August 2021
4-H Newsletter
Grow With 4-H This Summer!
We have the details and save-the-dates
you'll need to make a plan for 4-H fun and learning!
Coming up!
Community Service Opportunity
Monroe County 4-H has been invited to attend a park and trail clean-up day next week, Thursday, August 12th from noon to 2pm. All supplies and equipment needed will be available. Location is at Conkey Corner Park and the El Camino Trail.
If you would like to attend, please let Susan know at smc226@cornell.edu by Wednesday, August 11th.
4-H Grows With A Summer of Play

The summer experiences continue! Please note that project displays will begin on August 27th, more information to come!
Smoothie Making Event will be featured later in this newsletter!


Week 4: Aug 2–6 Down on the Farm
We are going Down to the Farm with the Strong Museum of Play! Visit 4-H everyday from 11am-2pm to learn about different farm animals, visit some of our furry friends, and even meet Farmer Fox! Think like a bunny and make bunny food (trail mix) for this week's virtual challenge. What ingredients did you use and why? Let us know on flipgrid!
 
Week 5: Aug 9–13 Wild West
Enter into the Wild West to pan for gold with the Monroe County 4-H! Find us at the Strong Musuem on Monday August 9th from 11am-2pm, and see if you can find a treasure of your own. The fun doesn’t stop there, join us on flipgrid all week and show us your cowboy hat creations for our weekly virtual challenge!
 
Week 6: Aug 16–20 Fairy Tale Friends
Once upon a time the Monre County 4-H visited the Strong Musuem of Play for a Summer of Play! Be a part of our fairytale and join us on Monday, August 16th from 11am-2pm to write your very own fairytale. If you look hard enough you might even see a unicorn! Continue the magic with our virtual challenge, build a fairy house or dress up in your favorite fairytale costume and share on flipgrid!
 
Week 7: Aug 23–27 Safari Adventures
It’s time to make a trip to the Safari! Join us for Safari Adventures at the Strong Museum of Play. From 11am-2pm on Monday, August 23 we will be making our own safari animal masks and enjoying a visit from Bravely the Lion! For this week’s virtual challenge we encourage you to make some music with your own rain stick. Using flipgrid, you can show others your instrument, and maybe even a tune you created!
 
Week 8: 4-H Project Showcase
Make sure to save your favorite creations from the theme weeks and the virtual activities! You will have an opportunity to showcase your creations at the Strong Museum of Play from August 30th- September 3rd!
Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)

Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"
Smoothie Making Challenge

4-H Smoothie Making Challenge at The Strong Museum! Save the date, Monday, August 30th.

 Monroe County 4-H is offering a Smoothie Making Challenge! This event is open to all youth ages 5-19 (youth between the ages of 5-7 will need adult assistance for blender use). Participants will be expected to bring all supplies needed including a blender and smoothie making ingredients. Contestants should plan accordingly. Each participant will be provided with a 20 minute time slot to display their smoothie making skills alongside other participants!


Make, Munch, Move
4-H Camp Day: Make, Munch & Move!Join the Monroe County 4-H team as we present 4-H Camp Day: Make, Munch, & Move! This FREE, six-hour program for youth ages 8-12 will provide youth the opportunity to participate in physical activity through fun games, food preparation and tasting, and other hands-on activities. As part of the program, youth will work together to make a healthy lunch to enjoy together! Some favorite recipes planned include water with a twist, black bean salad, and tortilla roll-ups. Awesome games include Balloon-a-Palooza, Stretch As If, and Slow Motion Copy Cat.  
This program will be held at Wegman Lodge in Seneca Park, from 9:30-3:30pm. (Check-in opens at 9:15.)  
This program is funded by the 4-H Healthy Habits program, sponsored by the Walmart Foundation and developed in collaboration with the National 4-H Council.
Please register by Wednesday, August 25th. Please contact Jessica Reid (jar642@cornell.edu) with any questions.  

Outdoor Adventures Weekend

Save the dates! Outdoor Adventures Weekend will be held on September 10th-12th for youth ages 10 and up. If you like to participate in activities like hiking, outdoor cooking, bird identification, fishing, archery, and other outdoor pursuits, this will be the weekend for you. This event will be held at 4-H Camp Bristol Hills near Canandaigua, NY.

Scholarships will be available for this event!
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Featured Activity of the Month

Enjoy the outdoors without leaving a trace!
Summer is in full swing in Monroe County, this wonderful weather provides great opportunity to discover the outdoors! In this activity, youth learn how to enjoy the outdoors without leaving a trace. Before this activity, brainstorm with your group different parks, trails, or wilderness areas near you. Have youth vote on which place they would like to explore. Check out supplies needed and activity steps at https://4-h.org/about/4-h-at-home/leave-no-trace/  .
 
Example Activity Plan
Anchor: Ask your youth to share a word to describe how they feel when they are exploring nature. Ask them, “What joys do we get from being outside? How can we protect and preserve the areas we love?”
 
Add: Pass around the Leave No Trace principles and have a different person read each one. After each one, ask the group what do they think that principle means? Afterwards, divide youth into groups and assign each group a leave no trace principle. Have each group create a skit to show the principle and teach it to others. This can be a game where people guess which principle is being acted out.
 
Apply: Following the first step of Leave No Trace, plan ahead and prepare for your trip to a local park or wilderness area. After planning and preparing, go on your trip! Make sure to review the seven principles and practice them when exploring.
 
Away: Reflect on the activity with the following questions from National 4-H…
1)     What are some ways you can better prepare for your outing the next time you take a trip into nature?
2)     How can you reduce waste when you are away from home?
3)     How can you apply some of the ‘Leave No Trace’ principles into your everyday life at home? What about at school?
4)     How can you be respectful of other visitors and wildlife when enjoying the outdoors?
 
Check out the 4-H at Home Outdoors issue (https://4-h.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/4H-At-Home-Activities-Leave-No-Trace-2.pdf ) and Leave No Trace website (https://lnt.org/)  for resources and other at-home activities from National 4-H (https://4-h.org/about/4-h-at-home/ )! 
Club News and Special Activities
4-H Gymkhana Show

The annual 4-H Gymkhana Show was planned and held at Mariah Meadows Stable on Sunday, August 1st. The youth were able to get their rides in before a day of rain began!

Results are:
Junior Champion- Erin Zielinski
Junior Reserve Champion- Melanie List
Senior Champion- Anya Katz
Senior Reserve Champion- Victoria Canales
Overall Champion Erin Zielinski.