At-a-Glance: Monocacy Valley Montessori 4-H (MVM4H) Club

Membership

The MVM4H Club is open to members of the MVMPCS community (students, siblings, and alumni) who are from 5 to18 years old on January 1 of the current year, without regard to race, color, gender, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital or parental status, or disability.

Members who are ages 5-7 on January 1 of the current year are considered “Clovers” and participate in special age-appropriate programming during club meetings.  They are invited to participate in other 4-H activities and events with parent or guardian accompaniment.  4-H policy prohibits Clovers from participating in competitive 4-H events and Project work.

Meetings

Club meetings are held after school on the last Wednesday school is in session most months, August-May.  Meetings begin and end in the Sanctuary.  Members should plan on attending all club meetings unless extenuating circumstances prevent this.  Meeting attendance is required for Fair Eligibility.

 Meetings generally include a business portion run by the club’s student officers (attendance, reading of the minutes, officer reports, old and new business, etc.), a learning experience, a team-building challenge, a hands-on activity, and some sort of community service work. 

 AG-Activities and Special Events

AG-Activities are special club events that in some way relate to agriculture.  We have planted vegetable seeds, tended to their growth, and then sold the seedlings at school as a fundraiser.  We have picked blueberries and peaches during the summer at local farms, and interested club members learned about food preservation as they made peach jam.  We make a trip each year to a local orchard to pick apples and make cider.  We have learned about making linen from flax at the Washington County Rural Heritage Museum and attended the Maryland Day and the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival.  We also enjoyed “Bike Days” as special events celebrating Health – learning about bike safety at a local bike shop and then taking a 12 mile ride from Brunswick to Harper’s Ferry and back.  Other Special Events include an annual club picnic and a summer Arts-and-Crafts Day.

 

Projects

4-H “Projects” provide members a structure through which they can explore areas of personal interest.  Every 4-H member (age 8+) is required to complete one Project each calendar year (called “carrying a Project”).  In the past, MVM4-H members have completed Projects in Ag/Gardening, Art, Cooking, Leadership, Outdoor Adventures, Photography, Rocketry, Sewing, Small Animal Care, Veterinary Science, and Woodworking. 

For a Project to be complete, a member must meet the following requirements:

1. Participation in six (6) learning experiences;
2. Public exhibition of something created as part of the Project;
3. Presentation of a demonstration or illustrated talk on some aspect of Project work.
4. Competition of an official 4-H Project Record (template available online).

Members are responsible for planning and implementing their own Project(s), but the club will help in the following ways:

1. Offering learning experiences throughout the year that may relate to one or more Project areas, e.g. building a birdhouse could be part of a Woodworking Project and/or an Entrepreneurship project;
2. Helping point members to people and resources that may be useful with Project work;
3. Offering opportunties to present illustrated talks and exhibit project work;
4. Offering assistance in completing Project Records.

The Great Frederick Fair and other County-Wide Activities

Membership in 4-H opens up a wide variety of county-wide opportunities for members.  A number of our members participate in 4-H summer and overnight camps.

There are  specialty clubs in which MVM4Hers can participate including ones devoted to alpacas, cows (dairy and beef), dogs , goats (dairy, meat, and pack), horses, insects, pigs, and sheep.   Low cost animal leasing (on a host farm) is available for 4-Hers not in a position to own or house their own animals.

Participation in the Great Frederick Fair each year gives 4-Hers an opportunity to showcase their talents and participate in an evaluative judging system which promotes self-esteem through an emphasis on the value of quality workmanship.

Finances and Fundraising

At this time, the MVM4H Club has few expenses and is fairly financially stable.  Primary club expenses are insurance and supplies for meetings.  We do not charge dues, but may request donations of supplies or a small materials fee for special activities.  We beg and borrow materials whenever possible.   Income is largely from premiums earned by club entries in the Great Frederick Fair and contributions from benefactors.

 

Required Forms and Fees

Before attending a MVM4H activity or meeting, a MVM4-H “Permission to Participate” form must be submitted.  

To enroll in 4-H, the following thee additional forms are required:

1. 4-H Member Enrollment  (also available online)
2. 4-H Behavioral Expectations      
3. 4-H Health Form

These forms are all available here on the website and can be returned  to the 4-H mailbox in the MVMPCS front office.

As of 2011, there is also a required state fee of $10/year that is paid to club (we then forward to the county, who sends it to the state office).

 

Becoming a 4-H Volunteer

We are always in search of adults willing to lead or help out with club activities.  Before you do so, we ask that you become a “certified” 4-H volunteer (otherwise we must make sure we find an additional adult, who is certified, to work with you).  Certification only takes a couple of hours, most of which is online.  we will announce training sessions as soon as they are scheduled by the county extension office.

Questions?  Contact Beth Coyne at epcoyne@comcast.net or 301.834.3496.

 

The motto of 4-H is…Making the Best Better.

We hope your family will choose to be part of 4-H at the Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School!