WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – This is Ag Literacy Week, where volunteers with Cornell Cooperative Extension visit local schools. The teachers they bring with them are slimy and small.
“These are called red wiggler worms and they are very efficient at composting,” Cooperative Extension horticulture expert Sue Gwise said.
Students in the area get a lesson that’s truly hands on.
“We’ve got some compost material in here and there are worms are in here,” Gwise said, “and you can see the vegetable scraps, there’s a potato peel.”
These worms are the stars of this year’s Ag Literacy Week, a tradition through Cornell University of more than 20 years.
“Volunteers go into schools throughout the state and they read an agriculture-based book to second grade students,” Gwise said.
“In the past, we’ve had books about gardening, “about maple sugar, about wool,” Gwise said, “and this year’s book is about community gardens and composting.”
After the story, students will keep a mini-composting worm bin to feed scraps to.
“We want them to take away the message that we can get rid of a lot of material through composting,” Gwise said.”
Gwise says it’s the little things — and little kids — that can make big changes in our environment.
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