DENVER (AP) – Education took center stage at the National Western Stock Show Saturday. The final weekend of the event featured exhibitions and performances dedicated to teaching kids about agriculture and Western culture.
Colorado State University partnered with National Western to present a hands-on learning experience called Ag Adventure. Families who participated learned about animal and crop production with the help of CSU students, volunteers and some agriculture-themed music videos.
“It’s to teach kids about different facets of agriculture,” said Caroline Conver, a CSU senior and National Western volunteer. “If we can teach kids, hopefully we can get them interested in agriculture.”
Kids who participated in the exhibit learned to milk a cow with the help of an electronic, water-powered cow named June. Volunteers also used a transparent plant bed to show children and their families how potatoes grow.
Ashley Higgins , the education assistant for National Western, said she wanted kids to leave the stock show with a better understanding of what’s in their food and where it comes from.
“The biggest thing is that your food doesn’t come from a grocery store,” Higgins said. “It’s making that connection for people between the cute cow they saw on stage here and the burger on their plate.”
Parents who brought their children to Saturday’s events echoed that goal.
Denver resident Julie Rottier said she wanted to expose her kids to something they haven’t necessarily learned about in school.
“We were really looking for kid events and an opportunity to see the animals,” Rottier said, noting that her son Jackson was intimidated by a goat at the stock show’s petting zoo. “I want them to understand that this is a whole aspect of our world.”
Amber Sampson from Parker said she had a similar mission.
Only a few hours into their visit, she said, her 4-year-old son had already learned how to make his own rope.
“I want him to see that there’s more out there than video games, and there are people who work hard for what we have,” she said.
