2008 Agricultural Technology Contest, April 5, 2008

2008 Ag Technology Contest/Middle School Agriscience Contest Event Rules

Questions contact the AgEd Dept at (715) 425-3555 or jessica.pries@uwrf.edu

Middle School Agriscience Contest:

This contest, open to any middle school student, will consist of 5 different areas: Plant Science, Animal Science, Agricultural Mechanics, Food Science, and FFA. Each student will complete all 5 sections of the contest. The team score will be calculated by adding the top 2 individiual scores.

Content:

A. Plant Science:

The middle school plant science career development event will consist of five activities:

• Weed Identification
• Plant Identification
• Seed Identification
• Plant Processes
• Plant Science Terms

Event Format:

Weed Identification – Students will need to be able to identify the following weeds:

Plant Identification – Students need to be able to identify the following common plants by their scientific name.

Seed Identification – Students must be able to identify the following seeds.

Plant Processes: -  Students should understand the following concepts

Terms – Students should be able recognize the following terms:                                                               

Tap root, fibrous root, stems, xylem, phloem, cambium, complete flower, incomplete flower, pistil, ovary, ovule, stigma, style, stamen, anther, filament, pollen, seed, embryo, seed coat, endosperm, leaves, chloroplast, sepal, receptacle, transpiration, respiration, tropism, photosynthesis, fertilization, germination, asexual propagation grafting, separating and sexual propagation, bulb, corm, bud, leaf scar, bud scar, auxiliary and terminal bud

B. Animal Science:

Identification:
Students will be asked to identify a total of 20 different breeds from the lists below from a posted picture.  The list is exhaustive for the competition, but not all breeds will be present.  Answers will be multiple choice.

Beef/Dairy:                            Sheep:                                     Swine:
Angus                                     Columbia                               Berkshire
Brown Swiss                          Dorset                                     Chester White
Charolais                                Finnsheep                               Duroc
Guernsey                                Hampshire                             Landrace
Holstein                                  Rambouillet                           Hampshire
Jersey                                     Suffolk                                   Poland China
Limousin                                Merino                                    Yorkshire
Polled Hereford
Simmental

Horses:                                                                                  
Quarter Horse           Clydesdale                                         
Paint                           Belgian                                              
Appaloosa                  Tennessee Walker
Arabian                      Palomino
Thoroughbred          

Small Animal:
Dog breeds:                            Cat Breeds:                Rabbits:
BeagleSiamese                       Angora          
Basset Hound                         Bombay                      Californian
Doberman Pinscher              Egyptian Mau            Dutch 
Border Collie                         Scottish Fold              English Lop
Welsh Corgi                           Persian                       Rex
English Setter                        Himalayan                  Polish

Terms:
Students will be asked to answer a total of 20 different questions from the lists below on the exam.  The list is exhaustive for the competition, but not all questions will be present.  Answers will be multiple choice or true/false.

Terms for the following questions in these eight species, when applicable:
Cats, Cattle, Dogs, Goats, Horses, Poultry, Sheep, Swine
            -Males of breeding age
            -Mature female
            -Young male
            -Young female
            -Newborn
            -Unsexed male
            -Unsexed female
            -Groups
            -Genus
            -Act of parturition
            -Length of gestation

Questions referring to definitions and topics about:
            -Animal Science and husbandry
            -Types of animals (domesticated, tame, feral, wild)
            -Typical market weights for market animals
            -Purposes of different husbandry tools
            -Parts of the cow (picture will be provided with arrows pointing to specific parts to be labeled)

C. Ag Mechanics:

Students should know be able to identify the majority of the following hand tools by photograph or actual tool.

• Measuring tools
• Saws
• Chisels and files
• Cutters
• Wrench
• Drills
• Hammers
• Clamps
• Pliers
• Screwdrivers
• Wrenches
• Landscaping tools

Students should know the definitions of a layout tool, a cutting tool, a boring tool, a holding tool, tuning tool, digging tool, and a driving too; with the knowing these definition to be able to place certain hand tools into correct category.
Students should also be able to identify the following:

• Staple
• Parts of a screw
• Stripped screw
• Types of screw heads
• Types of nuts

Students should know the definition of a penny in regards to nails. 

D. Food Science:

Terms for Test

• Drying
• Jerky
• Pickling
• Salting
• Canning
• Blanching
• Freeze-drying
• Mad Cow Disease
• USDA
• Pesticide residues
• E. coli bacteria
  

Cheese Identification

• Cheddar
• Bleu
• Brie
• Munster
• Gouda

Processing Plan (team aspect)
Prior to the contest each team need to create a processing diagram that illustrates the steps a food product follows from ray materials to finished product. Each team must pick one of the items listed below and create a written plan prior to the contest. If a school has more than one team then each team must pick a different food from the list.


• Hot dogs
• Ice cream
• Jelly
• Processed cheese
• Chocolate chip cookies

E. FFA

Terms:

• FFA mission
• Classrom/Laboratory
• SAE
• FFA Emblem
• FFA Colors
• FFA Motto
• Discovery Degree

Dates:

• Smith-Hughes Act
• FFA established
• FFA Jacket adopted
• NFA founded
• FFA Week established
• FFA and NFA merge
• FFA opened to female students
• National FFA Alumni founded
• Name change to National FFA Organization
• National FFA Center in Indianapolis opens
• FFA Discovery Degree added

References:

Exploring Agriscience, 3rd Edition, by Ray V. Herren. Published by Thomson - Delmar Learning. ISBN 10: 1401896448

Official FFA Student Handbook.

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