Welcome. In this course, you will learn how turkey gets from the farm to your table. Check out the instructor guide in the material tab.
Start with the Turkeys on the Farm section and learn how farmers care for their poults, including where they live, what they eat and the standards that farmers must follow to keep their poults healthy. Then follow the turkeys from the farm to the store to find out about the different turkey cuts you can buy in the Turkey at the Grocery Store section. Finally, learn why turkey is a healthy choice and cook along as we show you how to safely handle raw meat and talk about cooking times and temperatures in the Turkey in Your Kitchen section.
Course content & objectives
Course Delivery
- Lecture-style presentations by the instructor
- Student group presentations on each of the topic areas in the course
- Individual students selecting a specific topic to write about using information provided on the website and other resources
- Self-guided study with students completing quizzes at the end of each topic
- Team competitions at the end of each course to see which team gets the most quiz answers correct
Suggested Activities
- Invite a turkey farmer to talk about raising turkeys. Have them describe a day in the life of a turkey farmer. What are the everyday activities involved in raising turkeys? What do they do to protect the health and safety of their birds (biosecurity, treatment of infections and diseases, etc.)? Ask them about the technology they use their barns. How do they ensure the safe transport of their birds to the processing plant?
- Take a field trip to a grocery store or butcher shop to look at turkey products. What different cuts of turkey are offered? Look for whole turkeys and discuss roasting a turkey. What are some key safety considerations in roasting a turkey? In working with turkey in general? Look for other turkey products (cold cuts, frozen products, etc.) and see how many you can find.
- Purchase the ingredients for the “Turkey with Maple Thyme Glaze,” then watch the video as a group and make the recipe OR find a recipe on the Think Turkey website to prepare. Discuss how to defrost turkey and how you would decide when the turkey is sufficiently cooked. How would you store the leftovers? Brainstorm ideas for using leftovers from a roast turkey.