How do youth participate in 4-H?

The Mason County 4-H Youth Development program gives young people a chance to learn new skills, gain self-confidence and to contribute to their communities. The common theme is youth learning and growing in citizenship, leadership, and life skills.

Nurturing teamwork and planting opportunities in Mason County

Here in Mason County, as everywhere across the nation, kids come home to empty houses as families struggle to make a living. That's just one of the reasons 4-H serves 120 young people in an after school program. Here our kids learn skills from nutrition to arts and crafts as well as build teamwork and practice communication skills.

4-H's Panhandle Camp offers experiences to County kids all year long. The summer forestry program allows high school students to work with forestry professionals and learn about their environment by building trails, maintaining parks and preserving habitats.

What is 4-H Afterschool?

For young people...4-H Afterschool provides opportunities to participate in fun, exciting programs while developing valuable skills with lifelong benefits.

For parents and family members...4-H Afterschool creates safe, healthy, enriching environments that enhance young people’s social, emotional, physical, and academic success.

For volunteers...4-H Afterschool offers an opportunity to share a special skill with young people.

For youth-serving orgnizations...4-H Afterschool offers extensive resources to help train staff, implement sound youth development practices, create new after-school programs, and strengthen existing programs.

For communities...4-H Afterschool is a partner that builds unique, customized programs around the diverse interests and needs of youth.
4-H Afterschool works with urban, suburban and rural communities to identify their areas of need and interest and then build customized programs to meet those needs.

These research-based, ready-to-use curricula set 4-H Afterschool apart and help young people to achieve social, emotional, physical, and academic success. Each curriculum provides youth with valuable skills such as leadership, collaboration, decision-making, civic responsibility, and critical thinking.

The innovative "learn-by-doing" curricula 4-H offers cover an impressive array of topics, including, CItizenship and Civic Education, Communication and Expressive Arts, Consumer and Family Science, Environmental Education and Earth Science, Healthy Lifestyle Education, Personal Development and Leadership, Plants and Animals, Science and Technology

4-H Afterschool provides training and technical assistance to help youth development organizations at the local, state, and national levels.