[media-credit name=’BEN CLASSON/Herald photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]Baas and bleats combined with the excited chatter and giggles of more than 500 elementary children Tuesday at the annual College of Agriculture and Life Sciences for Kids event at the Stock Pavilion.

Third-, fourth- and fifth-graders from 10 schools around central and south central Wisconsin joined the nearly 200 CALS students to learn about agriculture and research at the University of Wisconsin.

"The whole idea is to have organizations within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to have an audience to teach some of the things they've learned at college to someone at a lower level that can get a lot out of it," said Ginger James, a co-organizer of the event.

The elementary students visited dozens of stations organized by CALS student organizations with interactive, hands-on presentations.

"They learn things like DNA and how we extract DNA," James said. "A lot of kids still believe all of their milk comes from grocery stores and not that there's a cow for every gallon of milk."

Since many of the students don't come from rural backgrounds, James said the livestock presentations with cows and sheep were a big hit.

Tom Zelenski, a UW senior in the Saddle and Sirloin club, said the students were interested in the baby lambs at his station and were eager to ask questions.

"Many of these kids haven't had a chance to see any livestock at all. It gives them a chance to see what's out there and where their food comes from," Zelenski said. "They're loving it; they want to pet them right away; they have questions. It's great."

Kim Markart, who chaperoned kids from Prairie Elementary in Waunakee, said the students get a taste of agricultural life in their area, but added the event offered a unique opportunity to learn.

Markart said the students look forward to the once-a-year opportunity to head to UW.

"Kids are learning lots of stuff about agriculture and having a great day," Markart said. "They're having lots of fun, they're doing a lot of hands-on stuff that has really piqued their interest; they certainly aren't bored."

Zelenski said the presentations provide the students with a well-rounded perspective of agriculture and encourage them to start thinking about the future.

"It's giving them a chance to start thinking about what else is out there and things that they're interested in," Zelenski said.

Austin Armstrong, a fifth-grader at Luther Elementary in Fort Atkinson, said he loved the events and learning about plants and animals.

"I'm just obsessed with cows. I liked to see new plants like the panda plant," Armstrong said. "It's kind of cool that they get involved with this type of stuff in college."