AgDARE - Agricultural Disability Awareness and Risk Education

Spinal Cord Injury - Supplemental Activity 3

Group Field Trip Activity

If possible, contact a member of the local farm community, and secure permission to take students out to the individual's farm. Students should be led on a short tour of the farm to find potential hazards that could lead to spinal cord injury. The activity works best if the instructor visits the farm prior to the class trip to pinpoint certain areas for discussion and focus.

• Allow the students to point out areas that could lead to spinal cord injury (ditches in open fields, slick paths or walkways, loft ladders in need of repair, unclean working areas, tractors with no ROPS or seat belts, flooring in need of repair, etc.).
• Discuss how improvements could be made to reduce the number of injuries and lessen their severity.

If a field trip cannot be set up, have the students do an evaluation of their own family farm or a friend's farm. Have them do an overview of their farm and its potential hazards for spinal injury. The student can turn in a brief description of the hazards and a little history as to injuries or incidents that have occurred on the farm. Have the student share these with the class as well. Photos work well for group discussion and can be archived for future use.

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