4-H School Enrichment
Lincoln, Logan & McPherson Counties
Nebraska Extension's Partnership with Schools
Cooperation between schools and Nebraska Extension has existed for many years in Lincoln, Logan & McPherson Counties, complementing the educational goals of both organizations.
The 4-H School Enrichment Program uses materials that are research-based and produced by specialists from the University of Nebraska—Lincoln, the National 4-H Council and other land grant universities throughout the United States.
4-H School Enrichment resources include teacher guides, student manuals, multi-media tools, teaching kits, and staff presentations. Nebraska Extension staff can teach the project to the students in the classroom or provide the materials to the teacher to use.
The cost to participate in 4-H school enrichment is minimal to no cost. If you are interested, please contact us as soon as possible. Programs are scheduled on a first come first served basis.
Contact Us To Sign Up!
Nebraska Extension
348 West State Farm Rd.
North Platte, NE 69101
Phone: 308-532-2683
Website: llm.unl.edu
Kate Marshall, Extension Educator 4-H & Youth Development
Amber Willard, Extension Assistant 4-H & Youth Development
kate.marshall@unl.edu or amber.willard@unl.edu
The University of Nebraska does not discriminate based upon any protected status. Please see: go.unl.edu/nondiscrimination.
Caterpillar to Butterfly
Ages: PRE K-3rd Grades
Cost: $30 per classroom
Available in March, April & May, Temperature must be above 40 degrees.
This 3-week series will teach your students about the lifecycle of a caterpillar and its transformation into a butterfly. Youth will observe the process and release Painted Lady butterflies into nature. *Limited availability - please order early.
(*Three 30-45 minute sessions.)
STEM Reading Connections
Ages: PRE K-6th Grades
Cost: $5 per classroom per session
Learn science, technology, engineering, and math skills while getting to dive into hidden treasures located in your library! This year’s theme is “Tails and Tales” to inform youth about animal behaviors and habitats. The themes for each lessons are:
- At Your Service: How does a cute, fluffy puppy become a life-changing service dog?
- Adaptations: Do you ever wish you could blend into your surroundings? Learn how from the experts: ANIMALS! Join us for a story and a hands-on camouflage lesson.
- Heads & Tails: How do you decide what you need and what you want? You could flip a coin or you could join us for a story and some hands-on fun!
- Tales About Animal Tails: Swish, swish, splat! There are several things we can learn from the tail movements of different animals. Join us for a story and lesson on animal behavior!
(*Up to Four 30-60 minute sessions.)
Embryology
Ages: 2nd-8th Grades
Cost: $20 per classroom/incubator
This project gives youth a chance to witness the miracle of life in the classroom. It involves the actual hatching of eggs and requires 21-28 days to complete. Extension staff will get you set up, then classrooms must tend to the eggs on a daily basis and monitor the incubators. Candling the eggs is an exciting part of this project done by Extension Staff.
(*Two - Four 45 minute sessions, available during spring months.)
Look Who's Hatching
Cost: $20 per classroom/incubator
This is an embryology program where chicken eggs are hatched over a 4 week process. It is different from traditional embryology curriculums, though, in that the children are not told what kind of animal(s) are inside the eggs. This provides for in-depth inquiry from the children and the subsequent lessons are based on what type of animals the children think will hatch from the eggs in the first lesson.
(*Two-Six 30 minute sessions, available during the spring months.)
Ag Citing Science - The Pumpkin Life Cycle
Ages: 1st-2nd Grades
Cost: $5.00 per classroom
Youth will learn the concept of a life cycle, and understand its importance to agriculture by recreating the various stages of growth and development of a pumpkin through hands-on activities.
(*One 45 minute session.)
Stop the Pass
Ages: PreK-12th Grades
Cost: $5.00 per classroom
Students will discover how illness/disease transfers from person to person and learn preventative measures to reduce risks. Students will walk away with an economic understanding of how illness/disease may affect their family, community, and world.
(*One 30 minute session.)
World of Worms
Ages: 2nd-3rd Grades
Cost: $5 per classroom
Available in September, March, April & May
Youth will increase their awareness of the natural environment & learn the role earthworms play in plant and soil health. Experiments will be conducted with live worms!
(*One 45 minute session.)
Positively Popcorn
Ages: 3rd-4th Grades
Cost: $5 per classroom
Did you know that Nebraska is the number one producer of popcorn?! In this lesson, students will use science to learn the importance of agriculture in Nebraska and how popcorn goes from a seed to a snack!
(*One 45-60 minute session.)
Building Blocks of Robots
Ages: 3rd-5th Grades
Cost: $10.00 per classroom (for all sessions)
In our everyday lives, robots are around us performing all sorts of tasks. In this series, youth will learn about the many types of tasks that robots perform, how they make human lives more efficient or safer, and what motivates new designs.Youth will explore the building blocks of robots through various hands-on activities.
Sessions include:
- Bot or Not
- Spaghetti Engineering
- SEMOR Draws (Simple Electric Motor Operated Robot)
- Taste Mapping Sensor
(*Three 45 minute sessions.)
Mars Base Camp
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
The race to land humans on Mars is on! In Mars Base Camp, youth will explore sending a mission to Mars and what it takes to sustain human life in space. (This is a 4-part series. Session 1, 2 & 3 can be stand alone. Session 4 requires completion of sessions 1 & 2.)
Landing Zone Surveyor (#1)
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
This is an unplugged activity where youth will attempt to land on Mars and discover features that are important for setting up a base camp. By the end of this lesson, youth will discover features of the surface of Mars that are important for a safe landing, traveling around the landscape and setting up a base camp.
(*One 35 minute session or 60 minutes with add-on “Mars Virtual Reality”.*Computer with internet required for add-on.)
Red Planet Odyssey (#2)
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
This is an unplugged activity where youth will use engineering skills to build a vehicle that can explore the surface of Mars. By the end of this activity, youth will learn how to navigate by writing directions, build a rover and navigate the red planet by moving their rover from the landing site to another site on the planet.
(*One 45 minute session.)
Crop Curiosity (#3)
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
Unplugged activity where youth will learn about biology, environmental science, and agriculture to grow nutritionally efficient food on Mars. *Youth will play a card game to learn about the items needed to grow food plants on Mars in an artificial growing environment.
(*One 45-60 minute session.)
Insight from Mars (#4)
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
This activity that can be done online or unplugged (with a device that supports a USB plug-in). It teaches youth to code and share a discovery they made on Mars using CS First and Scratch. Youth will use code to present an interesting fact they have discovered about Mars.
(*One 60 minute session. Sessions 1 & 2 required to complete this experience.)
Galactic Quest
Ages: 4th-6th Grades
Cost: $10.00 per classroom (for all sessions)
Galactic Quest explores the history of humans in space, the technology and resources needed for missions, and the obstacles humans encounter in orbit. Activities explore important STEM topics ranging from physics and engineering to computer science and space agriculture. Kids learn foundational STEM skills while they wrestle with the same questions as today’s top aerospace scientists and engineers!
(*Four 45-60 minute sessions.)
Money Makes Cents
Cost: $5.00 per classroom
Adapted from the 4-H curriculum "Reading Makes Cents," students take a deeper dive into their financial understanding and education. The lessons engage youth with stories, hands-on activities, and practical application. Topics covered are: History of Money, Managing Money, Earning Money, Spending & Saving Money, and Checks & Consumer Sense.
(*Five 45 minute sessions.)
Real Colors
Ages: 7th-12th Grades
Cost: $10.00 per student
*Participants will each receive a certified Real Colors® Personality booklet with information about each personality temperament and other workshop materials.
Real Colors® is a four-color personality assessment designed to target both left- and right-brain learning. Through the assessment, students learn their personality style, some of their strengths and challenges, along with how to best utilize these in a leadership setting. This enrichment offering utilizes activities, small group interaction, and large group discussion as all participants engage in active learning.
(*Two 45 minute sessions or One 90 minute session)
Leadership Academy
Ages: 7th-12th Grades
Cost: $15.00 per classroom (for all sessions)
Sessions include:
- “What Kind of Shoe are You” – Defining leadership
- Setting Goals & Accepting Self
- Learning to Learn/Decision Making
- Resiliency
(*Four 45-60 minute sessions. Lessons can be done sequentially or stand alone.)
County Fair Projects
Upon completion of a School Enrichment Project lead by staff from the Lincoln-Logan-McPherson County Extension Office, we encourage you to create an exhibit about what your class learned for the 2022 County Fair. Below is a section out of our Fairbook listing the requirement for these exhibits. Feel free to reach out to extension staff with any questions about how to enter for fair: Kate Marshall kate.marshall@unl.edu or Amber Willard amber.willard@unl.edu.
1. Students and/or classes involved in 4-H School Enrichment projects may be eligible to enter exhibits at county fair.
2. Class posters should measure 28”x22” or smaller and individual posters should measure 12”x18” or smaller.
3. For class projects, only ONE entry per program per classroom.
4. For individual projects, each student may enter their own exhibit.
5. Exhibitor’s name, school, and grade should be attached to the right-hand corner of the
poster or display.
6. Each class and/or individual may enter one exhibit per class number per School Enrichment program they participated in.
School Enrichment Individual Essay – at least 100 words in length about “What I Learned in My School Enrichment Project”
School Enrichment Individual Poster – Use photos and/or drawings to illustrate the learning in your project. Poster should not exceed 22” by 30”.
School Enrichment Individual You Be the Teacher exhibit – Share with others what you learned in the school enrichment project. Can be a notebook or small display of an educational nature.
School Enrichment Class Exhibit – May be a poster or small educational display demonstrating what the class learned from the school enrichment project.