Soil to Seed is Now Digital

 

Soil to Seed Now Digital

Today May 12, 2021 From the food we eat, to the water we drink, to the places where we live and play, soil erosion and sedimentation profoundly affects our everyday lives. The loss of soil from our landscapes and its deposition into our waterways, reduce the ability of the land to be productive in supporting plant growth and the capacity of the water to nurture aquatic habitats, host recreation and have municipal usefulness. This curriculum focuses on the accelerated processes of erosion and sedimentation that transpire as a direct result of agricultural and construction development activities. Soil to Seed is designed to cultivate high school aged-youth in understanding the principles of erosion and sediment control. AND now it is in in digital format. Special Thanks for all those who worked hard to make this happen. They are: LIz Driscoll, Tabitha Barnes, Nick Hynes, Katy Haywood, Mason Lawrence, Tanya Heath, Danny Lough, Liz Driscoll, Kristin Bedell, Evie Lubak, Danielle Riggs

NC State University and N.C. A&T State University work in tandem, along with federal, state and local governments, to form a strategic partnership called N.C. Cooperative Extension. Extension's 4-H program is the largest youth development organization in North Carolina. We help over 247,000 young people grow into active, contributing citizens each year. Accommodation requests related to a disability should be made by [INSERT DATE] to [CONTACT NAME & PHONE/EMAIL].

Upcoming 4-H Programs for Classrooms and at home

 

NC 4-H Curriculum Newsletter Upcoming Trainings and Events

February 2021

Check out What's New The 4-H Curriculum Website is growing its digital assets for educators. This month Soil Solutions (3rd grade) and Soil to Seed (high school) will be added. Check It Out

Citizen Science Opportunity: Tiny Loaves for Tiny Hands Time is running out to contribute to this citizen science opportunity. Deadline for data is Sunday, February 14. For more information regarding this statewide project visit the shared 4-H Curriculum google drive folder: Sour Dough Science.

Time to Register: Soil Solutions Training Ages 9-11 Soil solutions brims with hands-on science lessons that utilize local landscape to connect students to the world of soils and plants in an inviting and relevant way. We will go through the curriculum and showcase the digital assets educators can use with their youth. Register Here

Time to Register: Soil to Seed Training From the food we eat, to the water we drink, to the places where we live and play, soil erosion and sedimentation profoundly affects our everyday lives. Soil to Seed is designed to cultivate high school aged-youth in understanding the principles of erosion and sediment control. We will go through the curriculum and showcase the digital assets educators can use with their youth. Register Here

Coming Soon: Healthy Habits Family Weekend Mark your calendars! March 13th & 14th will be our first ever Healthy Habits Family Weekend. This will be an engaging virtual event for families to spend time together, learn about plants, and explore good nutrition! Together you will grow a Healthy Habits Family, complete fun challenges, cook up confidence, and have fun together. Be on the lookout for more information coming soon from the Healthy Living Team.

Coming Soon: Not Your Momma's Typewriter: Digital Opportunities for 4-H Clubs Calling all 4-H Volunteers who want to learn how to use digital assets with their 4-H clubs. Feb 23 from 6:00 pm-8:00 pm volunteers can join online to learn how to use the 4-H Curriculum website with their 4-Hers virtually. More information will be forthcoming for registration.

NC State University and N.C. A&T State University work in tandem, along with federal, state and local governments, to form a strategic partnership called N.C. Cooperative Extension. Extension's 4-H program is the largest youth development organization in North Carolina. We help over 247,000 young people grow into active, contributing citizens each year.

Nature Adventures

 

Calling all teachers, remote learners, homeschool families and educators who want to spice up your spring education plan! Registration is open for the Spring 2021 Nature Adventures series! Standards-alignment forthcoming Nature Adventures is a 6-part series of 45-minute educational sessions for the spring semester developed and taught by professional Environmental Educators from North Carolina's premier 4-H Camps. This program is provided for FREE for teachers and families. Check out the session schedule below. All programs are aligned with the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (forthcoming) and are presented live over Zoom. Can't make the live event? Register for the recording and go at your own pace! Register an entire class or individual students. LEARN MORE at our website, grab material lists, and review standards alignment This program is free, but requires registration                            REGISTER HERE Giants of the Coast Feb. 22, 1 pm Did you know that one of the largest populations of Black Bears is in eastern North Carolina!? Students will explore the habitat, behavior and ecological niche of this fascinating animal on a virtual field trip to the NC coast. Presented by The Eastern 4-H Center Stories in the Stars Astronomy March 5, 1 pm Students investigate the science behind the solstices and equinoxes, learn about the myths behind constellations, and explore what they can find in the night sky right now. Run, Duck, Hide - Predator/Prey Relationships March 18, 1 pm What does an animal's skull tell us about the food it eats, where it lives and how it thrives? Find out in this exciting investigation of predator and prey relationships. Presented by Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Center Winged Wonders April 1, 1 pm In this fascinating and beautiful adventure, students will learn about the butterfly life cycle, pollination, and how to build habitats to support these majestic creatures. Presented by Millstone 4-H Camp Taking Flight - Birds of Prey April 13, 1 pm Students will explore general concepts of physics such as lift, force and aerodynamics with LIVE birds as examples. Students will also learn how physical characteristics of birds impact their habitat and diet. Presented by The Eastern 4-H Center Let's Go on a Night Hike! April 20, 1 pm Students will use their sensory awareness to explore the adaptations nocturnal animals use to live and thrive in darkness. Come explore the night with us! Presented by Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Center Connect With Us On Social Media Facebook YouTube

Cutting Up in the Name of Science

Making our community stronger through partnerships is part of what we do here at Cooperative Extension.  In 4-H it is fun to partner with other youth agencies to make the best better in our county.  So when CIS said they wanted to work with us on a STEM project, I could think of nothing better then 4-H Drone Discovery.  Thanks to United Way dollars were were able to purchase the curriculum and train these pioneers of drone aviation.  Although our plan was to kick this off in 2016, that pesky Hurricane Matthew got in the way of a really good plan.  Delayed, but not grounded we took off with the project today and we can't wait to see what is to come.
Teachers from four CIS after school programs (Parkton, Pembroke, Prospect, and Red Springs) came by on a teacher workday to get the training in for Drone Discoveries.  Each school got a kit, curriculum, and a google drive with extra resources.  During the training it is important for the teachers to test each activity and see what works, and won't work with their youth (and have a little fun while they are at it).
Drones are revolutionizing the way we work and play.  During the hurricane some of the most incredible video we have is from overhead drones at work, other times it was helpful to send drones in to see if anyone needed help or how far the flooding truly went.  Drones have everyday applications for farmers checking crops and have been helpful to our military when scoping out dangerous areas.  This project opens the door for youth to explore and expand the role of drones in our society and even come up with better engineering opportunities for these machines that have proven their worth and that they are not a fly by night fad,  We look forward to hearing from our teachers about their fun with this curriculum and how their youth enjoyed the aerodynamic and coding opportunities that this project allowed them to experience.

What Does it Take to Grow?

The students in the Community in Schools (CIS) Red Springs after school program answered that question Wednesday. They found humans and plants share many of the same answers. Plants need sunlight, food, water, and air to survive. Humans need all of the same things, but we happen to get them in different forms.

The youth did a recycling plant science project that tests the theory of all the things we need. Using knee high stockings, a little soil, and grass seed they made their own healthy project, a grass head. The project allows youth to not only learn about what it takes to grow, but recycle knee high stockings and express their own creativity.

This is part of a series of projects that we are doing with Red Springs middle after school students to teach them about Healthy living.

Creative History Lesson

St. Patrick's Day. We all know to wear green or we will be pinched. We know St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, which is a land of leprechauns and rolling lush green hills and the blarney stone. Do you know the real story of St. Patrick's day? If not you can ask any of the students in the Communities in Schools (CIS) after school program at Red Springs Middle and they can tell you all about St.Patrick.

The youth learned the legend about St. Patrick and the true story behind the man before getting creative and making St. Patrick's day cards to celebrate the day. Although they liked the legend about the man who drove snakes the covered Ireland into the sea they liked the true story even better. The one of the Brit (yes St. Patrick was actually British) who was kidnapped on a trip to Ireland at the age of 16 and was enslaved for 6 years before his escape. He went home to his family but returned to Ireland later as a missionary and is credited with starting more than 300 churches in the country.

While the youth talked about his adventure they had fun finding secret leprechaun messages, completing traditional Irish word searches and making shamrocks. Every last one of them knew the difference between a shamrock and the 4-H Clover (three leaves versus four), and some could even tell me what all four of the H's stand for.

Treasure Map of Life

Have you ever mapped out your life, your future? That's what 15 active youth did as part of Red Springs Middle School's, Community In Schools (CIS) After School Program this week. The youth made a collage treasure map that included four sections; family & friends, health & fitness, hobbies & leisure, and jobs & careers. Each worked hard at creating a piece that suited them. The careers ranged from police officer and bartender to television star and super solider. The pieces they created were colorful and fun and showed each youth's personality.
When they were done with their treasure map they received two cards. One was for them to take home to their parents to initiate a conversation about their goals and dreams and how they can work together to make this happen in the future (actually mapping out the course as a family). The second card was filled with questions for the youth to ask the parent. Things like, "What did you want to be when you were my age?" Questions to open a conversation and let parents remember what it was like to be that age and kids know that their parents were once like them.
For more information about 4-H and after school activities, please contact Shea Ann DeJarnette, Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development at (910) 671-3276 or Shea_Ann_DeJarnette@ncsu.edu.