The Mt. Vernon 4-H Adventurers have been learning all about technology, website design, and digital photo editing at the Pentagon City Microsoft Store.  The club wanted to learn about website design so they could make a website to track the progress of their intergenerational garden at the Hollin Hall Senior Center.  The Microsoft Store generously donated staff time to teach them how to get started and after working with the group for several weeks they also donated a $500 gift card to the club to help them in their efforts. 

The 2013 4-H Embryology Project concluded this past Friday.  275 classrooms and 7738 students participated in this learning eggsperience in which students learn about incubation, caring for living creatures, and many other fun chicken related concepts. The chicks went to their new homes, Rainbow Acres and B&D Poultry. 

Fairfax County 4-H'ers did quite well at the Virginia Poultry Judging Competition on April 26 in Rockingham County receiving 4th and 1st place junior team awards.  Throughout the month of April, participants learned about grading eggs and meat, identification of parts, and handling hens to determine which ones are better egg producers. They demonstrated their knowledge at the competition and got to participate in a fun and educational poultry carnival while they waited for the competition results.   

Gillien Tweddle handles a hen in the past production class



Noah and David having fun in their biosecurity suits at the Poultry Carnival.

1st place Junior team members from left to right - David Legget, Noah Beck, Lenah Nguyen (coach), and Elizabeth Koranek.

The Fairfax City 4-H Community Club's Gardening Project is off to a great start.  Club members have planted two rounds of transplants in a cold-frame and have built a 15 foot tall teepee for their beans and peas.   

4-H Contest Day was held at the Fairfax County Government Center on March 2.  39 4-H'ers competed in extemporaneous speech, public speaking, presentations, Share the Fun, and Fashion Revue competitions.  Presentation and speech topics were diverse ranging from goats to gravity to archery.  All competitors are eligible to compete at the District Contests which will be held in Front Royal, VA on April 27th.  Senior 4-H'ers can compete at the state-wide level at 4-H Congress June 17th to June 20th. 

On March 5, Ms. Melissa Stagnaro put on a Nosework Workshop for the Nutts 4 Mutts Club.  Club members learned how to begin training their dogs to search for a specific scent using cardboard boxes and their dogs’ favorite treats.  While the dog was not looking, a treat was put in one of several boxes.  Then the member would guide her dog to go from box to box to sniff for the one with the treat.  The members showed themselves to be good handlers and the dogs caught on quickly.  They were able to do several run-throughs and can continue practicing at home. 

The Nutts 4 Mutts monthly meeting was held on March 19.  After the business portion, members and guests played “Canine Jeopardy.”  This was a fun way to test their knowledge of dog facts, trivia, anatomy, and famous pooches.

The Herndon Horse 4-H Club had fun at learning about Farriers in February.  Ms Leslie Painter arranged for the club members to watch while Farrier, Jim Wooldridge, changed her horses’ shoes.  Mr. Wooldridge let club members touch all his tools, horse shoes, and even let one club member hold the horses’ foot.  Ms. Leslie Painter also accepted  the "Friend of 4-H Award" for helping the club prepare for Hippology last year.

The Herndon Horse 4-H Club is also busy making plans to host a kid's horse tent with crafts and games at the 4-H Fair.  Some club members are also helping to design a Horse Trail for competition at the 4-H Fair. 

The Kingsley 4-H Club has decided to brave the elements and start preparing the 4-H Garden for spring planting.  Any good gardener knows you have to prepare the beds before you can plant, and Kingsley’s 4-H club members are all good gardeners. During their Monday afternoon meetings in March, core members of the club will be outside the Kingsley Family Resource Center with picks, trowels and garbage bags cleaning up the plants from the previous season.
The garden, located behind the Kingsley Family Resource Center, already has a viable strawberry patch. Tomatoes, lettuce, radishes and herbs have been grown previous years along with a variety of beans and herbs. “We hope the community will respect our garden and not let pets and younger children run through it,” emphasized Carlos M., Kingsley 4-H Club president.  The garden will be part of the 4-H Curriculum throughout the spring and summer.

A the last meeting of the Time for Technology 4-H Club, members made mini claws out of everyday materials. They tried to make something that could pick up things, move forward and backward, and move from side to side. Once they made their claws, they tried to pick up first one object and then multiple objects with the claws.  Club members were challenged to think, work together, and go through multiple prototyping stages.  All club members had a fun time learning by doing. 

College students looking for summer internships should consider an internship with cooperative extension. Virginia Cooperative Extension internships give students the opportunity to explore careers in nutrition, agriculture, environmental science, natural resources, family and consumer sciences or community and youth development. These are paid internships!  For full details, visit the VCE Summer Internship Website.