Missouri Ag Connection - Community Service Valuable Lessons for 4-H Youth

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Community Service Valuable Lessons for 4-H Youth
Missouri Ag Connection - 07/29/2016

The recent trend in education is for teachers to add a community service component to the class or lesson. Community service gives students a hands-on approach to the subject and shows students there is a bigger world out there than just Twitter, Facebook, and their private network of friends.

"Researchers have long established that students benefit from activities that enable them to grow not only academically, but socially and emotionally too," said Krista Tate, 4-H youth development specialist, University of Missouri Extension. "Community service amplifies value development and serves as an excellent tool to teach citizenship education."

Community service also makes it possible for students to take the lessons they have learned in the classroom and apply them to everyday life, and to see the human side of their decisions.

Since the creation of 4-H, the organization has tried to instill four areas of citizenship in its members. Those core areas include civic engagement, service, civic education, and leadership.

Recently, the Glenwood 4-H Club in Howell County decided their community service project would like to work with a nursing home in West Plains to bring cheer to residents.

"We wanted our members to give back to our community, and we wanted to teach that humanity can be shown, even at small levels," said Glenwood 4-H Leader Marietta Marchant. "We also encourage our members to go where the need is and add smiles and joy in someone's life."

In addition to having fun, the students learned to overcome their shyness by speaking to people that they did not know. They also gained a sense of who their community is, and an understanding that it is their job as the future to care and support that community.

"It was definitely a good experience," said 15-year-old Tate Dudgeon.

Unbeknownst to the 4-H members, in addition to fun, the are developing intellectually too. According to Tate, community service activities develop participants problem solving, open-mindedness, and critical thinking skills. Students gain a greater understanding for social and personal responsibility, it increases their spectrum of people, places, and problems with which they feel a connection.

"These are all characteristics needed for success in the future. That is why 4-H is such a great organization," said Tate, "Being in 4-H allows students an avenue to practice what they learn, gives them a connection with their community, and prepares them to be productive citizens."

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