August 2011

Parker County 4-H Connection

Educational programs of Texas AgriLife Extension Service are open to all people without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age, or national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating.

Important Dates

8/06 4-H Banquet

8/08 West TX Fair Entries Due

8/09 Safe Sitter Course

8/15 Club Manager Meeting 6PM

8/17 State Fair Entries Due

8/19 Officer/Leader Training

8/26 Major Show Lamb & Goat Tag Orders Due

9/01 Food Project Informational 6PM

9/09 HOT Entries Due

9/15 Food Project Workshop 6PM

9/22 Food Project Workshop 6PM

STATE 4-H DOG SHOW Congratulations to our Parker Pack 4-Hers that attended the State 4-H Dog Show competition.

Natalie Graves Scott Graves

Brooke Hannah Lauren Johnson

MiMi Farr Brenna Young

They all placed well in their classes. They competed in Obe-dience, Rally, Conformation, Showmanship, Costume, Drill Team performance, Agility, and Photography. Overall competition Natalie Graves received the High Point Senior award.

Best of luck to Keeley Sears, whose recordbook has advanced on to the

State Recordbook Judging!

DISTRICT 3 RECORDBOOK JUDGING

Rabbit Sheep Goat 1st Claire Harding, Int. 3rd MaKayla Lewis, Sr. 1st Keeley Sears, Sr. 2nd Walter Kester, Jr. 1st MaKenzie Lewis, Jr. 1st Kodie Sears, Int. 4th Terah Barnes, Jr. 2nd Ty Duggin, Jr.

Horticulture Beef Leadership 2nd Alex Harding, Sr. 5th Christy Petry, Sr. 1st Ashton Patterson, Int.

Shooting Sports Swine Vet Science 2nd Trey Ehrhardt, Sr. 3rd Michaela Scott, Sr. 2nd Shayna Johnson, Int.

August 2011 Learn By Doing

4-H Motto To make the best better.

There is a 4-H Club Manager meeting scheduled for August 15th an 6:00 PM at the Extension Office.

Devan Bauer Modified Trap Ladys’ S1 – 1st place International Skeet S1-Ladys-4rd Place 3rd HOA Ladys S1-International Games

Erica Addison

Mod Trap S2-Ladys-2nd Place Int. Skeet S2-Ladys-5th Place

Hayden Miller Intermediate Skeet-3rd place

Matt Fuqua S2HOA- International Games

Haley Price American Skeet 8th place Intermediate Ladys Teams Trey Ehrhardt, Erica Addison, Matt Fuqua – S-2 3rd place American Skeet Team 3rd place American Trap Team

Shooting Sports

Congratulations also goes out to Mar-cus Casey, Sydney Casey, Minden Miles, Hayden Miller, Martti Rahi, and Jonathan Rahi. These 4-H’ers also competed at the State 4-H Shooting Sports games, however the results have not been released for their disciplines.

Club Officer/Leadership Training 

This is open to any Parker County 4-H’er that is currently an officer in their club or in the future plans on running for an office. The fun-filled training is on August 19th from 9AM –

5PM. Please bring your swimsuit, towel, sunscreen and a

sack lunch. RSVP by August 12th

Club Managers

Livestock

If you plan on showing market lambs, goats or hogs at the 2011 majors, you need to order your tags. If your animal was tagged for State Fair, it MUST be re-tagged for majors. Just a REMINDER, validation IS NOT an entry to the major stock shows. You must complete an en-try form and turn it in to the office by the set deadline. Keep an eye on your newsletter for the major stock show en-try nights. Aug 26 - Lamb & Goat tag orders due - $10.00/tag Sept 3 - Swine tag orders due - $10.00//tag

2012 Lamb, Goat & Swine Major Show Tag Order

August 2011

2011 Fall Show Entry Deadlines

All Junior Livestock Show entries are due to the Parker

County Extension Office by the deadlines listed below.

Please note if you validated an animal for the State Fair of

Texas you still need to complete an entry form and turn it in

to the office. Validating an animal WILL NOT

automatically enter you for the show.

I know you all have been diligently working with your

projects and are committed to giving your best effort with

your show animals. To maintain integrity of the Parker

County 4-H program, it is very important that you familiarize

yourself and abide by the Rule Books for each junior

livestock show. Each show is different, therefore we

encourage you to contact us should you have any questions

regarding your project or show rules. REMEMBER your

actions reflect not only on you but on the Parker County 4-H

program.

Entry deadlines listed in Premium List for junior livestock shows are for County Extension Offices . In

order to ensure your entry is submitted on time, you MUST have your entry submitted by the deadlines

listed above.

Aug 8- West Texas Fair and Rodeo.

www.taylorcountyexpocenter.com

Aug 8 - Panhandle South Plains Fair

www.southplainsfair.com

Aug 17 - State Fair of Texas.

www.bigtexlivestock.com/PremiumBook.aspx

August 17 - East Texas Fair.

www.estatefair.com

Sept 9- Heart of Texas Fair.

www.hotfair.com

August 2011

Quality Counts

Quality Counts Verification is now active and ready to be used! Moving forward into the 2011-2012 Ma-jor Show Season, Quality Counts Verification will be required for entry in all major shows. This means youth exhibitors (in both 4-H and FFA) will need to demonstrate their knowledge of the Six Pillars of Character and the Eight Core Concepts presented in the Quality Counts Curriculum. To do this, exhibitors will need to pass an online test on the website qualitycounts.tamu.edu and acquire a Quality Counts Verification number. Things you need to know about Verification: 2011 - State Fair of Texas will implement Quality Counts Verification on a voluntary basis. 2012 - All Major Livestock Shows in Texas will require Quality Counts Verification at the time of entry - This means youth will need to be verified prior to entry in the fall of 2011. A Verification number is obtained by answering 80% of the questions correctly on an online test.

If you are planning on show-ing at the 2012 major live-stock show we recommend you schedule time now to

complete the online Quality Counts Verification. Again, this is for ALL major live-

stock show exhibitors.

Those of you who are planning to show goats at any of the major stock shows need to be purchasing those goats soon. The judges for this year’s major stock shows are as follows: Fort Worth: Chad Coburn

San Antonio: Kyle Smithwick

Houston: Jeff Ripley

Austin: Jack Staats

San Angelo: Marvin Ensor Remember when you are purchasing a goat

you need to look for good structure. Make sure he stands on all four feet squarely. Make sure you choose a goat that will fit the shower. You don’t want a goat that is too big or too small for the ex-hibitor. You want a long tubular goat with good spring of rib and a wide hard top. Make sure the goat has a good, deep twist and is long from hips to pins. The loin in a goat needs to be square and the same width throughout. Make sure the loin doesn’t pinch before the jump muscles.

Don’t forget the last day to register for the State Fair is August 17th, for those of you who al-ready tagged in animals.

~Keeley Sears, Texas Livestock Ambassador

Keeley’s Corner

August 2011 Learn by Doing

Enrollment Dear Texas 4-H Families:

Thank you for being an integral part of the largest youth development program in Texas, and the largest 4-H Program in the world. Texas is proud to boast the largest 4-H membership enroll-ment, total 4-H participation, and the largest 4-H volunteer base in the United States. In saying that, we are also compelled to tell you that this is indeed a challenging economic time for everyone. The Texas AgriLife Extension Service and 4-H are no different; however we re-main committed to ensuring a strong 4-H and Youth Development Program for our families. To maintain the level of programming and opportunities in the Texas 4-H and Youth Develop-ment Program, and annual participant fee is necessary for each 4-H member starting with the 2011-2012 4-H year on September 1, 2011. This participant fee of $25, or $20 if enrolled from September 1st to October 31st, will hopefully ensure that the Texas AgriLife Extension Service can continue to deliver the highest quality 4-H program in the world. A recent nation research study shows:

  Members reporting better grades, higher level of academic competence, and an elevated engagement at school.  Two times as many members likely to plan to go to college than non-members.  Members that reveal significantly lower drug, alcohol and cigarette use that their peers.   Members that are three times more likely to actively contribute to their communities when compared with youth that do not participate in 4-H.

Quite simply, we are convinced that this participation fee is an investment in the youth of Texas. The Texas AgriLife Extension Service is committed to the youth of Texas and it is critically im-portant that each 4-H family knows we are dedicated to continuing to provide the best program worldwide. As we all go through a transition period, we ask each of you to partner with us in creating a positive environment for all our 4-H members. Thanks for all you do and thanks for MAKING THE BEST BETTER!

The Texas AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas 4-H and Youth Development Program.

You may view the resource packet on Texas 4-H member participation fee at http://parker-tx.tamu.edu, click on the publications

tab and select Texas 4-H Member Participation Fee Resource Packet.

If you have any questions pertaining to the new participation fee, please contact our office at 817-598-6172.

Beekeeping Essay Contest

Parker County 4-H Youth Center Fundraiser

Please continue to collect those old cell phones and ink jet print cartridges. Let’s show our support for the Parker County 4-H Youth Center!

August 2011

Enrollment Contd.

4-H will kick back up in full swing September 1st. In

order to enroll in Parker County 4-H you MUST attend a

4-H Club meeting and complete a green enrollment

form. This is very important for those who are planning

on competing in fall contests and livestock shows. You

will not be eligible to compete unless you have en-

rolled for the 2011-2012 4-H year. Start off your year

on the right foot and attend the September 4-H Club

meetings. For a list of Parker County 4-H Club meeting

times, dates and places, visit http://parker-tx.tamu.edu

under the publications tab or just call the office.

DEADLINE FOR ESSAY: January 13, 2012 National Contest Sponsored by: The Foundation for the Preservation of Honey Bees, Inc. Each State Winner, including the na-tional winners, receives an appropriate book about honey bees, beekeeping, or honey. Texas Cash Prizes to 3 Top Winners

1st Place: $300.00 2nd Place: $200.00 3rd Place: $100.00

TOPIC: For the 2012 essay contest, the essay topic is: The Results of Honey Bee Pollination in My Community”

Further details will be provided by Parker County 4-H office.

August 2011

A Word from Kayla I found this article about going back to school and thought it might be helpful to you all.

Going Back to School

It's school time again! You're probably feeling excited and maybe a little sad that summer is over. Some kids feel nervous or a little scared on the first day of school because of all the new things: new teachers, new friends, and maybe even a new school. Luckily, these "new" worries only stick around for a little while. Let's find out more about going back to school.

The First Day

Most teachers kick off the school year by introducing themselves and talking about all the stuff you'll be doing that year. Some teachers give students a chance to tell something about themselves to the rest of the class.

When teachers do the talking on the first day, they often go over classroom rules so you'll know what's allowed and what's not. Pay close attention so you'll know if you need to raise your hand to ask a ques-tion and what the rules are about visiting the restroom.

You might already know a lot of kids in your classes on the first day. But it's a great day to make a new friend, so try to say hello to kids you know and new ones that you don't. Make the first move and you'll be glad you did and so will your new friend!

Moving to Middle School?

Sixth grade often signals a move to middle school or junior high, where you'll find lockers and maybe a homeroom. This is just what it sounds like — a classroom you'll go to each morning, kind of like your home in the school. In middle school, you might move from classroom to classroom for each subject. Your teachers know that this is a big change from elementary school and will help you adjust.

Most teachers let you pick your own seat on the first day, but by the second or third morning, they'll have mapped out a seating plan. At first, it's a good idea to write down where your seat is in your note-book so you don't forget.

Continued on the next page.

August 2011

Feeling Good on Day One

Seeing friends you haven't seen in a while can make the first day a good one. You also can make the day feel special by wearing an outfit you like. Maybe you got a great T-shirt on vacation, or your new sneakers put a spring in your step. If you wear a uniform, you might wear a favorite watch, a new hair band, or a piece of jewelry to show your personal style.

It can make you feel good to be prepared and have all the supplies you need. Some schools distribute supply lists before the year begins, so you can come stocked up on pencils, folders, and whatever else you'll be needing. Once you've covered the basics, you might tuck an extra few dollars in your backpack for an emergency (like forgetting your lunch money). Or maybe you'd like to bring along a book or magazine to read while you're on the bus.

Whatever you put in your backpack, make sure you pack it the night before. This prevents the morning panic when you can't find your homework or lunch box. Speaking of lunch, that's something else that can help you feel good at school — whether it's the first day or the 100th day. Help your parents pack it the night before if you don't like what's on the menu at the cafeteria. Try to include a variety of foods in your packed lunch, especially fruits and vegetables. Get Oriented

The first day of school is your first chance to find your way around a new school, or learn the pathways to new classes in your old school. It's a lot to learn in one day, so don't be surprised if you need a re-minder or two.

It might help to write a few notes to yourself, so you'll remember the important stuff, like your locker combination and that lunch starts at 11:43, not 12:10. Before you know it, your fingers will fly as you open your locker and you won't have to check your notes to know what time lunch starts!

Continued on next page.

August 2011

A Bad Start?

What if you hate school by the end of day one? Teachers recommend giving things some time to sort themselves out — once you know your way around the building and get adjusted to the new routine, you'll probably feel better. If those feelings don't fade, talk to your mom, dad, teacher, or school coun-selor.

Here are a few final tips for a fantastic school year:

Get enough sleep. Eat a healthy breakfast.

Try your best.

Use good work habits, like writing down your assignments and turning in your homework on time.

Take your time with school work. If you don't understand something, ask the teacher.

Keep a sense of humor. One teacher we know shows his new students a picture of himself graduat-ing high school — a grinning ape in a red graduation cap and gown. This usually makes the kids laugh, and it's a good way to remind them that school is fun!

Reviewed by: Kate M. Cronan, MD Date reviewed: September 2010

http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/school/back_to_school.html#

August 2011 Learn By Doing

Learn By Doing