Northwest, Iowa — 4H is a youth program for children in 4th through 12th grade. This program gives these children the chance to be involved in a vast assortment of different activities ranging from communication, leadership skills, and photography.
National 4H week is underway, this is a week that 4H uses to recruit members, and Kate Stewart, O’Brien Counties K-12 program coordinator, goes into detail on what is done for the 4H week.
(as said) “So, within this, we do send out some promotional material, we do reach out and thank our families that are already apart of 4H, and their clubs, and then we also try and showcase student opportunities that newbies might be able to take part in.”
Stewart then continues by talking about what things are being done especially to this year.
(as said) “So this year, we are handing out, we call them, sprout pencils, and they say 4H grows here, and it is a pencil that they can use that, once they finish it, they can plant it and it will grow into: a carnation, a sunflower, a forget-me-not, and so that kind of represents that, within 4H, you take the time to develop your skills and you’re able to see where you can take those skills that you learned and how you can apply them to your life.”
4H is also doing something special for teachers to recognize their hard work and dedication to education even with the COVID-19 pandemic.
(as said) “We have rice crispy bars,” Explains Stewart, ” That says ‘some days you want to snap, COVID makes you want to crackle, but you make O’Brien County schools pop.’ Because we understand their hard work, in that education piece with our youth as well.”
Unfortunately, due to COVID, many of the festivities for the 4H week are not being held. However, Stewart assures us that plans are being made for exciting things in years to come.
Stewart says that 4H is for everybody. She says that with all of the different activates that they offer, every child should be able to find something that they enjoy and are passionate about.
