Cotton and its Boll vs the Peanut and its Hull

Need an excuse to volunteer? If you've got a hankering to get involved in education through an agricultural lens, Florida Agriculture in the Classroom is making it easy.

This year’s Agriculture Literacy Day book is Cotton and its Boll versus the Peanut and its Hull. The story introduces students to two crops deeply rooted in Florida agriculture, showing how cotton and peanuts grow, how they are harvested, and how they become everyday products many people never think twice about.

That connection matters now more than ever. According to the most recent Census of Agriculture, the number of farms in the United States declined by 7 percent between 2017 and 2022. Fewer farms means fewer direct connections to agriculture for today’s students.

Volunteer readers from the agriculture community help bridge that gap by bringing real experience into the classroom. Teachers also receive supporting resources that explore plant parts, equipment used in production, and end products tied to each crop.

There is no set date to participate. Volunteers and schools simply choose a time that works. For Florida volunteers, free copies of the book are available by signing up online at https://faitc.org/ag-literacy-day/. While developed in Florida, the program easily translates to classrooms across the Southeast, where cotton and peanuts remain a major part of the regional economy.