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Over 370 fourth grade students from nearly every Marion County school will be in Pella Thursday for “Ag in the Classroom”.

“What this is is bringing fourth graders in from all over Marion County into the Vermeer [Global] Pavilion, and we’ll have stations there teaching the students about the different aspects of agriculture and the importance of agriculture in our food and in our livelihood,” says Larry Rowley with the Marion County Farm Bureau; which helps organize the annual event.

Fourth grade students from Knoxville, Pella, Pella Christian, Melcher-Dallas and Twin Cedars will attend the educational event, and Rowley says displays inside the Vermeer Global Pavilion featuring farm animals and large machinery are typically the most popular.

“They just love to pet the animals and see how they’re taken care of,” says Rowley. “Another very popular [attraction] is being able to climb into a very large combine or tractor. Every student there will have an opportunity to climb into the different machinery we have there.”

Along with a chance to learn more about agriculture, the students will also be given a gift bag with items covering their tour, including a toy tractor and seed packets to allow the kids to grow their own crops. Joining the Marion County Farm Bureau in making “Ag in the Classroom” possible are Vermeer Foundation, Pella Corporation, Pioneer Hybrids, Barker Implement, Titan Machinery and Theisen’s.