"Life-skill development through hands-on learning is a cornerstone of 4-H youth programs. 4-H projects embrace youth life-skill development by providing means to encourage young people to become responsible, productive citizens (Ward, 1996). Participation in the 4-H horse project and non-riding competitive horse-related contests are tools for youth to develop life skills such as leadership, sportsmanship, and handling pressure while simultaneously enhancing their horse knowledge. For youth to successfully compete in these contests, there is much preparation, organization, dedication, and teamwork involved. Ward (1996) previously reported positive influences on life skills such as decision-making, positive self-esteem, responsibility, and relating to others by alumni of 4-H Animal Science projects such as quiz bowl, judging events, and skillathons." (JOE; Influence of 4-H Horse Project Involvement on Development of Life Skills K.P. Anderson, L. Karr-Lilienthal)

The Kentucky 4-H Horse Program has been impacted by the effects of the pandemic reflected through total number of enrolled youth. With the decline of enrollment, we stepped out of the box to offer the newly-released Teach KY Ag in the Classroom's Horse Science curriculum at the county level to encourage youth to join their local 4-H Horse Club with the assistance of 4-H Agents. 

The lessons offered included: 

1. Building a shelter and withstanding a wind test to learn about what kinds of environments horses thrive in and how to properly provide structural needs of the horse.
2. A camouflage lesson that teaches youth basic genetics and how horses survive in the wild depending on their environment with a candy-sorting activity
3. Horse vision lesson where youth learn parts of the horse's eye, how it relates to the human eye, see first-hand what it looks like to have both monocular and binocular vision, the visible color spectrum for humans versus horses, and a ball-tossing game to test our vision
4. Nutrition lesson learning about vital nutrients, how horses obtain necessary nutrient requirements, how our diets compare to a horse, and a "snack-tivity" where youth build their own feed ration using edible components to represent each key nutrient. 
5. A water science lesson where youth learn about karst and what makes Kentucky so special to the equine industry, with an experiment including limestone rock and vinegar to see how Kentucky's soils and water is naturally enriched with calcium in potential and high areas of karst.
6. A virtual field trip of the Kentucky Horse Park, and other educational videos offered including an overview of the KY 4-H Horse Program and how to get involved/opportunities available, breeds & disciplines of horses, and various other educational equine-related videos.

We have implemented a variety of lessons for two counties this school year, reaching a total of approximately 300 youth. We implemented surveys to identify growth and impact, and from the surveys collected in a pre/post method, 95% of youth indicated they learned something new about horses, 100% of youth indicated 4-H is a place where they feel safe and are surrounded by caring adults, and 92% of youth indicated interest in joining their local 4-H Horse Club for the upcoming 4-H year. We plan to expand to other counties across the Commonwealth in the upcoming school year, encouraging youth to get involved with their local 4-H Horse Club and participate in state-level events to show growth in the Kentucky 4-H Horse Program.