Last updated on January 14th, 2025 at 11:57 am
Education for Agricultural Youth
Curriculum Topics
Say What? Protecting your Hearing
Youth growing up around agriculture are often exposed to noise hazards that can cause hearing loss. Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is common (and preventable) but unfortunately, most youth do not wear hearing protection. This lesson overviews ear anatomy, common noise hazards on a farm or ranch, how to prevent NIHL, and what PPE to wear.
Cover Up! Head-to-Toe Personal Protective Equipment
Agriculture has some of the highest rates of injury among all other occupations in the U.S., but injuries can be prevented if we use the right personal protective equipment (PPE). This lesson overviews common harmful exposures in farming and ranching and what PPE youth can use to prevent or reduce injuries and exposures.
NEW! Assign your students to take this interactive module about personal protective equipment as homework.
Stay Cool! Prevention of Heat-Related Illness
It is common for agricultural work to take place outdoors in hot environments. When the body temperature gets too high, heat-related illnesses occur. Every year, thousands of workers become sick from exposure to heat, and some even die. This lesson overviews the different types of heat-related illnesses, signs of life-threatening exposure, immediate care procedures, and more.
NEW! Assign your students to take this interactive module about heat-related illnesses as homework.
Stop Zoonosis in its Tracks! Prevention of Zoonosis
The majority of emerging infectious diseases in the U.S. are zoonotic in nature (transferable between animals and humans). Anyone who works or lives around animals might be at risk of exposure. This lesson overviews common zoonotic diseases including modes of transmission, signs and symptoms, and preventative measures.
Where Y’at? Using Mapping to Define Hazards in Agriculture
Agriculture is ranked as one of the most dangerous occupations, for both workers and families on the farm. But we can prevent injuries by being proactive. This lesson overviews major farm hazards that can cause injury or illness. Students learn how to identify and map out farm hazards so that they can either be eliminated or that safety procedures can be put in place around them.
Cultivating a Healthy Mind! Mental Wellness for Youth
Rates of depression and anxiety increase significantly during the ages of 12-17, and suicide is the second-leading cause of death for youth in the United States. This lesson opens an introductory discussion of mental health among teens and young adults with guidance from an adult educator. Focus is placed on decreasing stigma, improving mental health literacy, and instilling positive coping skills for youth. The module showcases a high-school agricultural student’s understanding of the agricultural mental health crisis, helping correlate mental health to academic and future career success.
NEW! Assign your students to take this interactive module about youth mental wellness as homework!
No Safe Way to Vape
This lessons aims to equip students with a comprehensive understanding of the health risks associated with vaping, debunk common myths, and foster critical thinking and informed decision-making skills. Through detailed exploration of vaping’s short-term and long-term effects, interactive discussions, and evidence-based counterarguments, students will learn to critically analyze misinformation.
How to Access These Curricula
AgriSafe’s IYH curricula were developed to increase positive health outcomes among agricultural youth by promoting knowledge, prevention, identification, and assessment of health threats commonly experienced by youth and young workers in agriculture. Our primary goal is to equip agricultural educators and mentors with ready-to-go lessons on important topics.
If you’d like to access these curricula online, create a free Learning Lab account and register for the Invest in Your Health series. Each train-the-trainer curriculum is available on-demand, including a recorded webinar plus the classroom presentation slides and a complementary activity guidebook.
Some of the trainings have been adapted into interactive student modules, which allow you to assign them to students as homework or to take in a computer lab during class.
- Personal Protective Equipment Student Module
- Heat-Related Illnesses Student Module
- Cultivating a Healthy Mind Student Module
If you’d like AgriSafe to conduct an in-person training, either the train-the-trainer or the student training, fill out this form for in-person training and select which IYH training you are interested in.
Questions? Email info@agrisafe.org.
The development of the IYH curricula was funded by CHS, Inc.