Extension
It Starts With Us
Focus on Youth Health, Wellness, and Safety
Strengthening Families
Dana Anderson, Luci Hockersmith, Jessica Bessin, Linda McClanahan
Nutrition and Food Systems General
Substance Use Prevention and Recovery General
Communications and Expressive Arts
Over the last 25 years, the number of stay-at-home parents has decreased. Parents have increasingly relied on schools to teach concepts and skills once taught within the family. With societal changes and cuts in school budgets, many schools have eliminated family and consumer science labs and no longer include or have decreased FCS instruction in the curriculum. In nutrition alone, the lack of basic life skills is evidenced by alarming rises in childhood obesity, poor diets of youth of all ages, and an over-reliance on packaged/fast food.
Life choices are often based more on personal desires rather than factual information. Those who seek information often turn to internet sources which may not be based in research. Decision-making may be based on product
marketing claims, family tradition, myths, faulty information, and lack of knowledge. Today’s massive health and economic problems are due in part to the lack of instruction in the home by parents and in school through Family and Consumer Sciences classes.
4-H offers projects in FCS which assist youth in becoming responsible and contributing members of the family and contributing members of Kentucky communities. At the same time, these life skills prepare youth for the families they will establish as adults.
Youth will:
• Be responsible and contributing individuals and family members
• Gain and maintain employment through life skill development
• Contribute to a safe, pleasant and productive home and family
• Increased number of youth maintaining positive health habits
• Increased number of youth at a lower risk for serious disease and illness
• Increased number of youth at a lower risk for physical and emotional distress
• Develop into competent, capable, contributing adults as important developmental assets are met through their participation in 4-H Health programs
Youth will:
• Utilize and practice life skills in projects and life situations
• Project a positive image and self-confidence
• Practice responsible consumer and financial decision-making
• Practice healthy eating choices
• Make choices that lead to responsible and beneficial results
• Adopt habits and skills that contribute toward employ-ability in the future
• Increased adoption and mastery of healthy behaviors that lead to a healthy lifestyle that include making healthy lifestyle choices, not engaging in risky behavior and handling stress.
Youth will:
•Gain knowledge and develop skills in Family & Consumer Sciences projects and programs
• Understand the decision-making process
• Gain skills in setting a goal and developing a plan of action
• Learn to read and follow instructions
• Youth will identify healthy lifestyle choices
• Youth will understand risky behaviors and their consequences
• Youth will aspire to have higher self-esteem
• Youth will identify healthy ways to handle stress
Initial Outcome: Youth report they set a goal and accomplish it
Indicator: Involvement in 4-H projects and entries in county fair
Method: Registration for fair and participant/parent testimonials
Timeline: all-year
Intermediate Outcome: Youth demonstrate increased or routine use of life skills learned through 4-H in daily life
Indicator: Number of people indicating change in behavior
Method: Self reported changes and parent and teacher evaluation/testimonials
Timeline: all-year
Long-term Outcome: Contribute to a safe, pleasant, and productive home and family
Indicator: Number of youth/adults who reported that they followed safe practices
Method: Follow up electronic evaluation with teachers, participants and parents
Timeline: on-going
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Farm Safety Day
Content or Curriculum: Farm & Home Safety
Inputs: Extension Staff; Farm Bureau; Fire Department; Police Department
Date: September
Audience: Youth (girls)
Project or Activity: 4th/5th grade Girl Talk
Content or Curriculum: For girls only presentation
Inputs: FCS agent; FRYSCs; Burgin and Mercer Schools
Date: August
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Health Rocks School Club Lessons
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Health Rocks
Inputs: Extension Staff, Mercer County Schools, Burgin Independent Schools
Date: ongoing
Audience: Middle School Youth
Project or Activity: Botvin Lifeskills Lessons
Content or Curriculum: Botvin Lifeskills
Inputs: Extension Staff, Mercer County Schools, Burgin Independent Schools
Date: ongoing
Audience: Youth (13+)
Project or Activity: Babysitting Clinic
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Babysitting Basics
Inputs: Extension Staff, Kiwanis, CPR/First Aid Instructor, local day care centers
Date: Fall Break/October
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: School 4-H Club Lessons
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Health & Family Consumer Sciences Curriculum
Inputs: Extension Staff, Mercer County Schools, Burgin Independent Schools
Date: ongoing
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Foods Club
Content or Curriculum: 4-H Food Nutrition Curriculum, SNAP-Ed resources
Inputs: Extension Agents, SNAP Educator, 4-H Volunteers
Date: monthly meetings
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: 4-H Shooting Sports
Content or Curriculum: KY 4-H Shooting Sports
Inputs: Certified 4-H shooting sports volunteers
Date: monthly practice sessions
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Truth or Consequences
Content or Curriculum: Truth or Consequences
Inputs: Extension Staff; community professionals; volunteers; schools
Date: February
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Healthy Kids Day
Content or Curriculum: Varied
Inputs: YMCA; FRYSC; Extension Staff; Mercer Co Health Department; Ephraim McDowell Wellness Center; HOSA; Zumba Instructors; Mercer County Sheriff's Office
Date: September
Audience: At-risk Youth
Activity: Personal development for at-risk students
Content or Curriculum: Tackling the Tough Skills, Nurturing Parenting, Botvin, PASTA, BeStrongFamilies, Girls on the Run (GOTR)
Inputs: FCS Agent, Mercer Day Treatment, Youth-at-large
Date: Fall
Activity: Media (news articles, newsletters, videos, podcasts, social media - Facebook)
Content or Curriculum: Exclusives, 4-H Agent News Releases, publications, HEEL materials, etc.
Inputs: Extension Staff, University of Kentucky Ag Communications
Date: Year-long (on-going)
Author: Dana Anderson
Major Program: Health
Mercer County is a predominately rural area, and youth are exposed to various conditions in which students are faced with unsafe conditions around the home or outside. Most students are not prepared for what to do in an emergency or avoid an accident—the safety day taught students to be aware of their surroundings and what to do in an emergency. Teaching proper youth safety on the farm or around the home is essential to their development. Therefore, a safety day was held for sixth-grade yo
