A veteran Alachua County Public School teacher who combines academics with important lessons about society’s dependence on and responsibility to the land has won a national award for her work.

Cyanne Williams, a 4^th-grade teacher at Archer Community School, is one of five winners of the National Excellence in Teaching About Agriculture Award. The award is presented annually by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Agriculture in the Classroom Consortium to a select group of teachers who bring innovation and practical teaching about agriculture into the classroom.

Williams has been doing just that for several years by immersing her students in Florida agriculture. They plant vegetable and flower gardens at school. They visit her farm near Chiefland to experience a real cattle drive. They churn butter and make lye soap at a pioneer farm. They learn about Florida’s meat industry at a University of Florida lab, and travel to Tarpon Springs to learn about sponging. And all the time they are boosting their math, science, social studies and language arts skills.

“Agriculture is based on so many other disciplines,” said Williams. “I’m able to cover all of the academic standards my students need to learn, and I’m able to do it through very engaging activities.”

“I think it’s much more fun to learn things this way because then you actually know how you can use it in real life,” said student Kate Conti.

For example, each year Williams’ students grow ornamental plants to sell to the community and use the proceeds to landscape part of the school campus. Growing the plants and creating the new landscape requires them to develop their science skills, while running the business boosts their math, social studies and language arts skills.

“They’re learning about developing a budget, the principals of profit and loss and marketing,” said Williams. “They also have a much better understanding of production, distribution, consumption and civic responsibility.”

Although the students in her school live in a fairly rural community, Williams finds that many don’t understand the importance of agriculture.

“They have very little idea of how their food, clothing and many other of life’s necessities make it to stores and finally to their homes,” she said. “Our basic survival needs are met by agriculture.”

“She shows her students how closely agriculture is related to their lives,” said Lisa Gaskalla, executive director of Florida Agriculture in the Classroom, the organization that nominated Williams for the national award. “I think sometimes we forget that in our society.”

Ultimately Williams believes her lessons will encourage her students become better stewards of the land.

“My students recognize that humans depend on the land and are responsible for protecting it,” she said. “They’re also better equipped to plan for its future use, which will be a huge responsibility.”

Student Nathan Batey is certainly getting that message.

“You have to help the environment or it will be broken,” he said.

Williams will travel to Atlantic City in late June to accept her award at the annual National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference.