HARDIN COUNTY, Ky. — Creekside Elementary School in Hardin County is one of the few schools in Kentucky to have an agricultural education program for elementary students.

Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, D-Ky., signed a proclamation at the school for AG Education Week and checked out their curriculum.

“Kids get their hands dirty, they’re out in the sunshine, they’re working together, they’re solving problems, and they’re doing it all through the lens of agriculture,” Coleman said.

In agriculture class, students learn about subjects like pollination, crops, dairy and animal farms.

“They go just how they would go to art, P.E., or music. They love AG class.” Brooke Custis, the principal of Creekside Elementary, said.

Students have eight acres of land for hands-on activity, creating an opportunity to improve test scores.

Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Shell, R-Ky., said, “When you’re building a barn, you’re using geometry. When you’re trying to figure out how many grains are in a grain bin, you’re using volume-metrics.”

This could also help keep future farmers in the commonwealth.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture census on Kentucky farms, from 2002 to 2022, the number of farms has dwindled from over 86,000 to just over 69,000.

“We’re catching these kids enough to where they gain that interest. Maybe they’re not directly going into farming. Maybe it’s beyond that. Maybe it’s genetics, maybe it’s marketing, maybe it’s around attorneys for agriculture, which we desperately need,” Shell said.

According to a peer-reviewed article by the University of Buffalo, students are more likely to succeed and retain information with hands-on learning.

Coleman said she hopes this curriculum will continue to help young Kentuckians.

“It’s an amazing outcome for kids because you don’t always remember what people tell you, but you’ll remember what you did,” Coleman said.