This year some 1,500 youth in Wayne County and thousands more in surrounding counties are engaged in self-directed learning through their participation in more than 200 different 4-H projects. Projects include everything from the traditional cooking, sewing, woodworking, and livestock projects that 4-H is so well known for – but also include a myriad of other topics such as: acting, art, atronomy, babysitting, bicycling, career exploration, electricity, gardening, genetics, genealogy, geology, interior design, laundry, money management, robotics, rocketry, scrapbooking, shooting sports, skateboarding, small engines, sports nutrition, weather, welding, veterinary science, and hundreds more!
Youth are guided through completing their projects by steps outlined in project books authored by expert faculty and staff at The Ohio State University. Many youth are also mentored and coached through the completion of their projects by local adult 4-H club volunteers. At the completion of their project, 4-H youth participate in project judging and can go on to exhibit their project at the Wayne County Fair. During project judging youth demonstrate what they have done or created for their project and what they have learned. This year’s Wayne County 4-H project judging schedule is listed below:
- Clothing and Food Project Judging (for youth interested in qualifying for State Fair) will be July 9th at the Fisher Auditorium, OSU Wooster Campus.
- Early Still Project Judging (for youth interested in qualifying for State Fair) is on July 13th also at the Fisher Auditorium.
- Family and Consumer Science, Still Project, Small Animal, and Gardening Project Judging will take place on August 11th at the Wayne County Fairgrounds.
In addition to projects, there are numerous 4-H activities throughout the summer that also engage youth in hands-on, experiential learning. Examples include our Tuesday Night Horse Fun Shows, livestock clinics, 4-H camp, club meetings, tours, and field trips.
This week more than 130 Wayne County youth are actively engaged in learning activities at 4-H Camp Ohio near Utica in Licking County. Youth are participating in a wide range of activities including cooking their own lunch over a campfire, canoeing, fishing, line dancing, mountain biking and boarding, scuba diving, stream studies, swimming, tie dying shirts, zip lining, and navigating the high ropes challenge course. For more information about how to join 4-H or become a volunteer, contact me at the Extension Office.
Doug Foxx is an OSU Extension 4-H Youth Development educator and may be reached at 330-264-8722.