Robeson County 4-H Youth are Noticed at District

It is an annual event that our 4-H members look forward to each year, District Activity Day. This is a day where the best of the best of Robeson County youth who have competed in Public Speaking, Presentations, and Entertains can compete against the best of the best from others in our 15 county district. This year the event was held in Biscoe and East Montgomery High School.

We had 9 youth who competed to see who would be the best in the district. All did a fantastic job competing against other youth in their age divisions. Maurice Williams and Rachel Jhala represented our county in 4-H Entertains. Reece, who is part of the Lightening Electric Club and the "Dirty Rascals" Junior Master Gardener Club sang for the audience while Rachel, who is a member of the Horsin' Around 4-H Club and the "Dirty Rascals" Junior Master Gardener Club, performed a dance native to her homeland of India.

We had three youth representing Robeson County in Public Speaking. Camry Ocean, of the Voices in Praise 4-H club and Elizabeth Keenum of the Inspirational Youth Leaders 4-H club, and Michicko Hill also of the Inspirational Youth Leaders 4-H Club. Machicko competed in the 9-10 year old age division while Elizabeth and Camry went head to head in the 11-13 year old age division.

We had four youth who gave presentations. Presentations are similar to public speeches except the youth demonstrate doing something and have original visual aids (posters or PowerPoint presentations). Megan Hurst of the Horsin' Around 4-H Club and "Dirty Rascals" Junior Master Gardener 4-H Club, gave a presentation on Ballet in the highly competitive Expressive Arts division. Dillon McCartney, a member of the "Dirty Rascals" Junior Master Gardener 4-H Club. tried his hand at making Grow Cards, a recylcing project, for the Soil and Water Conservation division. Cierra and Bridget Buckman, who are members at large, took a team approach and showed the crowd how to make a simple cheesecake in the Dairy Division.

During the assembly after the awards everyone gathered in the auditorium and waited with baited breath as we got ready to announce the results. First a few examples of the incredible Entertains acts for which Rachel Jhala was chosen to preform for everyone. Then down to business. Cierra and Bridget received the gold medal in the senior division of dairy. Dillon McCartney received a silver medal for his hard work. Michicko took home gold for her speech, while Camry edged out Elizabeth. They took home gold and silver respectively.

We need to congratulate our youth for all their hard work and thank their parents and volunteers who supported them as well. Emma Hill. Mr. and Mrs Charles Kennum, Marilyn Merriett, Michelle and Kayleigh Buckman, Kasum Jhala, Gwen Rogers and Jane Hurst accompanied the group to help support our youth also. It would not have been as successful without their help and support.

Up next for these top youth in the state competition in Raleigh during the week of 4-H Congress. Stay tuned as we practice with our youth and get them ready for the top competition to name the best of the best.

Babysitters Extrodanaire!

Have you ever had a problem finding a qualified babysitter? One that had training is responsible, and is prepared for fun and emergencies? Do not worry any longer, the solution is here. This week a dozen youth have been trained and certified by our Robeson County 4-H program as babysitters.

Christy Strickland and Janice Fields, Family Consumer Science Extension Agents joined forces with 4-H to implement the 4-H/Army Babysitting Curriculum. Each child recieved a notebook with the guidebook, worksheets, and receipes from the training. The three day training started on Monday going over saftey tips, learning how to cook healthy, quick snacks and meals, and talking about the joys and lessons of babysitting.

Tuesday we spent most of the day learning and being certified in CPR. The youth worked hard to obtain their adult, child, and infant certification from the Red Cross. They said that was one of their favorite parts of the three days and they were very proud of this awesome accomplishment.

On Wednesday we talked about what was appropraite for different age groups, worked on holding and diapering babies, and worked on our first aid skills. Each youth also had the opportunity to make a "magic" babysitter bag. Each bag has toys and games for various ages, a first aid kit, and wipes to keep toys sanitary. the youth also had another chance to work in the kitchen and make a neat helathy snack and made their lunch for the day. We also talked about the business of babysitting, marketing and how much to charge for their expertise as babysitters. Before the day was over they also had the opportunity to complete role plays of various babysitting issues and brainstormed solutions together.

We hope to make a babysitter reference list from this group for parents who need babysitters in their communities and are looking for qualified applicants to choose from. In the meantime just know there are 12 more babysitters trained, and ready to go.

Make and Take Day

It is everyone's favorite day in 4-H Junior Day Camp, Make and Take Day or otherwise known as Arts and Crafts Day. There is not a moment to waste as we have projects piled up for them to complete and take home, but first there is a little science experiment that we needed to finish up.

The bacteria that we started growing on Monday was visible and really gross. Needless to say the cultures we took from the sink drain, water fountain and front door handle were much grosser than anything we grew from our bodies. None the less they were worthy of a view under a microscope. Five at a time Kerri Roach, our Horticulture Extension Agent, put their samples under the microscope and compared them to molds and viruses but fortunately did not find a match to anything nasty.

While that was going on others decorated mugs to take home with their own designs. Some sports related, others with flowers and rainbows. Each mug uniquely personal and beautiful.

Then it was time for Mr. Bobby. Bobby Rogers, one of our great 4-H volunteers, creates a useful woodworking project for each of our youth to put together and take home. This year they made keepsake boxes that can hold small personal items like jewelry or baseball cards. Each youth got on the floor and hammered away to create their work of art.

After that it was time to do a little fabric painting. Each youth received a white painters cap with special fabric markers. Once again creating personal, unique, and colorful designs that ranged from camouflage to zebra strips. After heat setting in the dryer these works of art were ready to wear in public.

After lunch they went back at it working on patriotic arts and crafts that included recycling cd's and learning about Uncle Sam. Then they had a chance to create a visual and olfactory work of art as they designed their own bar of soap.

They had so much fun several decided to stay for our babysitting day camp which gets started on Monday. Stay tuned as we fill you in on all the fun of becoming a certified babysitter.

4-H Military Day Stimulates Minds and Simulates Experiences

"Miss Shea, Miss Shea this is so cool! Thank you!" From the time we walked into the Golden Knights Museum at Fort Bragg we heard gasps, wows, thank yous and enjoyed the wide eyes of our youth as they learned about this elite team that flies through the air. Joel Rowley, a retired Golden Knight, and now a civilian working with the group as their Visual Information Specialist, was our host for this incredibly informative morning event. The youth also had the opportunity to meet and talk with Captain Michael Funderburk who is with the Operations section of the Golden Knights. The youth learned about the 50 year history of the Golden Knights, watched movies showing their different parachute teams, learned about the dangers and training involved, and asked some really cool questions about what they do. Rowley was even kind enough to randomly pick one youth from the audience and dress him in all the gear they wear and showed them how they deploy a parachute and all the safety measures that are involved, including a computer that will deploy the chute at a certain altitude in case something has happened and the jumper is unable to. For all their questions each of the youth walked out wearing a variety of pins from the Golden Knights and received other items like calendars and key chains which they were able to take home with them. Chandler Miller then presented Mr Rowley with an official 4-H Centennial pin to thank him for hospitality and sharing his knowledge with us. I have to say this was probably a field trip where the adults learned as much as our youth and that makes for an incredibly wonderful day!
After our fun filled informative morning we travelled to lunch at the Golden Corral and then to the Airborne Special Operations Museum in Downtown Fayetteville. While there we saw a movie about the 82nd Airborne and everyone had a chance to tour the museum. One group even had a retired Marine who volunteers at the museum walk and talk with the youth and tell them all the real stories behind the weapons, aircraft and scenes that they saw. Of course the trip would not have been complete without a trip to the simulator. There the youth had the opportunity to feel what it is like to ride a motorcycle, ride in a Humvee, ride on a jeep, jump from a plane and skydive, ride in a helicopter and more. For many the experience was overwhelming and when we came back they couldn't wait to share all the different things they learned with each other. Most importantly they learned a little more about the history of our military, what it takes to become a member of the military, and the important job they do.

Eating Smart and Moving More and More

It was a day of games and cooking for our 4-H Junior Day campers today, and I must say they were adventurous and full today. To kick the day off on the right foot we learned about stomach digestion completing a hands on science experiment with a balloon that simulated the digestion process. It was smelly, nasty, and really cool.

It didn't take but a second for them to get their appetites back and after our snack we hit the kitchen and took a food quiz to try to get a handle on how many calories we are supposed to have a day. In the kitchen Janice Fields worked with the youth making whole grain breads, whole grain pretzels and fruit salsa. They also played serving size charades and learned that an entire bottle of whip cream is not just one serving.

After lunch we had a special visitor, Ms. Shelly who told us all about the summer library program and made lots of great craft projects. We used tile grout to decorate photo frames, and got creative with brush art.

After trying our pretzels (they were some kind of good) and fruit salsa we played beach ball nutrition. At the end we knew about vitamins, saturated fats, and all sorts of things that we will think about the next time we decide what we want to eat.

4-H is Sweet in the Capitol

In case you haven't heard North Carolina 4-H is celebrating its centennial. In that spirit we thought our 4-H Junior Day Campers should celebrate by learning about what life was like 100 years ago. To go along with that movement we took a trip to the North Carolina Museum of History to see what we could learn.

The big hit at this museum was the "Knights of the Black Flag" exhibit which included interactive video experiences, a pirate ship, and costumes to give the real pirate feeling. After a brief run through sports history we travelled across the street to the North Carolina Museum of Natural History for lunch and an afternoon tour.

Working our way from the top down we saw butterflies, snakes, dead animals and skeletons, as well as live animals and plants. The sweetest part of the tour, "Chocolate, the Exhibition". we learned about the fruit from which chocolate starts from and then how it becomes that sweet treat that we often crave (they even showed us why we crave it). Some even bought samples of different types of chocolate and sampled on the way home.

Tomorrow we will find ways to avoid the sweet and eat and play healthy...in a hands on fun way.

Our Future Leaders

What a better idea than to shake up the world then on the first day of our 4-H summer fun day camp. Our youth walked in to shake off school and took on the world in one broad stroke.

Our campers, ages 9-13, started the day by beginning a week long science experiment. Everyone collected bacteria from their bodies and cultured it in a petry dish. We checked several times during the day but don't see any signs of growth yet. Maybe tomorrow.

After starting our science experiment we talked about what makes a good leader. The youth worked together to draw a life size leader and each proved that what a person looks like does not make them a leader, it is the qualities they posses.

After a few more games we had lunch and then worked on changing the world. The campers identified what they would like to change in the world (topics ranged from getting rid of the EOG to changing how taxes are charged, and finding alternative forms of energy for this country to use). We worked together to identify who is in a position to change these things and then wrote them letters to explain our thoughts, and solutions to these issues. The campers did a great job on their letters and wrote everyone from the school superintendent to the President of the United States.

The youth then worked on an old world craft before processing the day and planning for tomorrow. Stay tuned for more photos and fun of our adventures ahead in 4-H Junior Day Camp.

Something to Squeal About....

Summer means many things for many people. For youth it means time to rest from school and play until they can't take it anymore. For families it often means more family time and family vacations. For those of us in 4-H it means hold on because the roller coaster ride has just begun!
In 4-H, Summer means animal science, summer fun day camps. electric congress, congress, camp, and anything else we can squeeze into a few months to give youth the opportunity to stay busy and have fun. Part of that is allowing them to have the responsibility to care for animals, and as they get out of school we are delivering that privilege to them, most recently we made a whole lot of noise about it.
That's because it was time to give out the pigs. We travelled to Billy Oxendine and Larry Chavis's farm to hand out a few oinkers. As you can see the youth were please with the 80 pound pigs that they will raise to reach up to 280 pounds by October. The next time we will see the cute little piggies they will be large hogs so enjoy them while you can. Next up on the animal science give out will be goats next week. But in the meantime stay tuned for all the fun of Summer Fun as we get ready to kick that off next week with Junior Day Camp and Citizenship.

Chicken Little...Soon to be Chicken Big

It is that time of year again. Time for children to get excited about summer, and start their animal science projects that will offer them learning right up into the next school year.
As always we started things with the smallest animal we give out each year...our laying hens. The birds are just a few days old when they go home and adorable, but come fair time they will be much bigger and just about ready to lay fresh eggs.
The neat thing about raising poultry as part of the animal science projects is it gives youth an opportunity to learn about record keeping, show techniques, and allows them to gain responsibility for taking care of other living creatures. Also many youth like to create their own business selling the fresh eggs they get from their laying hens.
Stay tuned as we get ready to give out more animals this summer, up next are the pigs. Make sure to tune in because it will be something to squeal about.