by Julie Pigott Dillard | Nov 8, 2013
All of you 4-H members with fall herb gardens: Would you be willing to sacrifice your apiaceous herbs to the Black Swallowtail Caterpillar?
Busily devouring dill and fennel, the lime green, black striped caterpillars in the UF IFAS Extension Washington County Office have quickly become a popular attraction. It is fortunate that the South’s climate is warm enough to allow for three generations of this species every year.
Soon, the caterpillars of the Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes asterius ) butterfly species will continue their pupae stage by forming a chrysalis and emerging as one of Florida’s most recognized swallowtail butterflies.
The chrysalis is formed by two glands located inside the caterpillar that secrete silk. The silk threads stick together and harden when exposed to fresh air. The hard, protective coating is usually camouflaged from predators and blends in with the environment. Inside the chrysalis, the process of metamorphosis continues as the adult structure forms while the juvenile structure breaks down. The insects are very inactive during this time as they grow and change. This stage can last from two weeks to an entire season in temperate climates and tropical dry seasons. When hormones indicate it’s ready, the butterfly emerges by splitting the chrysalis open either biting its way out or using spit to soften the ends.
The Black swallowtail has quite a heavy appetite for such a small creature. They eat a variety of plants in the carrot family (Apiaceae) such as dill, fennel, parsley, celery, and carrot leaf. In addition to these cultivated species, they will feast on mock bishopweed, roughfruit scaleseed, spotted water hemlock, water cowbane, and wedgeleaf eryngo. They have also been known to enjoy Common Rue (Ruta graveolens L.).
They exhibit several interesting behaviors throughout their life cycle. For example, when they feel threatened the Black Swallowtail will exhibit yellow antennae-like structures called osmeterium. These flare out and emit a foul odor, like rotten cheese, if one’s finger gets too close.
Even though they are voracious plant eaters and honorable defenders of their territory, butterflies play a vital role in agriculture by pollinating crops and flowers. They’re an indicator of a healthy ecosystem; an abundance and diversity of butterfly species illustrate the overall health of an area. With their acute sensitivity to contaminants and toxins, butterfly populations will not be found in polluted areas. Recognized for their beauty, butterfly watching has also become a popular hobby and pastime.
- Photo courtesy of Donald Hall, University of Florida.
It’s never too early to think about planning a butterfly garden. For more information on creating a backyard butterfly habitat, download this 4-H fact sheet for kids and parents. For more information on this specific butterfly, visit the UF IFAS EDIS website for a publication on the Eastern Black Swallwtail.
Additional Content by:
Matthew Orwat, Extension Faculty I, Horticulture, UF IFAS Extension Washington County
by pmdavis | Oct 25, 2013
Looking at two different plans designed by group
Drawing a map layer
Teens and staff training to teach NYSD Material
October 6-12 was National 4-H Week, and more than 6 million young people across the country celebrated the great things that the 4-H youth development program offers young people and the incredible 4-H’ers who work each day to a make a positive impact on their community.
One of the highlights of National 4-H Week has become the 4-H National Youth Science Day (NYSD). For more than 100 years, 4-H has been at the forefront of teaching young people about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Currently, more than five million young people across the nation participate in 4-H STEM programming in topics as varied as robotics, agricultural science, rocketry, wind power, environmental science and alternative energy. NYSD is the premier national rallying event for this year-round 4-H STEM programming, bringing together youth, volunteers, and educators from the nation’s 109 land-grant colleges and universities to simultaneously complete the National Science Experiment.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013, was the official date of the sixth annual 4-H NYSD, and as a part of National 4-H Week, millions of young people became scientists for the day. This event, which takes place in urban, suburban and rural communities all across the nation, seeks to spark an early youth interest and leadership in STEM careers in an effort keep America competitive in those fields.
The 2013 NYSD Experiment is – 4-H Maps & Apps! This set of activities turns young people into geospatial thinkers as they design and map their ideal park, use GIS mapping to solve community problems, and contribute data about their community to the United States Geological Survey.
Research has proven that participation in 4-H has a significant positive impact on young people. Recent findings from the Tufts University 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development indicates that, when compared to their peers, young people in 4-H are:
- Nearly 4 times more likely to contribute to their communities,
- Two times more likely to pursue healthy behaviors, and
- Two times more likely to engage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs in the out-of-school time.
National Youth Science Day is just one of the many ways we reach youth to make these kinds of impacts. If you would like more information on 4-H National Youth Science Day or would still like to participate in the activity, there is still time. Information is available at http://www.4-h.org/4-h-national-youth-science-day/. It’s not too late to plan and register your event for 2013!
by Niki Crawson | Oct 11, 2013
Volunteer teaching local youth how to build underwater robots.
The goal of 4-H is to teach youth life skills. In so doing, we find that we also equip them with marketable skills, a sense of belonging, and a sense of self-worth, each of which makes them more apt to be successful. However, besides the most obvious benefit that your volunteer services are to your local youth and community, there are benefits for you personally as well. In fact, studies indicate that individuals who volunteer, experience greater health benefits,1 and in some cases, that individuals can combat the onset of depression simply by volunteering.2 Additional personal benefits of volunteerism include increased social skills, and an expanded social network.
Another thing to consider is that by volunteering with 4-H you will have the opportunity to make a positive difference in the lives of children. This more than likely will trigger a sense of commitment, pride, and accomplishment in you which leads to a more positive self-image. The more positive your self-image, the more likely you are to set and accomplish positive personal goals, thus feeling a sense of accomplishment which creates a continuous circle of self-worth and confidence.
One of the most undervalued benefits of volunteering with 4-H is the time spent practicing the very life skills you are teaching through 4-H programming like communication, teamwork, and program planning. As you work with your youth to help them develop these life skills, you too are strengthening them in yourself. When they combine their increased life skills with taking part in the wide variety of training opportunities presented through 4-H, some volunteers may open new doors for employment based on the skills they have learned and developed.
In today’s time when families are busier than ever and time seems limited, having a positive adult role model can truly influence the path of youth. Volunteering with a 4-H program allows these positive impacts to occur. If you are already a 4-H volunteer, take pride in your contributions and reap the joy and benefits associated with such. If you are not currently a volunteer, the great news is that you do not have to look far to find a perfect match for your volunteerservices…the Florida 4-H program welcomes you, and area 4-H Agents are eager to help you get started!
1 Dulin and Hill, 2003; Brown et al., 2005; Brown et al., 2003; Liang et al., 2001; Morrow-Howell et al., 2003; Midlarsky and Kahana, 1994; and Schwartz et al., 2003
2 Depression Alliance http://www.depressionalliance.org/latest-news/volunteering-combats-depression.php
by Marcus Boston Jr. | Sep 27, 2013
Leon County 4-H youth displaying ribbons at North Florida Fair
The arrival of the fall love bugs, the leaves changing colors and falling to the ground, and the sounds of bands rehearsing and cheerleaders chanting can only mean one thing in North Florida……no it’s not time to shop for Christmas gifts…even though it’s just around the corner, but instead, it means it’s almost FAIR TIME! Fair time is not only viewed as the first official 4-H program kickoff event where most of the club participants can play a part, but it’s also a time where youth take pride in showing off the work they have completed in their clubs.
The fair is a venue for 4-H youth to put their 4-H work on display and in many cases receive premium money based on the quality of their entries. The fair also provides opportunities for competitive events to take place and for some youth to showcase their animals they have worked with and cared for during the past year.
Can a youth’s participation in the fair help to development them into a responsible adult? The answer is yes! The 4-H program seeks to be inclusive to all youth by using a variety of vehicles to teach youth life skills in traditional and non-traditional settings. The vehicles used with fairs could be exhibits, animals, competitions, booths, and the list goes on and on. A recent article in The Journal of Extension by Oregon State professionals found that “having fun” and“ spending time with friends” and “teamwork” were the highest rated motivators for participation in the fair. 
The study also revealed that participation in fairs through 4-H had a significant positive effect on participants levels of caring, contribution, and character. These characteristics are also part of the Essential Elements of 4-H that youth experience by being in an active 4-H program throughout the year. Those elements are Belonging, Independence, Generosity, and Mastery.
These results support the conclusion that participation in county 4-H fairs do contribute to the positive development of youth. Research shows that people as a whole learn more when they are having fun and the activities and events at fairs or no exception. By setting “fair” goals that are not tied to premium money but instead to the warm fuzzies felt by youth when they feel they have contributed to a worthwhile event is the right recipe that’s sure to earn them a blue ribbon for life. So, make plans to utilize the events in your local or regional fairs to help teach your youth life skills. If you choose project entries, and need additional help getting those submitted, please contact your local 4-H agent and request a copy of the Document entitled “Getting 4-H Exhibits Ready For The Fair”.
More information on this study can be obtained by visiting the Journal of Extension at www.joe.org and viewing volume 45, number 6.(Arnold, Meinhold, Skubinna, and Asthton)
by Heather Kent | Sep 18, 2013
LEGOLAND is sponsoring the 1st Annual 4-H Day at LEGOLAND on Saturday, September 28th– just in time for 4-H Club Kickoffs! Florida 4-H Families will be able to purchase tickets to LEGOLAND theme park for $30.00 each (regular price is $75.00). In addition, $5.00 from every ticket sold will go to the Florida 4-H Foundation to support 4-H Clubs and Educational Events.
Order up to 20 tickets in one transaction at: https://secure4.gatewayticketing.com/LegolandFlorida/shop/ViewItems.aspx?CG=4h&C=4h . Tickets are good for both youth and adults. For an additional $15.00/person, you can upgrade your ticket at the gate to include access to the water park. Upon arrival, youth can sign up for free robotics workshops to learn about WeDo, Mindstorms, and the new EV3 robotics kits.
LEGOLAND is a theme park with rides, a water park, educational exhibits, Florida Department of Agriculture Greenhouse, Botanical Gardens and much more. To learn more about LEGOLAND, visit their website at: http://florida.legoland.com/. For questions, please contact Annie Muscato, afmuscato@ufl.edu or Heather Kent hckent@ufl.edu.
by Heather Kent | Sep 17, 2013
Last night, Dr. Paula Davis taught us how we can make a difference by empowering youth to plan and lead effective club meetings. We even practiced parliamentary procedure by making trail mix. Whitney Cherry explained proper 4-H emblem usage and how to secure permission to use the 4-H name and emblem for your club.
All of the games and reference materials are available from our website at: https://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/4hn/category/volunteer-training/make-a-difference-mondays/. The door prize winner for August was Edward Owen from Walton County. He won a 4-H Club Kit, containing everything you need to run a club meeting. September winners will be announced next week.
Due to feedback from volunteers like you, we have adjusted our training schedule so that the next session, October 21st, will be on Risk Management. 4-H Specialist Dr. Dale Pracht will be sharing valuable best practices for creating safe and secure environments for 4-H club meetings and events. Please invite any 4-H teens, parents or volunteers that you feel would benefit from this session!
When volunteers share their skills and expertise with youth during 4-H club meetings, youth learn valuable life and leadership skills.
Volunteers like you help 4-H make a difference in over 300,000 Florida 4-H youth each year!
by Whitney Cherry | Sep 16, 2013
Our first session of Make a Difference Mondays was a huge success, and we are very excited to see each of you tonight for round two. If you were not able to join us last month, you are still welcome to attend tonight. We would love to have you!
The session will be offered at your local UF/IFAS Extension Office, or you can join us online from home at 6:00 PM CDT/7:00 PM EDT. Don’t forget to sign in, so we can enter you in the drawing for tonight’s door prizes. Additionally, each time you attend a session of Make a Difference Mondays and sign the sign in sheet (there is one available for online participants as well) your name will be entered in the grand prize drawings to be held in April.
Thank you all again for helping us to “Make the Best Better”!
For more information on how to join the conference online visit: https://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/4hn/make-a-difference-mondays/
by Stefanie Prevatt | Sep 13, 2013
Welcome to the new 4-H year! As you begin making plans to re-connect with your club members and families, make plans to create a year-long plan for your 4-H Club.
Why should your 4-H club plan up to a year in advance?
A plan will help to:
- Meet the needs of all members
- Share responsibilities (among youth, parents, and volunteers)
- Provide better communication to members and families
- Practice cooperation, compromise, and planning skills
- Avoid calendar conflicts
4-H members plant trees for a community service project during Arbor Day.
What should be in your 4-H club plan?
- Monthly Business Meetings
- County, District, and State Activities
- Tours and Trips
- Community Service
- Workshops
- Recreation
- Guest Speakers
- Fund Raising
There are many different ways to create a “year plan” for your 4-H club. The following are a few examples of activities that can be done during a meeting to ensure that all members’ thoughts and ideas are expressed. Keep in mind, when beginning to discuss plans for your club’s focus, education should be the top priority (what youth want to learn during the year).
Sharing Ideas:
Tape a large piece of paper to the wall. On the paper, write two statements: (1) “This year in _____ 4-H Club, I want to learn…” (2) This year in _____ 4-H Club, I really want to….” As youth arrive, direct their attention to the paper and ask them to complete the statements. At a designated time during the meeting, discuss the responses.
Collages:
Have youth create a collage of his/her “year plan” for the club. Materials needed for this activity are: magazines, newspapers, crayons, markers, scissors, glue, construction paper, etc. You can also do this activity in groups.
Design Your Own Clover
Have each member complete the “Design Your Own Clover.” Members can share one leaf of the clover a designated point during the meeting.
Creating a Program Planning Committee
Now that you have all these ideas from your club members, how do you implement your plan? Form a program planning committee. It is important that this committee be representative of your entire club. Older members are likely to be effective planners, but might leave out needs of younger members. In general, committee members are: vice president, secretary, recreation leader, and an adult. It is also good practice to add two or three members who are not officers. This committee can meet on a separate day from the club meeting or convene before/after a club meeting to complete their responsibilities. Once finalized, the committee should report back to the entire club to receive final approval for their plan.
Club planning is not a cut and dry process. Every club can modify these practices to best suite your members – keeping in mind the reason for creating such a plan is to keep the actions of your club directed toward your goals. Your 4-H Extension Agent is also a great resource during this process. Contact your local agent to receive help in creating a plan or for a list of important dates/deadlines for your local office.
Resources:
http://www.uaex.edu/other_areas/publications/PDF/4HCF1.pdf
http://gallia.osu.edu/adams/topics/4-h-youth-development/making-the-best-4-h-clubs-better-twenty-minutes-at-a-time/Handout%20-%20Design%20Your%20Own%20Clover.pdf
http://florida4h.org/clubs/files/4H%20GCL%2020.PDF
by Haley Worley | Aug 30, 2013
It is always a little bit difficult starting something new in a new place with new people. In 4-H we want to create a safe environment where all youth and volunteers can speak their mind, share ideas, and work together as a team. That is why we try our best to make anyone and everyone always feel welcome.
Teambuilding is a major part of 4-H and a very important one too. In order for youth to grow and expand they must be able to work together and accomplish tasks as a team. This also helps them feel accepted, wanted, and confident in the role they play as part of their club or team.
The new 4-H year is upon us, and I felt it was a good idea to share some great icebreakers and get to know you activities, so as we have new members join our 4-H programs all over the district we can reference some great resources from our toolbox to get everyone acquainted.
Listed below are the icebreaker activities I have included with directions and links to pdf’s so you can print.
- Two Truths and a Lie
- Purpose: Teambuilding/Icebreaker
- Groups of: 4-20 (split groups larger than 20 into smaller groups)
- Age Range: 9 and above
- Procedures: Everyone is given a card or piece of paper on which they are instructed to write two truths and a lie about themselves. After they have done this, each participant takes their turn reading aloud their three statements about themselves and the group must guess which they think is the lie.
- TIPS: As they are writing them, encourage them to find unique and possibly strange things about themselves that are true, so that it will be harder for people to guess. You can also prepare them for this by letting them know a day early what will be asked of them so they can take some time to think up some good stuff.
- Icebreaker 1
- Ball Toss
- This activity can be high energy, but with a large group ends up being more about focus and group problem-solving.
- Directions 1. Ask group to form a circle
- 2. Explain that you will toss the ball to one person and they must say their name. They will then toss it to a new person and they must say their name, but everyone must remember who threw it to them and who they threw it to and their name. This will create a pattern which will include everyone in the circle. Everyone must get the ball once (but only once), until the ball ends up with the person who started it.
- 3. Rules: If the ball is ever dropped, it immediately starts over. Also, you may not toss to the person immediately next to you.
- 4. Note to facilitator: When the ball is dropped, encourage the group by saying its okay. Help them support each other. After a few drops, before starting over again, pause the activity and ask the group to problem-solve: ‘What can we do as a group to help us succeed?’
- 5. Sometimes, it will take a group very long (10-15 minutes) just to get it around one time. If that’s the case, you may celebrate and be done. If the group is able to complete this in a relatively short period of time (a few minutes), start them over, but let them know that you will be adding a second ball, which will follow the same pattern. Plus, if any ball is dropped, all balls must start over. If the group is expert, you can then add in a third, fourth, or even fifth ball. When you’ve reached a level of high challenge, let them know that if they succeed here they will have finished the task at its highest level of difficulty.
- Icebreaker 2
- Name Association
- Items Needed: None
- Each person sits in a circle and thinks of one thing (food, animal, etc.) that starts with the same letter as their name. Then the children can introduce themselves: “I am _______, and I like ________.” The next person repeats what the first child said and then adds his/her own.
- example – child 1: My name is Alex and I like apples; child 2: Alex likes apples. My name is Jara and I like junk food; child 3: Alex likes apples. Jara likes junk food. My name is Carlos and I like carrots; continue around circle until everyone has had a turn.
- Icebreaker 3
- Find the Guest
- Items Needed: Sticky-type Name Tags, Marker, 3×5 cards, Pens or Pencils
- Place another person’s name tag on the back of each person in the group.
- Do not tell the person whose name is on their back. Give each person a 3×5 card and a pen or pencil and instruct group members to find out from others as much as they can about the person whose name is on their back and write the information on the card.
- While gathering information, he/she tries to guess whose name is on his/her own back.
- At the end of a set time limit, have the group gather together and allow each person a chance to guess whose name they had on their back.
- After finding out whose name was on his/her back, have each person introduce the person whose name they had on their back by using the information gathered on their card.
- Icebreaker 4
I hope you find these activities beneficial and helpful for your new 4-H year. If you have any questions about 4-H or being involved in your local county programs contact your local Extension Office for more details.
Thank you to http://4hvolunteercafe.wordpress.com/ice-breakers-energizers/ and http://utah4-h.org/htm/resource-library/resource-materials/by=category/category=300 for the icebreakers and directions. These two websites also have many more to choose from, so I urge you to take a look.
by Whitney Cherry | Aug 19, 2013
This is our final countdown post! I’m sure many of you who have been long-time 4-H supporters have seen this video before, but it pumps me up every time I see it! Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WC90-fGzGuo&noredirect=1
Join us TONIGHT, Monday, August 19, 2013 at 6:00 PM Central for the first session of Make a Difference Mondays, where you can learn how to make positive differences in the lives of youth just like this!
Contact your local extension office for more information or go to: https://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/4hn/make-a-difference-mondays/
