4-H Day Camps: Following the Map to Success!

Kasey L. BozemanLiberty County 4-H Agent

Background

• Spring 2012• Increase 4-H visibility in community• Increase 4-H participation • Generate revenue • Spring Break

?

Initial Ideas

• During school holidays• Compete with child care• No “extra” hours for

4-H staff • Could generate extra

funds• Fun activities that we

don’t get the chance to teach

4-H Essential Elements

• Mastery: – Educational – Engaging

• Belonging:– Increase 4-H visibility &

participation • Independence:– Self-determination

• Generosity:– Service project?

Spring Break Day Camp

• 3 days: Monday – Wednesday• 8:00AM – 5:00PM• Cloverleaf Age: 4th-6th Grade• $25 fee: activities, 2 snacks/day, lunch, 1 trip• 20 participants max• Education: Health Rocks! & STEM • Recreation: games, arts & crafts, etc. • Field Trip: hydroponics farm

Lessons Learned

• Offer more trips• Find more partners• Recruit more

volunteers• Purposeful

planning• Evaluation

• Don’t serve lunch • Could charge more

2013 Day Camp

• 5 days: Monday – Friday• Same times and age groups • $55 fee: activities, 2 snacks/day, and 3 field trips • No lunch provided • 30 participants max • Education: Health Rocks! & STEM • Recreation: games, arts & crafts, etc. • Field Trips: Flatland Farms, EE at Burton 4-H Center,

Fort Morris/Cay Creek Wetlands

2013 Improvements

• Length to 5 days• More volunteers/teen leaders• Didn’t serve lunch• Purposeful in plans• Stuck with things that worked:– Health Rocks!– STEM programming

• Improved evaluation

2013 Evaluation ResultsStatement Mean

ScoreStandard Deviation

I know how to live a healthy lifestyle – free from alcohol, drug, and tobacco use.

3.71 0.470

I understand the importance of our natural resources (water, air, etc.) and habitats (marsh, beach, wetlands, etc.).

3.35 0.493

I have learned more about agriculture through the “seed to supper” field trip.

3.41 0.618

I know about the history of Liberty County/Sunbury by visiting Fort Morris.

3.59 0.618

I have learned why it is important to be an active citizen and complete community service projects.

3.36 0.606

I am more confident in my ability to be a leader. 3.41 0.618

I have made friends with other 4-H’ers from Liberty County. 3.41 0.795

I plan to stay involved in the 4-H program. 3.59 0.507

Likert-scale: 1 – strongly disagree, 2 – disagree, 3 – agree, and 4 – strongly agree

2014 Day Camp

• Same days, times, and age groups • $55 fee: activities, 2 snacks/day, and 2 field

trips (no lunch)• 30 participants • Many of the same activities at 2013• Added in “Government Day” for April’s County

Government Month– Toured Police Station & Justice Center

• Eliminated trip to Fort Morris and Cay Creek Wetlands

2014 Evaluation Results

Post-then-Pre EvaluationLikert-scale: 1 – strongly disagree, 2 – disagree, 3 – agree, and 4 – strongly agree

Question #1 Question #2 Question #3 Question #4 Question #5 Question #6 Question #7 Question #80

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

% of Spring Break Day Camp Participants that Agree or Strongly Agree to Statements

Pre-ProgramPost-Program

2014 Evaluation ResultsParticipants were asked to rank their confidence in the completing the following tasks after attending Spring Break Day Camp …

1 Identifying the health issues with using tobacco, alcohol, and drugs.

2 Explaining the importance of water quality issues as it relates to human usage.

3 Sharing about different entities of local government.

4 Naming the different things animals need in order to survive.

5 Identifying agricultural operations and sources of food.

6 Understanding the importance of marsh and beach environments.

7 Explaining why insects are important in ecosystems.

8 Sharing ways to resist peer pressure it relates to using drugs, alcohol, and tobacco.

2015 Day Camp Plans

• 5 days: Monday - Friday• $60 fee: activities, 2 snacks/day, and 2 field trips

(no lunch)• $10 optional T-Shirt• 30 participants • Community partnerships – City Hall– Local Businesses– IPA Telephone Museum

Planning Thoughts

• Location: Extension Office, park, recreation department

• Advertising: in-school programming, e-newsletters & social media, flyers, community groups, etc.

• Schedule: wide range of activities, active, indoors, arts, sciences, healthy living, grant programs, etc. Have rainy day plans!

• Budgets: inexpensive activities to balance trips• Recruiting Teen and Adult Volunteers

Discussion & Questions

Kasey L. BozemanLiberty County 4-H Agent

kaseyb@uga.edu