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Bookswithtea
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Joined: July 07 2005
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| Posted: Aug 07 2007 at 7:59pm | IP Logged
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I don't get it when people describe it to me. They tell me how you can do lots of different projects and its fun and a lot of work sometimes. What do you do in a meeting and how often do they meet? Is there much social involved (dd 10 is looking to make friends as well as do something fun)? Is it mom intensive...in other words, can I do it with a newborn and 5 other children?
I need an activity for my 10 yr old and I'm wondering if this will fit the bill or if I should keep looking. Can you help?
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Blessings,
~Books
mothering ds'93 dd'97 dd'99 dd'02 ds'05 ds'07 and  due 9/10
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KackyK
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Joined: May 22 2007
Location: Virginia
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| Posted: Aug 07 2007 at 8:37pm | IP Logged
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I run a 4H club. I'll begin with this...each local club runs things a little bit differently. But I'll try to give you a bigger description.
Yes...there are what 4H calls projects...a homeschooler would probably say unit study. Most 4H groups have projects that fall in the categories of agriculture, science (and this includes animals...dogs, horses, sheep, etc) and community (like scrapbooking).
Parent volunteers choose to run a project and they generally choose when and where they want to do it. For instance, I'm going to be doing a project on terrariums, we will only meet 3 times once a month, for 2 hours at time to complete it.
Now something our club does differently than others, is that we are going to run all of our projects at the same time. So large families, with lots of kiddos in the club, aren't running all over the place and various times during the month...this way they know that on every 4th Friday, all of their children will have 4H. We may end up with parents, like my dh for one, who decide to hold an extra project, outside of this set 4H time...which is fine too. Kids can choose then whether they'll like his topic and want to do it or not, in addition to the projects (again, think unit study) they are doing on our 4th Friday meeting.
Most clubs, I believe, run projects at different times and days throughout the month.
The ages...there are Cloverbuds for ages 5-8, then Juniors are next starting at 9 and then they go up to seniors, in highschool.
When they reach Juniors, they participate in a business meeting for the club. Those meetings are once a month. The kids run it themselves. They have a president, vp, treasurer, secretary etc and they run by Robert's Rules of Order. For me, I see this is as a great opportunity to gain some leadership experiences that they may not receive otherwise.
Things they decide on...field trips, service projects, etc. Some clubs at their business meetings may have some sort of lecturer or learning presentation. For instance, a friend of mine who is in a 4H group dedicated soley to raising chickens, says at their business meetings someone presents some new skill for the kids...ie how to clip your chicken's claws (nails...whatever they have!)
Other opportunities with 4H...camps (day and sleepover) (we do a day Fair Camp...it's fun), talent shows, our county rents a bus and takes kids to the State Capitol for tours...stuff like that.
There is even more to tell...but I'm sure this is plenty long!
Oh...you asked about mom intensive...for our group I'd tell you no. We do ask that each mom volunteer for at least month by staying during the club time to just be an extra set of eyes and hands at the meeting (and babies would be welcome) to help out the project leader. There would be no planning involved. Our club also offers a Storytime for the younger dc of helpers and leaders during club time...so that works for us.
Okay one last thing...we have found that a large amount of 4H children are homeschooled...at least in our community.
Anyways...HTH 
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KackyK
Mom to 8 - 3 dd, 5ds & 4 babes in heaven
Beginning With the Assumption
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wamegomom
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Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Kansas
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| Posted: Aug 07 2007 at 9:45pm | IP Logged
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We LOVE our 4-H experiences overall. In our club we have a mix of "town kids" and "country kids" and a good mix of individual projects as well. Not at all mom-intensive unless you are a project leader or a 4-H version of a stage mother (I've seen a couple). Our club has monthly meetings (babies and toddlers welcome) that last for about an hour--short business section according to Roberts' Rules, 2 or 3 members present a project talk or a demonstration of a skill (one night a teen made fresh guacamole and a salsa dip for everyone to try, a boy demonstrated how to clean his rifle for shooting sports, and a brother and sister demonstrated how to groom their new Corgi puppy), someone might present a short musical solo or recite a poem, and a couple of members lead a game. Then the meeting is adjourned and refreshments are served.
Individual projects may have meetings--for ex. our geology club is fantastic and we wouldn't miss a meeting--but if there isn't a parent-leader, the member can work on his/her own or get together with a group from another club. For ex, we have a great dog obedience and agility training group that meets in the adjacent county but is open to our county's 4-H kids as well.
We just finished our county fair this past Sunday. We had pre-fair project judging a week earlier for projects like 16 y.o.'s ceramics and sketches, and 9 y.o. dd's geology, sewing and fiber arts. At the county fair our 3 youngest (6, 9 and 9) showed Katahdin market lambs and a ram (dd 9 had the champion Katahdin Market Lamb and is she thrilled), our 9, 9 and 14 y.o.'s entered baked goods, our 14 y.o. entered photography (and one is going to the state fair) and my 9 y.o. dd entered a self-directed vet science project about the benefits of raising Katahdin hair sheep. Truly, I'm exhausted, but our July curriculum is finishing 4-H projects!
The children can pursue their interests, a lot like unit studies in many cases, learn practical skills, and gain confidence in public speaking, organizing and teaching skills to others, and even earn trips and college scholarships. It is very much a family activity. On Geology State Tours, for instance, we've seen entire families come, toddlers to grandparents, and everyone delights in the fossils, etc that are found.
Not every local group is well run, but you can visit a few in your county before you join. There are no dues. For our family, anyway, it has been a wonderful experience, that we will have at least 12 more years to enjoy!
Mary Alice in Kansas
p.s. My dh and his dozen siblings paid for most of college with their 4-H farm animal premium-sale money, saved over the years.
p.p.s. Each member keeps a record book of their experiences each year, and I have to tell you, one of the sweetest treasures I have is dh's 4-H records. We didn't meet until our 30s but now I have his photo every year from 8 to 18, thoughts in his own words and scrawl (like at 8 y.o. "I did NOT like having to keep my pig clean"), and newspaper photos of this really cute, tall teenager in a cowboy hat, grinning to light up the world the year he had the Grand Champion Market Hog AND the Grand Champion Hereford Steer. You'll have lovely memory books for your children too.
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momtomany
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Joined: Feb 17 2005
Location: Pennsylvania
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| Posted: Aug 08 2007 at 9:19am | IP Logged
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I run a 4H horse club. I know that there are many different kinds of 4H clubs, but the animal ones are the only ones I am personally familiar with. Our club does have dues, which pay for the project books and materials, as well as some kind of insurance. We meet once a month for most of the year, but in the summer there are extra riding meetings and book meetings. The kids participate in these as well as the horse shows, such as County Round-Up, which can qualify them for the District show, which then hopefully will lead them to the State 4H horse show.
As far as parent involvement, in our club it's pretty limited. Parents certainly can become involved, and I'm sure that in most clubs an offer to help would be greatly appreciated, but it's not mandatory.
One thing I really like about 4H is it's very strict Code of Contact. They emphasize sportsmanship, ethics, personal responsibility, etc. And any overnight event is well chaperoned. Failure to comply with the code of conduct means you're out.
It's been a very positive experience for our children.
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Mary Ann in PA
wife to MIchael, mom to Elizabeth, Becca, Tim, Peter, Andrew, Sarah, Matthew, John, Leah and Joseph
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4Real Forums : Tea and Conversation
Topic: What can you tell me about 4H?
