Advice from our 4-H high school graduates

By Karen Beranek

As we transition from one season to the next, we know taking the time to pause to reflect on our life is essential. Check out my colleague's blog on the power of self-reflection from a staff perspective. This concept of taking time to think back on our experience can be so impactful. 

Equally impactful is hearing directly from youth as they reflect on their youth development journey. Live from the Redwood County Fair, the local educator led a youth panel of the graduating senior class to share their insights with their parents, community members, and 4-H youth. One question was: What advice do you have for younger youth?

• Try something new. 4-H has so many things to learn about - so many project areas, as well as places to lead, to serve your community, and to work with others. The youth in this panel saw this as a true asset of this youth development program.
• Ask questions. People really are here to help you. So much learning happens when you pause to consider what you still need to know more about. The panelists had the chance to experience learning from adults, experts in their field, and from their peers. This leads to the next piece of advice..
• The big kids aren’t scary. Come talk to us or ask us questions; we want you to be here and to learn with us. 4-H and other youth-serving organizations that create space for peer mentoring know just how valuable these relationships can be.
• It goes fast! The youth panel was an opportunity for these youth to self-reflect on how far they have grown in the program, and they felt the time just flew by! As they spoke about what they are grateful for learning, you could hear just how much more they still wanted to learn.

Many of these youth have been in 4-H for years, learned through multiple project areas, and got to exhibit at yearly county fairs and showcase events. For their last fair, many were still trying new things, asking questions, and now the big kids are not only not scary, but a big part of the journey. As a positive youth development professional, I could hear many of the indicators of the 4-H Thriving Model including a growth mindset, openness to challenge and discovery, and pro-social orientation.

As a parent of one of these seniors, I too took the time to reflect on his 4-H journey - one that started when he was 6 years old and was very nervous about answering the role call question at the club meeting. His hesitation continued to the fair season when he was expected to talk with the Cloverbud judge. As a senior one of his panel questions was: What did you learn through 4-H? He answered “learning to talk to others,” Oh wow! I was reminded that everyone’s 4-H journey is different as is what they learn and how they grow, all youth can experience the positive youth development approach of 4-H.

As we enter a new program year, encourage our oldest youth to reflect on what they've learned over the years, and ask them what advice they'd give to younger youth starting out on their journey.

-- Karen Beranek, Extension educator

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