PRESTON – October 2-8 is National 4-H Week, and Fillmore County is celebrating the 4-H youth who have made an impact on the community and are stepping up to the challenges of a complex and changing world.
The 4-H youth development program provides “learn by doing” experiences to encourage youth to experiment, innovate and think independently. 4-H programs are offered through school-based, after-school, and camp settings and within community clubs, where groups meet regularly to work on projects, perform community service and develop leadership skills. Through this unique process, youth obtain essential life skills such as problem solving, decision making, coping and communicating.
“4-H provides positive non-school learning opportunities that are critical for the development of young people,” said Dorothy McCargo Freeman, State 4-H Youth Development Program Leader. “As a result, 4-H youth are able to contribute and make a difference in positive ways in their homes, schools and communities throughout Minnesota.”
Today’s 4-H projects include the traditional and still popular agriculture and animal science projects. But 4-H youth also work on cutting-edge technology projects, such as aquatic robotics, digital photography, community service and environmental projects, such as maintaining local hiking trails and testing water in area streams for contaminants.
Recent findings from Tufts University’s 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development indicate that young people in 4-H are three times more likely to contribute to their communities than youth not participating in 4-H. Notably, the Tufts research discovered that the structured learning, encouragement and adult mentoring that 4-Hers receive play a vital role in helping them actively contribute to their communities. In Fillmore County, more than 350 4-H members and 150 volunteers are involved in 4‑H.
Also during National 4-H Week, hundreds of thousands of youth from all around the nation will complete a single, innovative experiment on 4-H National Youth Science Day, which will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2016. The 2016 National Science Experiment, 4-H Drone Discovery, explores activities related to aerospace, flight and unmanned vehicles.
Learn more about 4-H in Minnesota and how you can get involved at www.4-H.umn.edu or contact Rebecca Lofgren, Fillmore County 4-H program coordinator, at (507) 765-3896 or lofgr053@umn.edu.
About Extension 4-H
Minnesota 4-H is a youth development program available throughout Minnesota for youth grades k-1 year after high school. 4-H’s learn-by-doing model guides youth in designing and participating in their own programs and activities, which results in hands-on learning. Through this unique process, youth obtain essential life skills such as problem solving, decision making, coping and communicating that prepare them to succeed in their school, college, community and careers. Research shows that youth who participate in 4-H have better grades and are more emotionally engaged with school, are more than twice as likely to be civically active and contribute to their communities, and are 47% less likely to have risky or problem behaviors.
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