What are/were your expeiences with 4-H? Kids asking about joining

[Jessika]

I have kids that are really wanting to join 4-H. We have goats, chickens, and rabbits at the moment...nothing with papers. And I know NOTHING about 4-H. What amount of time you spend in meetings, people, cost, etc.


I don't even know if they have a local one....I have been a little hesitant to call the 4-H phone number because I have no clue what exactly to ask. Did I mention I was shy and I am only a few years into playing "farmer"? I don't know anything about shows and such.....not sure how much parent involvement is needed. I don't mind....don't get me wrong...I just don't know what help I would be and I do not want to embarrass the kids anymore that I have too.......

I don't know if we have enough time to dedicate to it. I work and we only use one car. Kids are ages 9, 9, 11, and 12 that are interested. Maybe I should just get over being a worry-wart and check it out....but I figured someone on BYC has some experience with this.


Thank you!!!!

 

[Cetawin]

I think 4-H is a wonderful organization. I really enjoyed my time in 4-H...all the way up to age 17. I was in a Horse club, beef cattle, poultry, sewing and quilting and learned a great deal in home economics.

They learn a lot of valueable lessons, have a great time and have the opportunity to travel, earn scholarships and so much.

If they have the desire and are willing to put in the work and committment...go for it. we met monthly or bi-monthly.

Contact your local county extension office...they will have the info for you on who and what is local for you.

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

Couldn't of said it better myself. I hope you don't let your shyness keep you from doing this. Have fun..great people to be around!!

 

[MissPrissy]

My kids are in 4H. However, 4H in Va is nothing at all like the super duper 4H programs in Ga that have privileges to go into the schools and work with kids about agriculture and animal husbandry.

 

[annmarie]

4-H was a great experience for me growing up! Every club is different though. I was in a goat club, which was fantastic and I got so much out of it, but when I got a little older, I switched over to a horse club which was okay, but a little awkward because it turned out that basically everyone else in the club was related

except me, and the meetings were at peoples houses, so I always felt like I was crashing a family party. Fortunately I think that is rather unusual! Don't worry about not knowing anything about shows, farming, etc. You'll be an expert by the end of the year!

I don't believe we had any fees, but we did do a couple of fundraisers a year, and there were entrance fees for the shows, but they were very inexpensive from what I can remember. I suggest you go to a meeting, maybe for more than one club since you have several different kinds of critters, and see which group you feel most comfortable with.

 

[Mawchickkidie]

I am the local 4-H club poultry club parent leader and we love it, my oldest 7 is still a cloverbud, but wins all kinds of things and is included in all the activities and the senior members really take care of the younger ones and show them how to do everything and work with them on their projects. I am very active in our 4-H club as i am a stay at home mom, and both of my daughters love it although my youngest is not old enough just yet to be a member she is 3, but she does go to all the meetings and they include her in all the activitie to, our club is a rural one but we have a good number of members, and I belive we have 6 clubs in the county and all are very active. the best adivce I can give is just go to the next meeting and watch and listen and meet the members and other parents, just get a feel for it and see if your kids like it and all the activities, you don't have to do everything all the time you do have a choice in what they participate in and such and most of the other parents also work. but it is a great experance for your kids and will teach them many valuable lessons that they maynot get to learn anywhere else.

 

[Fudgie]

4-H is awesome. It gives the kids a sense of responsibility, pride, accomplishments. You can show anything you want they don't HAVE to have papers, if they do they just show in a different class. Not a big deal.

You can call the local extension office and get information or go to this website.
http://www.4-h.org/
There are links to find the extension specialists in your area. A lot of the extension offices have extra literature that they will send you for free. Please take the time to check it out, I waited till my kids were 10 and 12 before starting and I wish I would have started earlier. They missed out on so much learning. They get to meet new kids and there are opportunities for them to go on trips and sometimes the extension offices offer "scholarships" so they can go when they cannot afford it. That is way cool. Sometimes it does not pay the whole amount but anything is better than nothing.

With 4-H you can be as involved or not involved as you want. For my club if there is only one child enrolled in a specific project, the mom or dad just takes care of being the leader of that project. Sometimes there is a person in your community that would LOVE to teach something to the kids. Like older people teaching crochet or knitting etc. Check it out, you will love it.

 

[rjv_piper]

Well, sorry, but I don't like our horse program. I didn't like it mainly because I had a bad experiance when my horse died, they were jerks about letting me ride another horse in a differant show. (I was number one before she died). Our livestock program is better, but still not my favorite thing to do. I love working with the animals, it's just the people that are jerks and I have problems with...

I didn't show project horse last year, but I did show in our two handed program, I showed 2 lambs, and 1 steer, but it has taught me something very improtant, and that was never to treat a kid like I was treated because I know how they would feel, and it's not good.

 

[mamato3]

my dd is only 4 but as soon as she turns 5 i will be asking her if she would like to join

 

[vicki2x2]

4-H is an awesome program!! I loved it as a kid and I am now a leader. There is truly something for everyone. It teaches responsibility, leadership, compassion, and so much more. We also do community service projects.

As a kid I did rabbits, sheep, archery, sewing, leather crafts, cake decorating, cooking and more. I also did a 4-H exchange program where we went to stay with other 4-H families in another state for 2 weeks and the following summer, they came to stay with us. I did Exploration days where we could sign up for all sorts of fun and educational classes.

I am the Small Animal leader for our club. Our club meets once a month and the small animal kids meet once a week for the last 6 weeks or so before fair. This is all subject to your club and leaders. My kids have shown or done dogs, rabbits, chickens, ducks, geese, goats, llama's, glass etching, tin punch, ceramics, shooting sports, collections, photography, and probably some I am forgetting. My oldest is a teen leader, has served on the club's board for many years, is currently the poultry rep for the county, volunteers every year for the cloverbud camp and the cloverbud show.

Our club has provided Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner for a needy family, along with Christmas presents.

There is so much more things kids can do. Last year a kid built a tractor engine, it was cool! There is all kinds of crafts, cooking, sewing, quilting, plants, vegetables, canning, drawing, painting, flower arranging, cake decorating, and so much more. Oh, there is also a performing arts division. Kids sing, play music, dance, tell jokes, etc.

I would definitely recommend 4-H!!