Kenton County Cooperative Extension facilitates natural resource lessons in 4 Kenton County school districts.  Yearly the 4-H Agent responsible for natural resource programs surveys local teachers and when permitted also surveys students.  Student surveys were curtailed during covid protocols.  The teacher surveys request input regarding 4-H Natural Resource school program lessons.  

As a result of the surveys and discussion with local 4-H Council members, hands-on activities/experiments continue to be developed to teach 4-H Natural Resource club members about solar, wind, and magnetic energy, water conservation, ecology, and living things.  The hands-on activities serve as an introductory opportunity for youth to learn about completing a process.  The connections between 4-H school programs and the many opportunities that exist for 4-H members outside of school time were discussed with youth when 4-H newsletters were presented monthly.  

4-H members predominately represented (285) 4^th grade urban and suburban youth in multicultural schools.  100% of the students attend schools with free lunch program for the entire school population.  Less than 2% live on a farm or have exposure to production agriculture.  

Dr. Cary I. Sneider, a member of the NGSS development team stated… “NGSS is …the application of science to the development of various products, processes, and systems to meet human needs…” youth members provided written statements in the form of suggestions and demonstrated cognitive outcomes.  

Written understanding from Shawn described that what he found in his owl pellet “looked like chicken bones”. 

A local teacher has requested to use 4-H Natural Resource lessons during summer session programs because “...Your materials are great and so are the lessons you created. They are exactly what I want…”