BOOK A CLASS, BIRTHDAY PARTY
To book a field trip visit http://www.mapleviewagcenter.com/fieldtrips.php
To plan a birthday party, visit http://www.mapleviewagcenter.com/bdayparties.php or call the center at (919) 942-6122
Families can also visit the center on weekends to visit the barnyard, hayrides, play set and gardens.
See http://www.mapleviewagcenter.com/ for details
By Erin Wiltgen
chh@heraldsun.com; 419-6654
HILLSBOROUGH -- It started in a kindergarten classroom during a nutrition activity. The kids cast confused looks and blank faces as Allison Nichols, the teacher, asked them where milk came from.
A little boy raised his hand, declaring that since there was a Coca Cola man, there had to be a milk man. But where were the milk machines?
Growing up on a farm, Nichols was dumbfounded. But out of her frustrations grew the Maple View Agricultural Center, opening its doors in April 2009.
Almost a year into its existence, the center has begun growing beyond its four classrooms and barnyard animals. On Monday, a local yoga instructor, Lynne Jaffe, will teach a trial class and hopefully begin an eight-week session. Nichols also hopes to start bringing in speakers on Wednesday nights to give lectures on horticulture and gardening, catered to adults, and next year wants to hold a craft fair for local artists before the holidays.
"There's just so much I want to do with it," Nichols said.
The Agricultural Center, a 6,000-square-foot facility with a large gathering space and four classrooms, teaches both children and adults about agriculture through a hands-on learning experience. The center has a barnyard with a variety of animals, including goats, cows, chicken and a llama. Each of the four classrooms focuses on a different aspect of agriculture.
"It's a little hidden treasure out in the countryside," said Bonnie Hauser, rural Orange County resident and member of Orange County Voice. "Even for an adult, it's a place of child-like wonder."
One room focuses on animals, teaching kids how butter is made and what cows eat. Another room holds lessons on things such as soil science and sustainable energy. Here, students learn how to compost and the different components of soil. As the instructor walks through the 15-minute lesson, the kids have a tray with clay, sand and silt so they can see what they're learning about.
"Unless a child can touch these things, smell these things, see these things, it doesn't mean anything," said Nichols, a certified teacher with a Master's in Education degree.
The other rooms focus on plants and insects. While each room has a general focus, specific lessons vary seasonally and upon teacher or parent request. Each topic ties back to agriculture, showing kids how soil, insects and weather can affect a farm.
"The kids really get into it," Nichols said. "They love it. It's nice to see them having fun and learning at the same time."
After the lesson, the students participate in various activities around the room and then visit the barnyard. Even in bad weather, the center ensures the kids don't miss this interactive portion with the animals.
"If you're planning a field trip to a farm, most farms can't accommodate in bad weather," Nichols said. "We'll have the kids in here, and we're bringing in wet goats. The fun doesn't stop just because it's raining."
Such dedication to education stems from Nichols' original motivation to open the center: teaching the basics of where food and clothes come from.
"I just think it's really disheartening for kids and adults not to be aware of how important agriculture is to their lives," she said. "Kids don't think that clothes are made from cotton and someone had to grow that cotton. The food they eat is grown on a farm somewhere."
But beyond just the basics of what farming is, the Agricultural Center also seeks to educate children and adults on sustainable agriculture and encourage supporting local production.
"I think it makes more sense to buy products that are grown in your back yard," Nichols said. "There's just that whole element of being conscientious of your surroundings and what's going on in your community."
And Maple View farm has always been focused on that sense of community, Nichols said. The Maple View Ice Cream store grew out of that vision.
"There's this need to promote the rural community so it doesn't disappear," she said. "The ice cream store is a community place where people can come together. It's kind of the same with the learning center."
