Discover Dairy
Dairy farmers work hard to bring fresh and wholesome milk products to the marketplace. Most farms are family-owned. As active members of their communities, farm families take pride in maintaining the environment. That means preserving the land where they live and work and protecting the quality of the air and water they share with neighbors. More importantly, it means providing the best care for their cows, which are the lifeblood of their business.
With less than 2 percent of the U.S. population involved in farming today, many people don’t have the opportunity to visit a dairy farm. Take a virtual tour and learn about life on a modern dairy farm. Visit the cow barn or milking parlor, see how dairy farmers care for their animals, or learn about the environmental practices that help grow healthy crops for cows. Whether you browse select videos or take the full tour, you’ll experience life on the farm like you’ve never seen it before.
Following are lesson plans and resources to teach students about the importance of dairy farming and life on a dairy farm.
Cows, Calcium, and Cheese
Cows, Calcium, and Cheese is an udderly fun-filled school program to teach K to 9th grade students about life on the farm, explore varied careers in agriculture, and consider nutrition concepts such as how calcium is linked to health. The program includes two free posters, a CD-ROM and activity guide. Assessment tool samples help educators address education standards.
MILK: It Does a Student Body Good!
For students in grades 1 to 3:
Cow, Cows and More Cows! lesson plan
Cow Outline activity sheet
This activity introduces cows as animals that make milk for people. Students learn about dairy cows and how milk is produced on a dairy farm.
Milk Made for You lesson plan
Rock-and-Roll Butter activity sheet
From Moo to You activity sheet
This activity outlines how milk is transported, processed and distributed. Students learn about the various processes that milk undergoes at the dairy processing plant as well as the different occupations people have within the dairy industry. Finally, students participated in a hands-on demonstration on how butter is made.
For students in grades 4 to 6:
Meet the Milk Makers lesson plan
A Dozen “Udderly Amazing” Facts about Dairy Cows activity sheet
Meet the Milk Makers word search
This activity introduces cows as the major milk producers in the U.S. Students learn about cows and how dairy farmers care for them, facts about dairy production, and the different breeds of dairy cows.
The Amazing Milk Machine lesson plan
Cow’s Digestive System fact sheet
This activity introduces students to the cow’s digestive system. Students learn about ruminant animals and the four-compartment stomach of the cow. Students learn about milk production and steps dairy farmers take to ensure the safety and wholesomeness of milk.
Moving Milk through the Dairy Plant lesson plan
This activity discusses milk processing. Students learn about pasteurization, homogenization and fortification, and steps taken by the dairy plant to ensure the wholesomeness of milk.
MILK: It Does a Student Body Good! was developed by Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association and Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program with funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
Discover DAIRY: Beyond the Refrigerator
This engaging, cross-curricular series of lessons teaches upper elementary students about where milk comes from and the many ways dairy farming contribute to our lives. Lesson topics include:
- Discover Dairy…And Animal Health
- Discover Dairy…And Milk Safety
- Discover Dairy…In the Environment
- Discover Dairy…In the Community
- Discover Dairy…And Nutrition
In addition to the lesson plans, Discover DAIRY includes video clips, assessment-based worksheets, reading pamphlets and interactive games. Lesson plans meet Pennsylvania Department of Education standards and assessment anchors for math, science, health education and reading.
Discover DAIRY: Beyond the Refrigerator was produced by the Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program with assistance from Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association, the Center for Dairy Excellence and the Pennsylvania Dairy Task Force.
Operation Dairy
This fun and engaging online game will test your knowledge of modern dairy farming. Targeted to 6- to 13-year-olds, Operation Dairy tests the knowledge of visitors using videos clips from the Discover Dairy lesson series. Game players must collect 12 unique dairy tokens to win their prize, a choice of three different personalized certificates they can print from their home computer.
More Dairy Activities!
Dairy Fun Pages
Have a Milk Mustache Photo Contest!
Mix It with Milk Party Master
Milk from Cow to You Link
Where’s the Dairy?
Where’s the Dairy? answer sheet