Improve communication skills/financial situations & pratical living skills through STEM activitiesPlan of Work

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Hart County CES

Title:
Improve communication skills/financial situations & pratical living skills through STEM activities
MAP:
Strengthening Life Skills for Youth and Families
Agents Involved:
Huffman, Cline
MAJOR PROGRAM 1:
Nurturing Families (general)
MAJOR PROGRAM 2:
Communications and Expressive Arts 4-H Core Curriculum
MAJOR PROGRAM 3:
Agriculture 4-H Core Curriculum
MAJOR PROGRAM 4:
Securing Financial Stability (general)
Situation:

How we live life is ever-changing but learning basic life skills is still as important asever. Learning to practice healthy habits, select clothing to emphasize one’sbest appearance, create and live within a budget, prepare nutritious mealssafely, nurture children, create a safe and pleasant home environment, practicecommon courtesies, and form relationships with others—all of these skills arebasic to everyday life. Many schools no longer include family and consumersciences classes in the curriculum. Reality is that today’s youth and adultsare busier than ever. Many of these basic life skills are not consistentlytaught to youth at home or at school. 

 

As with anyother Kentucky 4-H Core Curriculum area, when it comes to development of lifeskills and communication skills a strong case can be made for the need to gobeyond mere transfer of knowledge to giving youth the opportunity for a varietyof supportive, related learning experiences to significantly increase theprogram’s influence. 

 

4-H oftenoffers basic learning activities on a topic of interest to youth but theaddition of activities which support that interest (such as fair exhibits,related subject matter workshops or day camps, field trips, and decision-makingjudging contests) significantly increase the development of life skills inyouth. In a study by Olson, Croymans and Ji (2014), 4-Hers reported thatparticipating in 1 or 2 educational opportunities influenced the development ofcritical thinking and decision making skills, and participating in 6 to 8opportunities significantly increased the program’s influence by addingdevelopment of life skills in leadership, planning/organization, wise use ofresources, useful/marketable skills and accepting differences. 4-H is alsohelping youth to develop skills in science, engineering and technology to makethem more marketable in the workforce.

 

While manycommunication and life skills can be learned through self-directed projects orschool enrichment, it’s beneficial for youth to have the added experience andguidance of a trusted adult and the opportunity to form relationships withcaring mentors. For many adults, long-term volunteering is not always possiblebut shorter-term volunteer roles create doable opportunities for more people totuck volunteering into busy schedules. Special interest clubs and groups thatmeet for a few weeks or months broaden the possibilities. The volunteer effortsof multiple adults may be required to take the 4-H experience from clubmeetings alone to also include exhibits, field trips and more.

Long-Term Outcomes:
Intermediate Outcomes:
Initial Outcomes:
Evaluation:

Outcome: 

Indicator: 

Method: 

Timeline: July 2018- June 2019

Learning Opportunities:

Learning Opportunities (repeat as needed):

 

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H SET
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Science, Engineering and Technology
Curriculum
Inputs: 4-H Council
Date: Fall 2018 – Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Rocketry Projects
Content or Curriculum: National 4-H Rocketry
Inputs: 4-H Leaders
Date: Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Demonstration  
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Project Books
Inputs: 4-H Council 

Date: Spring 2019


Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Talk Meet Contest
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Project Books
Inputs: 4-H Council
Date: January 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Community Club Presentations
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Curriculum
Inputs: 4-H Leaders
Date: Fall 2018 and Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Reality Store
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Reality Store Curriculum
Input: Hart County School System; Local Businesses
Date: Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Dollars & Sense
Content or Curriculum: Dollars & Sense Curriculum
Inputs: Hart County School System
Date: Fall 2018 and Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Character Counts
Content or Curriculum: Character Counts Curriculum
Inputs: Hart County School System
Date: Fall 2018 and Spring 2019

 

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Afterschool Projects
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Project Books
Inputs: 4-H Leaders
Date: Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Market Premium Show
Content or Curriculum: Kentucky 4-H Animal Science Kit Curriculum
Inputs: 4-H Council; Local Businesses
Date: Summer & Fall 2018; Spring 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Country Ham Project
Content or Curriculum: Kentucky 4-H Country Ham Curriculum
Inputs: 4-H Council; Local Businesses
Date: Spring and Summer 2019

Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Livestock Training
Content or Curriculum: Kentucky 4-H Animal Science Kit Curriculum
Inputs: 4-H Council; Local Businesses
Date: Spring 2019

Audience: Grandparents
Project or Activity: Grandparent Support Meetings
Content or Curriculum: Grandparents and Grandchildren Together
Inputs: Family Resource Centers
Date: July 2018 – June 2019

Audience: General Population
Project or Activity: Smart About Money: Living on a Budget
Content or Curriculum: Real Skills for Everyday Life
Inputs: Community Action
Date: Fall 2018 – Spring 2019

Audience: General Population
Project or Activity: Learning to Use Technology While Designing a Budget
Content or Curriculum: Securing Financial Stability (General)
Inputs: Hart County Library, Family Resource Centers
Date: Fall 2018 – Spring 2019



Success Stories

Home Delivery Meal Kits

Author: Janey Cline

Major Program: Securing Financial Stability (general)

Contact: (Janey Cline, Hart County FCS Agent), (270-524-2451)Success StoryIt is estimated that 20 percent of adults in the United States have tried at least one meal kit delivery service. With the demand for convenience in our society, meal kits seem to be the answer for grocery shopping, meal planning, and meal preparation. Anyone who has not tried meal kits might be interested in learning how meal kits work and whether they are worth the investment for preparing and consuming more meals at hom

Full Story

4-H Program Makes Impact on Testing Scores

Author: Laura Huffman

Major Program: Agriculture 4-H Core Curriculum

The Hart County and Caverna School Systems asked the Hart County 4-H Program to work with students in the classrooms on science related topics.  The 4-H Youth Development Agent developed a variety of science related lessons for youth of all ages.  One of those lessons included studying life cycles.  A series of six lessons were developed for youth in kindergarten through 4th grade. The 4-H program also provided a visual hands on learning opportunity for youth to incubate fertile e

Full Story

4-H Helps Youth Become Entrepreneurs

Author: Laura Huffman

Major Program: Family and Consumer Sciences 4-H Core Curriculum

The Hart County Chamber of Commerce has been looking for ways to bring new businesses into the county.    The 4-H Youth Development Agent and the Hart County Chamber Director decided to focus on a younger audience to see if an Entrepreneur Program would help youth start thinking about establishing businesses in the county.  In November, the Hart County 4-H Program collaborated with the Chamber of Commerce to offer the Entrepreneur Challenge (E-Challenge)  Program for 7th -12t

Full Story

Preparing Youth for the Workforce

Author: Laura Huffman

Major Program: Family and Consumer Sciences 4-H Core Curriculum

The Hart County 4-H Program and the Hart County Chamber of Commerce collaborated with the Hart County School System to offer a Work Readiness Day for all high school juniors to better prepare students for the workforce.  The goal of the Work Readiness Day was to create an awareness about career opportunities within the county and show students what is require to help them succeed in the workplace. 178 High School Juniors started the day by touring two of the local manufacturing companies to

Full Story
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