Shawne Demberg’s and Carmilla Sill’s Elementary School kindergartners had a fantastic surprise today, Jan. 8, when Jill and Christopher Van Aken, parents of twin kindergarteners Adeline and Charlotte and owners of the Van Aken Dairy in New Hampton, visited their daughters’ classes with a newborn calf.
The visit by Mr. and Mrs. Van Aken and two-week old Holstein calf Zoey was more than just an opportunity to see this adorable animal. District kindergartners are beginning to learn about farms and farming and a dairy animal visit fit perfectly with their studies.
Mrs. Van Aken spoke to students about what a dairy farm does, their herd of 120 Holsteins, what cows eat, the process of milking cows, how that milk is brought to the marketplace and can be purchased locally at grocery stores like Shoprite, and the many food products that are made with milk. Students also learned that Zoey weighed about 85 pounds at birth; now weighs 100 pounds and in 12 weeks’ time, will weigh 300 pounds.
Holsteins are the most common dairy cow breed in the world and are known for their distinct black-and-white markings. This breed produces more milk than any other dairy breed and adult females can weigh around 1,500 pounds.
The breed originated in the Netherlands (Holstein-Friesland region) and a healthy Holstein can live 15 to 20 years, though most dairy cows have shorter working lives. Each Holstein has a unique spot pattern, like a fingerprint.
Zoey's visit was a great teaching opportunity about dairy farming because it helped to connect young children’s natural curiosity with real-world learning in age-appropriate ways. Seeing, touching and observing a calf makes dairy farming real, rather than abstract. Concepts like “milk comes from cows” became more meaningful when children met an actual animal.
The calf visit also introduced students to where food comes from, helping them understand that milk doesn’t just come from a carton — it starts with animals and farmers who care for them. Baby animals also naturally engage young children and adults and meeting a calf also helped to encourage empathy, kindness and respect for animals, which allows for further discussions about animal care,responsibility and farming practices.
Additionally, there was also an age-appropriate introduction to science concepts like an animal’s need of food, water and shelter as well as growth and life cycles and the obvious cross-curricular learning, too. Zoey's visit also supported ELA work (new vocabulary); math (comparing sizes of animals) and social studies (the role of farmers).
Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Van Aken, for visiting!
See more photos on the district's Facebook page.