Author: Tanya Dvorak
Major Program: Science, Engineering and Technology 4-H Core Curriculum
In Kentucky, only 2.6% of workers are currently engaged in STEM occupations, one of the lowest rates of STEM employment in the U.S. (Kentucky Center for Education & Workforce Statistics, n.d.). Dawson (2007) posited young people need to be highly literate in science to be prepared to research issues, think critically and question issues and claims in society today, especially in the field of biotechnology. In addressing biotechnology education, Boone, Gartin, et al. (2006) and Wilson, et al.
Author: Amanda Sublett
Taylor County is a rural county with over 111,756 acres of land utilized as farms and several youth live on farms and operate tractors and/or lawn tractors frequently. 5 4-H’er participated in the Lawn Tractor or Tractor Driving contests or both at the county level. 4-H members performed a safety check, and drove a lawn tractor or tractor through an obstacle course. The goal is to finish the course in a timely manner without running into poles or crossing the outlined course.
The 4-H National Youth Science Day Challenge, Code Your World, was taught to every 4th and 5th grader, approximately 550 kids, in the Taylor County and Campbellsville Independent School systems during October. Code Your World integrates CS First, Google’s introductory computer science curriculum, with 4-H’s research-based youth development model, to show kids how they can use code both as a form of personal skill development and as a way to understand the world around them. &nb
Author: Brandon Darst
According to National Science Foundation, “In the 21st century, scientific and technological innovations have become increasingly important as we face the benefits and challenges of both globalization and a knowledge-based economy. To succeed in this new information-based and highly technological society, students need to develop their capabilities in STEM to levels much beyond what was considered acceptable in the past.”Local teachers in Madison County had been searching for new act
Author: Tyrone Gentry
Youth lack exposure to broad Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) activities exposing them to future careers and problem-solving skills. The Department of Commerce reports that STEM occupations are growing at 17% that is almost twice other occupations at 9.8%. In order to provide youth exposure to STEM skills and careers, the Green County Cooperative Extension Service and 4-H program participated in a juvenile mentoring program with the National 4-H Council and the Office of Ju
Author: Chanda Hall
This summer 130 students from Sowing Seeds with Faith Summer Camp entered the world of robotics and learned the basics of coding. Utilizing Ozobots, students solved puzzles, designed mazes, and developed codes to get their Ozobot from one endpoint another. Ozobots have color sensors which recognize color patterns students draw on paper with markers to control the actions of the robot. The Ozobot will follow a solid black line but when students add short color sequences that mat
Author: Torey Earle
Leadership development, career exploration, decision-making skills, youth voice and personal development are important parts of the Kentucky 4-H Youth Development program and are offered through state 4-H Teen Leadership Boards. In its fourth year, the Kentucky 4-H SET Leadership Board, ten youth from Extension Districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 have worked to expand their reach and demonstrated strong leadership and programming skills.Major accomplishments this year include:Hosting the Kentuck
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Computer and Information Technology Occupations, on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/home.htm, Employment of computer and information technology occupations is projected to grow 13 percent from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average for all occupations. These occupations are projected to add about 557,100 new jobs. Demand for these workers will stem from
Author: Lois Carter
Based on information from the Engineering For Kids website, according to the U. S. Department of Commerce, STEM occupations are growing at 17%, while other occupations are growing at 9.8%. STEM degree holders have a higher income even in non-STEM careers. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics workers play a key role in the sustained growth and stability of the U.S. economy, and are a critical component to helping the U.S. win the future. STEM education creates critical t
Author: Charles Comer
According to the U. S. Department of Commerce, Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) occupations are growing at 17%, while other occupations are growing at 9.8%. STEM degree holders have a higher income even in non-STEM careers. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics workers play a key role in the sustained growth and stability of the U.S. economy. STEM education creates critical thinkers, increases science literacy, and enables the next generation of innovators. It is c
Author: Dominique Wood
Computer programming is expected to be the fastest growing occupation in the next 10 years. With only 400,000 graduates in computer science, it is expected to leave a deficit of one million coders. Additionally, on a National level, only 1 in 10 schools teach computer science. Finally, 60% of math and science jobs are computing jobs that need real exposure and practice in programming. The Livingston County 4-H has been implementing 4-H Coding curriculum since 2017 with the intr
Author: Kelsey Chadwick
In today's global society, science, engineering, technology, and mathematics are more important than ever, However, according to the U.S. Department of Education, "only 16 percent of American high school seniors are proficient in math and interested in a STEM career." In order to increase STEM programming in our county, Carlisle County 4-H partnered with the Carlisle County STARS Family Resource Center to offer six hours of programming at their summer day camp for fourth-grade stud
Author: Lena Mallory
Reaching youth to teach life skills is the cornerstone of 4-H programs! Youth participate in 4-H programs through schools, community and project clubs, day camps/workshops, and residential camps/conferences. These are your traditional avenues for youth participation, but there are exceptions and youth audiences we tend to not think of.The Purchase Youth Village (PYV) is a Level II Juvenile Psychiatric Treatment Facility located in Marshall County. The facility offers psychiatri
Author: Anna Meador
As a parJade Baker shows off the vascular system of her pig kidney.t of our Allen County 4-H initiative to expand 4-H programming into new project areas, brand-new SET (Science, Engineering and Technology) Day Camps were developed to provide youth with quality science hands-on learning experiences. During these Senior 4-H'er, Tristan Skipworth, leading workshop series through dissecting a pig heart.two SET Day Camps, 18 participants learned about the similarities of human and anim
Author: Glenna Bentley
The Lewis County 4-H program teamed up with the 4th grade science teacher at Central Elementary to help students learn about electricity. The teacher teamed up with 4-H because she needed to teach youth about electricity and how it changes. Her goal was to have students make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric current. In the past she had not been able to satisfy this goal completely. The 4-H pr
Author: Louis Milligan
A Family Youth Resource Center Coordinator at Mcferran Preparatory Academy contacted Agent and requested information about possible Robotics program being offered to students at her school. Historically youth especially minority male and females students are represented in STEM fields and often do not have access to STEM relates programs and activities. Establishing a Robotics program would inspire youth participation in science and technology and to get exposure to the field while also discover
Author: Marsha Hagler
Over 50% of Nelson County students receive free or reduced price school meals. The most recently posted school assessment testing (2016-2017) shows that 50% of elementary school and 61% of middle school student perform at the novice and apprentice level for math. This is higher than the state average. In response, Nelson County 4-H and the two of the Kentucky 4-H Science, Engineering and Technology(SET) Board members partnered with 29 classrooms teachers at 5 elementary a
Kentucky 4-H recognizes a strong background in science, technology, engineering and mathematics can benefit young people, not only as they progress through school but as they enter the job market. In 4-H, our educators work to help youth develop an understanding of a variety of STEM-related disciplines. 4-H robotics is a popular STEM offering. Robotics projects can range from junk drawer robots, which teach young people basic robotic construction using everyday items, to robots so large the
