University of Maine Cooperative Extension homepage

4-H Flash Newsletter

April 2009

Volume 4, Issue 4

April 18- Eastern States 4-H Dairy Judging

May 2– VOLT Training Hancock County

May 15– EIN Deadline (for leaders with club treasuries)

May 15-16- 4-H Edge Weekend at UMaine Campus

May 15-17– Northeast Livestock Expo

May 22-24– 4-H Teen Weekend

June 26-28-Maine 4-H Days at the Winsor Fairgrounds

July 4-11- CWF

July 5-10– 4-H GPS/GIS TEK Trek-Greenland Point

For a complete listing of what’s happening in 4-H check out the 4-H Calendar Page at: http://extension.umaine.edu/4h/calendar.htm.

3rd Annual Washington County Robotics Expo

The 3^rd Annual Washington County 4-H Robotics Expo was held Saturday, March 21^st at the Elm Street School in East Machias. Sixty-two youth from six area schools participated in the day-long event which kicked off at 9:30am with a “robotics fair”. Youth teams had their displays set up and practiced their public speaking skills while judges circulated and asked a variety of questions. The afternoon offered a robotics skill-a-thon for youth and coaches fairly new to the robotics project. They rotated through five stations that offered hands-on activities to teach a specific skill such as using light sensors and experimenting with tire size to determine the effect on speed and accuracy. More experienced teams spent their afternoon working on a challenge activity in which they had to program their robots to navigate a course. The day wrapped up with an awards ceremony. The event was organized by Tom Bickford of Maine Robotics in collaboration with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension 4-H program. Special thanks to the Perloff Family Foundation and the Pine Tree State 4-H Foundation for their financial support.

Please see page two for pictures.

Award Winners

Community Service Award

Machias Valley Christian School

Rookie Award

Rockets of Beatrice Rafferty School

Creativity Award

Rockin Robots of Charlotte Elementary

Teamwork Award

The Legoland Carnival of Machias Valley Christian School

Presentation Award

Dragons of Beatrice Rafferty

Non Robot Award

Rockin Robots of Charlotte Elementary

Best Robot Award

Gummy Bears of Machias Valley Christian School

Washington County Bulletin Board Items

VOLT Training - There will be a VOLT (Volunteer Ongoing Leader Training) on Saturday, May 2, 2009, 9:00 am - 2:00 pm at the Hancock County Extension Office. Please encourage anyone interested in 4-H to call the office for an application. This will give a volunteer the opportunity to start a club, assist a club, chaperone, or just gain more knowledge of 4-H.

What do you learn in VOLT?

☺ You learn about 4-H and UMCE

☺ You learn about starting and working with a club

☺ You learn about new opportunities and resources

☺ You learn different ways to teach life skills

☺ You learn about leadership and group work

☺ And you become a member of a national community of caring people who are helping young people to reach their goals in life.

The National 4-H curriculum Pre-Press Sale - SAVE 35% - Don't miss this special opportunity to purchase National 4-H Curriculum items for less! The National 4-H Curriculum pre-press period is April 1st – 25th, 2009. All National 4-H Curriculum orders placed during this pre-press period will receive a 35% discount. (Please note: Pre-press discounted online orders for National 4-H Curriculum items will not be included in the Fair Share program.)

National 4-H Curriculum prices on the 4-H Mall have been changed to reflect the 35% discount during this period. After April 25th the prices online will be changed back to the original prices.

In addition to placing orders online, you can also order by phone or fax:

Phone: 301-961-2934 (M-F 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM EST) Fax: 301-961-2937 Website: www.4-hmall.org/curriculum

YOU are invited to:
4-H EDGE: Connecting Kids to Campus

A 4-H event engaging kids ages 11-15 in higher education with an on-campus experience—campus life, workshops with campus faculty and staff, recreation and more!
“4-H—your first class at the University of Maine”

University of Maine
Friday, May 15 & Saturday, May 16, 2009

Registration is required. Download registration form at
extension.umaine.edu/4h/events/edge.htm or contact your county
University of Maine Cooperative Extension office to have a form mailed to you.

Send completed registration form to:

Kyle Sadick 4-H EDGE Weekend 5741 Libby Hall University of Maine Orono, Maine 04469
**DEADLINE TO REGISTER: April 24, 2009**

Published and distributed in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914, by the University of Maine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Cooperative Extension and other agencies of the USDA provide equal opportunities in programs and employment. 4/09

Maine State 4-H News

1. 4-H GPS/GIS TEK* Trek * Technology and Environment for Kids AKA Naturalist Camp, July 5-10, 2009 at Greenland Point Center and the University of Maine at Machias in Princeton and Machias, ME, for ages 12 – 15. 4H GPS/GIS campers will "Get Outdoors" to learn about wildlife and their surroundings including woods, water, land and air. Participants will learn to collect GPS data and carry out a service mapping project for the Center and will also spend 1-1/2 days at UM Machias using the computer labs and exploring the campus. ATV and Boater Safety certifications course will be available. Bring cameras for tips on photography!

Special cost to 4-H members: $150.00 for the entire week (non 4-H cost is $250.00). To register, go

to www.greenlandpoint.com Under Skills Camp, find Naturalist Camp – 4H GPS/GIS – At bottom of list, go

to Click Here for Application. Apply Early! Camp is limited to 15 youth!

2. New England 4-H Dog Clinic Saturday, May 2, 2009 at the Tolland Agricultural Center, Route 30, Vernon, CT, 8:00 am – 4:00 pm. The dog clinic is open to all registered 4-H Dog Project members 9 – 18 years of age and their registered 4-H project dog. Information and registration materials can be found on the Maine 4-H Website’s dog page at: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/resources/dog.htm.

3. State Dairy Show and ESE Tryouts Save the Date! The 2009 Maine State 4-H Dairy Show will take place on July 18-19, 2009 at the Windsor Fairgrounds. More information can be found on the Maine 4-H Website’s Dairy page at: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/resources/dairy.htm.

4. Make It With Wool Contest 4-Hers in Maine are invited to enter the Make It With Wool Contest, a national competition sponsored by the American Sheep Industry Association. The state-level contest will be held on October 10, 2009 at the Page Farm Museum at the University of Maine in Orono. Contestants may enter garments made with wool that are sewn, knit, crocheted or felted. More information and rules for the contest are on our website at http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/events/other/wool.htm or you can contact Michaele Bailey at 1-800-287-0274 for more information.

5. Dairy Judging Tryouts for the 4-H Dairy Judging Team will be held on Saturday April 18 in Penobscot County. The top four qualified youth will be selected to compete on the Eastern States 4-H Dairy Judging Team. Judging will begin at 9:00 am at the Ronnie Simpson farm, 189 Corinna Court Road, Corinna. Simpsons will serve dinner at noon. Judging will continue in the afternoon at the Louis Nuite farm, 129 Dyer Road, Atkinson, ME 04426. Bring a clipboard and a pencil and be ready to judge. For more information you can contact Dave Marcinkowski, State Dairy Specialist at 1-800-287-7170.

6. Northeast Livestock Expo The Northeast Livestock Expo (NELE) will be held May 15-17, 2009 at the Windsor Fairgrounds. If you are a beef, sheep, goat or horse enthusiast of any age, mark your calendars and plan to attend this event. NELE is a multi-species event that includes shows, sales, youth activities and a cook-off for beef, goat and of course lamb dishes. New this year will be horse events. The activities include: - American Lamb Board Cook-Off - Purebred, Feeder Lamb and 4-H Market Lamb Show and Sale Youth Show and Activities - Horse shows & clinics. For more information on horse events please contact Cathy Thomas at hippology@myfairpoint.net or call 458-1402. For more information or to receive entry forms for NELE, please contact Wendy Reinemann at (207) 785-2978, or by email at guiniridge@gmail.com . You can visit the NELE website at www.northeastlivestockexpo.com.

7. 4-H EDGE Weekend 2009: Connecting Kids to Campus is Friday May 15, and Saturday May 16, 2009 at the University of Maine It’s going to be the best EDGE yet! Team building and recreational opportunities on Friday! Super workshop sessions on Saturday! Things like Marine Botany, Animation, Veterinary Science, and dozens more! Watch for coming information on Parent Workshops like Planning for College in Challenging Times and Supporting Career Aspirations. There’s a great panel planned for Saturday lunch that both youth and adults will enjoy! We’re still investigating overnight arrangements for parents – dorms turned out to be VERY expensive so we are looking for other alternatives!

The cost this year will be $55.00 per 4-H member and $40 for additional family members. Non 4-H members may also attend at a fee of $75.00 per person. Registration will start in late March and the forms will be up on the website.

Check the EDGE 2009 site on the Maine 4-H website – we’ll be adding new information about workshops and

activities! Save the dates...It is going to be the best EDGE yet! Don’t miss it!!

8. ESE 4-H Beef Program Scholarship Two $1000 Scholarships will be awarded in 2009. Open to high school seniors and current college students who have participated in the Eastern States Exposition 4-H Beef Program. Awards will be announced during the ESE 4-H Beef Activity. Scholarships will be awarded after the successful completion of the first semester of a 2 or 4 year program. Applications are on the Big E website at http://www.thebige.com/agriculture/pdfs/09ag4hbeefscholarshipapp.pdf. *Return application by May 1, 2009 to: Rebecca Smith, 160 E. Hebron Tpk, Lebanon, CT 06249

9. Morris Scholarship 2009 Every two years Maine has the opportunity to select an Eastern States Exposition participant to receive a $500 scholarship towards continuing his or her education beyond high school, and this is one of our years! To find information on how to apply for this scholarship, look online at: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/ese/morris.htm.

10. Save the Date for 4-H Day at Skowhegan State Fair Sunday, August 16th, 2009. We would like to invite any 4-H youth and all 4-H clubs to participate in our 4-H Day Parade at the Skowhegan State Fair. You may participate by walking in the parade; leading, riding an animal or carrying an animal, riding on a float from your club or county, driving an antique tractor or just about anything else. Flags and banners are welcome. Be as creative as you can be – it is a celebration!! Any 4-H member taking part in the 4-H Day Parade will be admitted free to the Fair on 4-H Day. During the day, we will have livestock demonstrations in the livestock ring and the 4-H Club Building will be open to view all the projects and educational exhibits from around the state. Because Skowhegan is a State Fair, all 4-H’ers are welcome to display in our building and show in our 4-H livestock shows. Eleanor Pooler is the 4-H Day Parade Chairman and she is available at (207) 643-2305 to answer questions. Emails can be directed to dkantor@umext.maine.edu at the Somerset County Cooperative Extension Office. More information will follow in the next few months.

11. 4-H Horse Project Tryouts Are you interested in knowing how much you know about horses, horse care, and the horse industry? Come test your knowledge and tryout for one of the horse project teams during the month of APRIL. Tests will be at your local county extension office and are to be taken right there. Tryout tests for the Hippology, Horse Judging and Horse Quiz Bowl Team tryouts are available. If you are under the 4-H age of 14, you can still be on the junior team. Communications videos or DVDs can be sent to Kate Slattery, 348 Bog Rd., Gilead, ME 04217 or sent email at slatterk@sad44.org. All tests and Communications entries must be received by April 30, 2009. Teams will be announced late in May! See the Horse Project website for a description of the different teams. http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/resources/horse.htm.

12. 4-H Horse Project Study Sessions There are two more study sessions at eight different high schools through out Maine. Come study with other 4Hers! We meet from 6-8pm. The dates remaining are April 14 and May 22, 2009. These study sessions are open to all 4Hers in the horse project. See the 4H Project website for

ATM sites: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/resources/horse.htm.

13. Hill ‘N’ Dale Farm Club Hosts Spring Clinics The Hill ‘N’ Dale Farm Club will be hosting many horse clinics this spring: April 4, 2009: Natural Horsemanship with Lige Moore April 11, 2009: “Nervous Nellies” Clinic with India Haynes April 12, 2009: Clinic with Mary Heald April 18, 2009: Driving Clinic with India Haynes May 16, 2009: Natural Horsemanship with Lige Moore For more details, and information about attending these clinics, go online at: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/resources/horse/clinicschedule.htm.

14. Youth Beef Show and Sale April 24 to 26, 2009 will be the 19th Annual Beef Youth Show at the Fryeburg Fairgrounds sponsored by the New England Galloway Group. There will be a purebred sale, youth activities, commercial exhibitors and educational seminars. There will be an all-breed heifer show and steer classes. For more information contact Diane Gushee at 935-2248 or e-mail at dianeg@shawneepeak.com.

15. Maine 4-H Days Maine 4-H Days, held June 26, 27, 28, 2009 at the Windsor Fairgrounds will be full of fun events for the whole family. This year we will offer the Physics Road again and some workshops like Rocketry and Digital Photography. The Goat Track will have a veterinarian present a healthy goat seminar and will demonstrate how to test for internal parasites by doing fecal samples and at Dog Camp there will be lots of activities to learn all kinds of dog knowledge. Parents who come as chaperones can participate in VOLT training if they are interested in becoming a 4-H volunteer and adults can also learn about what other clubs do in 4-H at the 4-H Speed Date Workshop! Check out the website in the coming months as more information, and registration materials, become available: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/events/4hdays.htm.

16. Market Lambs at Windsor and Fryeburg Fairs 4-Hers planning to raise a market lamb to show and sell at the Windsor or Fryeburg Fair need to submit an Intent To Participate Form in order to receive their ear tags. Find the form at http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/forms/lambintent.htm or at your county Extension Office. Forms are due May 2. Market Lambs will need a special ear tag to participate in these two fairs. To get your lamb tagged, you’ll need to bring them to one of four tagging sites:

Northeast Livestock Expo May 16, 5:00 pm

Franklin County Jamboree June 13, 1:00 pm

Cumberland County June Jamboree June 6, 12 noon

Oxford County Jamboree June 20

For more information contact Donna Flint at the York County Extension Office at 324-2814 or 1-800-287-1535.

Field Trip Reminders

Planning to take your club members on a field trip? That’s wonderful! Field trips can be an exciting and educational way to broaden the 4-H experience. Here are some tips to keep in mind when planning a field trip:

1. When determining liability in the event of an accident, one of the questions asked is “Did anyone from the organization authorize the trip?” In order to help protect yourself as a 4-H volunteer, planned 4-H field trips need to be reported to the Extension Office by calling in the following information at least one week prior to the trip:

• Name of 4-H Club

• Name of 4-H Volunteer or Field Trip Coordinator (who must attend the activity)

• the name of the activity

• the destination: (facility, town, state)

• date(s) of the activity

• approximate time

• name of drivers and

• name of 4-H members participating.

This information can be called in to the office (voice mails can be left if you are unable to call during our regular business hours) or emailed to Diane or Tara. Reporting can also be done by completing a 4-H Activity/ Field Trip Form available here at the office or online at http://www.umaine.edu/umext/hancock/4-H/Newsletters/Activity%20Field%20Trip%20Form.doc.

2. Be sure to provide parents and guardians with written information about your field trip prior to the trip. Details such as where you are going, what time you will arrive and return, who will be driving, what will youth need to bring with them, a contact number so they can reach you or another adult on the trip, etc.

3. If you must arrange transportation, be sure to check for valid driver’s license and proof of insurance. (We encourage you to let parents set up their own transportation/car-pools.)

4. Be sure to have a signed permission slip for each youth. Permission form can be found at: http://www.umext.maine.edu/4h/forms/webdocs/permission.htm.

5. Keep safety in mind at all times. Make sure you have enough adult chaperones (minimum 1 adult to 10 youth age 9 and up, 1 to 6 for Cloverbuds), have a first aid kit, do periodic head counts, and assign a buddy system.

Questions? Don’t hesitate to give Diane or Jen a call or email so you can take off on a FABULOUS FIELD TRIP!

Cooking with the Kids

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup instant nonfat dry milk

1 egg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350º F. Mix peanut butter, sugar, dry milk and egg together. Roll dough into walnut-size balls and place 2” apart on baking sheet. Flatten with fork. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from oven; cool.

Taken from Healthy Maine Partnerships - Building Better Health

Telecommunication Device for the Deaf (TDD) Phone Numbers 1-800-287-8957.

If you are a person with a disability and will need any accommodations to participate in any programs, please call the Hancock County Office at 1-800-287-1479 or Washington County Extension Office at 1-800-287-1542 to discuss your needs. Please contact us at least 20 days prior to the event to assure the fullest possible attention to your needs.

University of Maine Nondiscrimination Statement

In complying with the letter and spirit of applicable laws and in pursuing its own goals for diversity, the University of Maine system shall not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, or citizenship status, age, disability or veterans status in employment, education, and all other areas of the University. The University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities upon request. Questions and complaints about discrimination in any area of the University should be directed to the Director of Equal Employment Opportunities, 101 North Stevens, (207)581-1226.

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Last Modified: 04/09/09
These pages are currently being maintained from the
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Send comments, suggestions or inquiries to twood@umext.maine.edu

In complying with the letter and spirit of applicable laws and in pursuing its own goals of diversity, the University of Maine System shall not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin or citizenship status, age, disability, or veterans' status in employment, education, and all other areas of the University. The University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities upon request.

Questions and complaints about discrimination in any area of the University should be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity, 101 North Stevens, (207) 581-1226.

Information in this web site is provided purely for educational purposes. No responsibility is assumed for any problems associated with the use of products or services mentioned in this web site. No endorsement of products or companies is intended, nor is criticism of unnamed products or companies implied.