GEOPACKS Down on the Farm Software
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Ever wondered what it takes to run a successful farm? Down on the Farm has been specially written for GEOPACKS to help students learn about the rigours of sustaining a viable working farm in varying economic and meteorological climates.
This interactive package allows the user to learn about the factors which farmers need to consider when deciding on how best to use their land. You take over the running of a mixed farm of some 45 hectares which has varied relief, soils and drainage. A range of options for management present themselves and you must decide what mix of crops, animals and farm-based activities will bring you the greatest degree of success. The program is infused with a healthy dose of realism; students must not only take account of a variety of human and physical variables when choosing crops but also, as in real life, learn to cope with the unexpected chance factors that can scupper the best laid plans! Farming is a dynamic business and many things change. All of the variable data such as crop prices, subsidy rules and values & chance factors are held as amendable text files. These can be updated by the teacher using the built-in editor software, using your own data sources or Geopacks can, upon request, supply the latest market information. The true beauty of this program is that it need never go out of date.
This program is much more than a simple farm simulation and your ultimate success rate will depend on a sound knowledge of soils, geology, relief, drainage, grants, subsidies, as well as crops and livestock.
Down on the Farm can be run on four different levels, each of which present different challenges designed to test all levels of ability. The four levels are:
LEVEL 1 - The program at its most basic level, you have a choice of 8 different crops and animals for your 18 fields. By examining the makeup of each field you must decide which crops are best suited to which fields. The game is played for one year only.
LEVEL 2 - This level offers a wider selection of crops and animals and builds in longer term planning allowing you to run the farm for up to 10 years. Randomly generated weather variations slip into this level. Results can be viewed as tables or in a variety of different graphing formats.
LEVEL 3 - The crops and animals used in Level 2 are on offer again. This level expands to build in the option to diversify into other farm-based activities such as camping, horse riding, fishing etc. The idea of set-aside is introduced as an alternative land use. As in Level 2, weather variations play their part but matters are further complicated by additional chance factors (both benevolent and problematical). An element of financial management is introduced as you can apply (not necessarily successfully!) for bank loans to help ease cashflow.
LEVEL 4 - This contains all the functions offered by Level 3 together with access to money from the European grants & subsidies that are currently available. This level involves careful financial management as grant structures can change and the markets for crops can be less than reliable. Detailed financial balance sheets can be viewed and surplus profits can be carried forward into the next year’s accounts.
At all levels an easily accessible Geographical Information System and an on-screen handbook provide you with background information about every crop, animal and field type to ensure your decisions are based on all the facts. Down on the Farm is designed to be report friendly; all of the images, results tables and graphs can be easily 'cut and pasted' straight from the screen into your documents to help create professional looking projects, reports and presentations. Photocopiable activity sheets and planning sheets are provided.
PC Only Windows 95 or later. Primary & Secondary levels   |
Tel: 0870 513 3168 Fax: 0870 120 0006 (outside UK: +44 1837 810 831)
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