Author: Ryan Farley
Major Program: Science, Engineering, and Technology
Engaging youth in interactive and hand on STEM activities provides youth with opportunities to explore and develop critical thinking skills. In partnership with Southside Elementary, Woodford County 4-H led four days of 4-H Lego Robotics lessons with four 4th grade classes. Each class participated in two hour-long classes that taught students how to program their Lego EV-3 robot. Tying the lessons into the 4th grade standard relating to vision, students learned how the color sensor attachment he
Author: Jeremiah Johnson
In 2020, the volunteer groups in Christian County identified a need for additional Aerospace opportunities for youth. Due to a surplus of robotics programs and rocketry programs, 4-H decided to incorporate into our program offerings. This gave youth a unique opportunity to learn more in-depth about the scientific method. The 4-H Drone Club was born. The club involved 23 youth over the course of a year. Over 80% of the club members were in the 6-8th grades. You
Author: Kimberly Thomas
30 youth in two classes created two, homemade, ooey gooey slimes with Taylor County 4-H. Youth learned about the different ingredients and their purposing in the slime making process. They learn to measure, mix, and knead their creations. This activity focused on fine and gross motor skill development, sensory learning, and communication skills for the participants. Our youth participants came from all three school systems in the county and one fourth of the participants and their guardians
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% which 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 offered youth an afterschool computer science club. The twenty-seven youth collaborated
Author: Elizabeth Easley
Importance of ProgramAccording to the Kentucky Department of Education, in 2019 on average, 59.1% of elementary students tested at below expectations in science in most Laurel County elementary schools. Whereas some schools such as Colony and Camp Ground Elementaries only had 21.9% and 24.5% of their students test at proficient or higher in science. Today's youth need Science, Engineering, and Technology (SET) exposure and experiences to help youth build critical thinking skills and begin to
Author: Patrice Thompson
This past school year I was invited to facilitate STEM programming to 20 students in contained LBD(learning and behavior disorder) /EBD (emotional and behavior disorder) classroom at Krammer Middle School, the FYRSC (family and youth resource service coordinator), wanted this particular group to participate in an academically stimulating but fun in-school activity. Ms. Thomas, the FRYSC expressed to me that these two classrooms of EBD/LBD students very seldom received an opportunity to expand th
Author: Chelsea Walling
The stakeholders from Seek First LLC. asked for our assistance with their aquaponics facility. This Christian non-profit supplies leafy greens to the numerous zoo animals that reside at the ARK Encounter in Williamstown, KY. We discussed which fish species would work best in their aquaponics system and provided information on aquatic animal husbandry and water quality parameters. It was really interesting to see their beautiful greenhouses and to think about the demand of feeding dozens of
I was invited to present my work with k-12 youth in aquaculture at the National Aquaculture Extension Conference in Portland, Maine. This exceptional networking event allowed me to share my research with approximately 75 aquaculture extension professionals throughout the country and some abroad. After my presentation, approximately 15 people approached me about my work with youth and aquaponics. I shared my contact information and told them about our Aquaponics Teachers' Curriculum Manual, a
Author: Torey Earle
The following is taken from the Session 7 presentation on SET Abilities during the 2012 4-H Science eAcademy:“Recent research suggests that learning science requires fluency in multiple aspects of conceptual understanding, practices of science, and identification with the scientific community. While 4-H programs have historically emphasized the development of science process skills (which refer to measurable behaviors and transferable abilities reflective of processes involved with scienti
Author: Leslea Barnes
When a young person graduating High School is asked what they want to do with their rest of their life, it can be a hard decision to make. Many youth are still uncertain at this time in their life, but not 4-H'er Paul Combs. Because of his experiences in 4-H he knows " what he wants to do for the rest of his life" or at least what field he wants to go into and that field is aviation. Paul plans to attend EKU this next year and enroll in their aviation program to become a pilot. &nb
Author: Mary Anne Garnett
Tractor Driving 2022 The Christian County Hight School Agriculture Department collaborated with the Christian County 4-H to host a tractor driving clinic n March 10, 2022 at the Agriculture Expo Center in Hopkinsville. Salesmen from Hutson Inc. and H&R Agri-Power demonstrated to a class of about forty high school students. Safety and practical tractor driving skills were taught by the instructors. The second half of the day allowed participants to put their new knowledge to use by drivi
Author: Morgan Murphy
When I started as a 4-H agent in August 2021, a need brought to me by volunteers and parents in the community were things to engage the homeschool youth in our county. There are limited extra curricular opportunities for youth who are not in the school system. In response, I started a 4-H homeschool club for ages 9-18. This club will do a lesson from a different program area each month and will also take educational field trips. The club started in February 2022 and had 15 youth sign up and atte
Author: Cathy Toole
While youth today are very familiar with how to use computerized technology there has been a disconnect with motorized machinery. The Small Engine Club offers Henry County youth the opportunity to get their hands dirty through practical skills of machinery maintenance. Youth meet at the county maintenance garage and learn the basic maintenance and repair of push mowers, riding lawn mowers, weed eaters, leaf blowers, and chain saws. They understand how to use the proper fuel for
Author: Lisa Hagman
Science, engineering, and technology permeate nearly every facet of modern life and hold the key to solving many of humanity's most pressing current and future challenges. The United States' position in the global economy is declining, in part because U.S. workers lack fundamental knowledge in these fields. (www.nationalacademies.org) Studies have also shown that interest in science begins to decline in Middle School. In order to address this need, Hancock County 4-H worked i
Author: Logan Sasser
SET ClubAfter meeting with school officials over the past few months it was evident that the local middle school students had a great interest in robotics and technology. After reaching out to one of the science teachers, Mrs. JoAnn Hall, at the school, I was able to set up a meeting with her to discuss a possible collaboration. This meeting went as well as I could have hoped as we were able to determine the goal of the program and what age group we wanted to target. With her agreeing to supply
Author: Eric Comley
The typical conversation for kids always circles back to the “Rocket Scientist.” Either someone in their class is “no rocket scientist,” or someone in their class is, “like a rocket scientist,” but Garrard County 4-H, in cooperation with two local elementary schools, had the opportunity to make 87 total students, in fact, “rocket scientists.” Using a past National Youth Science Day [Rockets to the Rescue], the Garrard County 4-H worked with multipl
Author: Rebecca Hayes
The Cloverbud Club meets monthly on the second Monday of the month. They learn new skills at each meeting and they cover a different topic. The latest meeting was all about science experiments. They learned how different household materials can be used in new ways as well as how to do these science experiments safely. They all came in having done a science experiment before, but they left completing new ones, a thirst to know how things work, and an appreciation that they can continue to learn a
Author: Casey Townsend
Kentucky State University hosted their annual Summer Transportation Institute Camp for 18 underrepresented youth to explore opportunities in the transportation industry. A 5 question survey was composed with a five star scale rating with 1 star representing the lowest and 5 being the highest. Before the program, 77.78% participants answered yes to the question, "4-H is a place where I can figure things out on my own", verses 83.33% afterwards.
