Middle School Agriscience

Contest Description and Rules:

Please direct questions to:

Chanyn McGinnis (chanyn.mcginnis@uwrf.edu) or Erin Lynch (erin.lynch@uwrf.edu)
Student Co-Chairs

Middle School Agriscience Contest:

This contest, open to any middle school student, will consist of 5 different areas: Plant Science, Animal Science, Agricultural Mechanics, Food Science, and FFA. Each student will complete all 5 sections of the contest through identification and multiple choice questions. Teams can consist of up to 5 students and the team score will be calculated by adding the top 2 overall individual scores.

Content:

A. Plant Science:

The middle school plant science career development event will consist of five activities:

Weed Identification, Plant Identification, Seed Identification, Plant Processes, and Plant Science Terms

Weed Identification – Students will need to be able to identify the following weeds:
• Canadian Thistle
• Lambsquarter
• Cocklebur
• Quack grass
• Dandelion
• Ragweed
• Green foxtail
• Velvet leaf
• Jimsonweed
• Wild mustard

Plant Identification – Students need to be able to identify the following common plants by their scientific name.
• African Violet / Saintpaulia species
• Rex Begonia /Begonia rex
• Rubber Plant / Ficus elastica
• Peace Lily / Spathiphyllum species
• Heartleaf Phildendron/Philodendron scandens oxycardium
• Aluminum Plant /Pilea cardierei
• Snake Plant/ Sansevieria trifasciata
• English Ivy / Hedera helix
• Spider Plant / Chlorophytum commosum
• Wandering Jew /Zebrina pendula

Seed Identification – Students must be able to identify the following seeds.
• Barley
• Rye
• Corn
• Soybeans
• Oats
• Wheat
• Sorghum

Plant Processes ‐ Students should understand the following concepts:
• Photosynthesis
• Transpiration
• Respiration
• Propagating
• Tropism (geo, hydro, photo)

Terms – Students should be able recognize the following terms:
Tap root, fibrous root, stems, xylem, phloem, cambium, complete flower, incomplete
flower, pistil, ovary, ovule, stigma, style, stamen, anther, filament, pollen, seed, embryo,
seed coat, endosperm, leaves, chloroplast, sepal, receptacle, transpiration, respiration,
tropism, photosynthesis, fertilization, germination, asexual propagation grafting,
separating and sexual propagation, bulb, corm, bud, leaf scar, bud scar, auxiliary and
terminal bud

B. Animal Science:

Identification:

Beef/Dairy:	Sheep:	Swine:	Horses:
Angus	Columbia	Berkshire	Quarter Horse
Brown Swiss	Dorset	Chester White	Clydesdale
Charolais	Finnsheep	Duroc	Paint
Guernsey	Hampshire	Landrace	Belgian
Holstein	Rambouillet	Hampshire	Appaloosa
Jersey	Suffolk	Poland China	Tennessee Walker
Limousin	Merino	Yorkshire	Arabian
Polled Hereford			Palomino
Simmental			Thoroughbred


Dog breeds	Cat Breeds	Rabbits
Beagle	Siamese	Angora
Basset Hound	Bombay	Californian
Doberman Pinscher	Egyptian Mau	Dutch
Border Collie	Scottish Fold	English Lop
Welsh Corgi	Persian Rex	Polish
English Setter	Himalayan

Terms:

Terms for the following questions in these eight species (Cats, Cattle, Dogs, Goats,
Horses, Poultry, Sheep, and Swine) when applicable:
• Males of breeding age
• Mature female
• Young male
• Young female
• Newborn
• Unsexed male
• Unsexed female
• Groups
• Genus
• Act of parturition
• Length of gestation

Identification:
• Parts of the English & Western saddle
• Parts of the dairy cow
• Ready to Cook chicken parts

Boneless, Skinless split breast	Boneless, skinless thigh
Breast Quarter	Drumstick
Leg	Tenderloin
Thigh	Wing

C. Ag Mechanics: Students should know be able to identify the majority of the following hand tools by photograph or actual tool:
• Measuring tools
• Saws
• Chisels and files
• Cutters
• Wrench
• Drills
• Hammers
• Clamps
• Pliers
• Screwdrivers
• Wrenches
• Landscaping tools

Students should know the definitions of a layout tool, a cutting tool, a boring tool, a holding tool, tuning tool, digging tool, and a driving too; with the knowing these definition to be able to place certain hand tools into correct category.

Students should also be able to identify the following:
• Staple
• Parts of a screw
• Stripped screw
• Types of screw heads
• Types of nuts

Students should know the definition of a penny in regards to nails.

D. Food Science:

Terms for Test
• Drying
• Jerky
• Pickling
• Salting
• Canning
• Blanching
• Freeze‐drying
• Mad Cow Disease
• USDA
• Pesticide residues
• E. coli bacteria

Cheese Identification
• Cheddar
• Bleu
• Colby
• Munster
• Gouda

E. FFA

Terms:
• FFA mission
• Classroom/Laboratory
• SAE
• FFA Emblem
• FFA Colors
• FFA Motto
• Discovery Degree

Dates:
• Smith‐Hughes Act
• FFA established
• FFA Jacket adopted
• NFA founded
• FFA Week established
• FFA and NFA merge
• FFA opened to female students
• National FFA Alumni founded
• Name change to National FFA Organization
• National FFA Center in Indianapolis opens
• FFA Discovery Degree added

References:
Agriscience: Fundamentals & Applications, 4th Edition, by L Devere Burton and Elmer L. Cooper. Published by Thomson – Delmar Learning. ISBN 1‐4018‐5962‐3.

Exploring Agriscience, 3rd Edition, by Ray V. Herren. Published by Thomson ‐ Delmar Learning. ISBN 10: 1‐4018‐9644‐8.

Official FFA Student Handbook.

USDA Poultry Grading Manual (http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3002393)

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