB), Grains (PDF 3 MB), and Pond Life (PDF 4.2 MB) that are appropriate for this farm location.

Drake’s Bay Family Farms - The Lunny family, Point Reyes, California
Drakes Estero

The Lunny family has been farming and ranching around Drakes Estero for four generations. Today, there are two operations that sustain the family: organic, grass-fed beef cattle and oyster production.

A tour at Drakes Bay Family Farms includes a discussion of sustainable agriculture and why eating organic meat is important, a walk through pasture land, a lesson on aquaculture, a hands-on activity stringing oyster shells for hanging in the bay, and a chance to taste the oysters of Drakes Estero.

Click on the title for a visual lesson plans on The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Beef (4 MB), and Oysters (PDF 2.8 MB), that are appropriate for this farm location.

Gospel Flat Farm – Don & Mickey Murch, Bolinas, California
Gospel Flat Farm

In 1982, Don Murch and Sarah Hake moved onto the last farm on the Pine Gulch Creek delta, to an area once known as the Gospel Flat for the four churches that previously existed there. They reclaimed the fields from a decade of trash buildup. Don, Sarah, and their sons Mickey and Kater farm in a variety of styles, and raise organic vegetables and flowers. The farm is increasingly dedicated to its role in community not only as a provider of local vegetables, but inspiration towards handmade food through mobile kitchen workshops, after-school education, and school tours. Mickey is a charismatic farmer/educator who takes students to visit animals, pick vegetables, and investigate the pond.

Click on the titles for visual lesson plans on the The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Basic Nutrient Cycle (PDF 3.3 MB), Soil Nutrient Cycle (PDF 2.8 MB), Parts of a Plant (PDF 2.9 MB), and Coho Salmon Life Cycle (PDF 3.6 MB) that are appropriate for this farm location.

Bianchini Ranch/Bivalve Dairy –John & Karen Taylor, just north of Point Reyes Station, California
Gospel Flat Farm

John and Karen Taylor run a herd of approximately 200 dairy cows on this historic 750-acre ranch. Karen is a sixth-generation Marin dairywoman, and she and John converted their dairy herd to organic in 2006 and now produce quality organic milk for Clover Stornetta Farms.

The Taylors’ cows are fed on pasture for most of the year. When the pastures wane in late summer, they must feed the herd a TMR - Total Mixed Ration — to meet the cows’ nutritional needs. The ration is made up of silage raised on the ranch mixed with various feeds and supplements. To protect Tomales Bay, the Taylors work closely with governmental agencies and practice erosion prevention and good pasture and water quality management to meet the necessary environmental regulations. Karen and John have three children, who they hope represent the 7th generation of dairy ranchers to work and care for this land.

Click on the title for visual lesson plans on The Farmer as Steward (7.9 MB), Cows and Milk Production (PDF 3.2 MB), and Total Mixed Ration (PDF 2.9 MB) that are appropriate for this farm location.

Additional Marin Farms

Other farms and ranches are available for FFS field trips. If you are interested in specific agricultural industries or issues, please contact Education Department staff, at ffs@malt.org, or 415-663-1158.

Resources for Teachers

Curriculum and Lessons

Visual Lesson Plans

California Content Standards with Links to Farm Activities

More facts about agriculture in Marin County, California, are found in the
Amazing BUT TRUE fact sheet (PDF 1.1 MB).

Download a Marin County Farms and Ranches Map here. (PDF 2.7 MB)
edmapposter

Grown in Marin, the website of the University of California Cooperative Extension, has extensive resources for educators, including Food For Thought: Agricultural Activities for Growing Minds, a classroom activity guide for grades 3-6.