Club Resources
Tools for Volunteer Leaders
The success or failure of any club depends largely on how the program is organized. The more care and thought put into a program, the greater the probability of a successful 4-H club.
Any 4-H club meeting should provide a balance of fun, business, and learning. When planning your club activities be sure to:
- Provide a role for each member
- Meet needs of all participants
- Share responsibilities
- Ensure a balanced program
- Provide for good communication
- Provide opportunities to practice planning skills
- Avoid calendar conflicts
Resources for Volunteers
15-20 Minutes should be allotted for the business meetings. Group discussion following basic parliamentary procedure allows for 4-H youth to build their leadership skills.
The program activity is the educational component of the club meeting. Youth are invited to share their project work, invited speakers and tours are all good program ideas. This portion of a club meeting should be limited to 40-50 minutes.
Monthly Ideas for Club Meetings
One skill that all 4-H youth and volunteers can benefit from is sharing their 4-H Story. Creating a good elevator speech to tell your story is a good activity to use at the end of every 4-H Year.
Remember to break up activities with fun brain breaks to keep youth engaged, and after a program always thank your volunteers and guest presenters.
Fun is a large part of the 4-H experience. Be sure to allow 15-20 minutes of every club meeting for group building through recreational and social time. Healthy snacks, recreation and fun are an integral part of every club meeting.
Healthy snacks should be a part of club meetings. There are many recipes for healthy snacks through your county extension office.
Incorporating song into club meetings is a traditional way to involve youth into club activities. Check with your local county agent for song ideas.
When forming a 4-H Clubs, there are certain forms that need to be updated annual in order to remain a 4-H club in good standing. These forms need to be kept on file with the county office, and include the following:
The Innovative Program Grants, made possible by the Arkansas 4-H Foundation and the 4-H Alumni Association, awards counties and clubs up to $200 per year for financial support of 4-H educational or community service projects. Priority is given to projects that teach youth skills and/or provide a service to their communities.
Applications due to the 4-H State office every APRIL 1st. Please contact your county extension agent for more information.
- Application for Innovative Grant. Word Document
Every year the Arkansas Association of Extension 4-H Agents recognizes an outstanding 1. 4-H Agent 2. 4-H Program Assistant 3. 4-H State Specialist and 4. 4-H Volunteer. Simply fill out a nomination form below and send to arkansas4h@uada.edu by July 1st of current year.
While we can not meet face-to-face all the time, it is still possible to hold 4-H meetings using modern technology. From a phone call, to a video conference here are some tools to help conduct your Virtual Clubs.
- Setting up a Zoom Account: Tips to setting up a free Zoom Account
- Hosting a 4-H Meeting: Tips on setting up a meeting, platforms to use and virtual club etiquette.
- Ice Breaker questions Sample questions to use as icebreakers in virtual meetings.
- Running a 4-H Meeting: Tips on using icebreakers, keeping to an agenda and taking a remote vote.
- Evaluating a Virtual Meeting: Common Measure tool used to evaluate how your Virtual 4-H Club is going.
- Programs and Service Learning Virtually: Sites and materials to help hold virtual meetings
- Additional Resources: Looking for interactive resources to use during a club meeting, this sheet provides links to access a multitude of activities!
- Virtual Experiences for 4-H Hyperlinks to virtual tours and activities to use with clubs.
