PROJECT
SELECTION
GUIDE
4-H
Clothing Construction
The clothing construction project will teach you the basics, such as
sewing a shirt or putting in a zipper. Learn to select appropriate fabrics,
use patterns, sew quality seams and care for your garments. In advanced
units, you can learn how to take the design of your choice and customize
it for the perfect look, color and t.
Buymanship
Buymanship will help you understand your wardrobe; plan a clothing
budget; select colors and styles that complement your body shape,
proportion and balance; choose dierent shades of colors; compare
ber, care requirements, cost, brand and style; and analyze clothing
advertisements.
Learning by Doing
Make fair exhibits; make items for community service; participate
in Fashion Revue to model clothing construction or buymanship
items.
Communications
4-H is famous for helping youth improve their communication
skills. Being a better speaker, writer or record keeper will help
you throughout your life. The communications project will
help you interpret verbal and nonverbal information, develop
eective public speaking skills, enhance written and spoken
communication, defend a point, design a presentation, and more.
Learning by Doing
Discuss your other 4-H projects in an illustrated talk or
demonstration to club members, write a thank-you note, run for a
club oce, complete a record book, or present a speech.
Dairy Cattle
Learn about raising and managing dairy animals by selecting,
grooming and showing a heifer calf or yearling heifer. Along the
way, you’ll learn about dairy cattle breeds and anatomy, judging
and presenting oral reasons, animal health and welfare, and
safe practices for handling milk and milk products. Members
with mature cows learn about animal feeds and nutrition, milk
production, and careers in the dairy industry. Specic projects
include dairy bucket calf, dairy heifer and dairy cow.
Learning by Doing
Participate in Kansas All-Breeds Junior Dairy Show, Judging
Contest, Skillathon and Dairy Quiz Bowl.
Dairy Goats
The dairy goat project is great for smaller properties since goats
are typically easy to train and handle. Goat milk can be consumed
by the family, fed to bucket calves or fed to other market animals.
You might start with one doe, raise kids and eventually create
your own dairy goat herd. Throughout the project, you can learn
about breeds and anatomy of dairy goats, proper care and welfare
of animals, record keeping and more.
Learning by Doing
Participate in local and state dairy goat shows or join a regional
dairy goat organization.
Beef
Learn about raising, caring for and managing beef cattle as you
start with a bucket calf and work toward building your own herd.
You’ll learn about dierent breeds and anatomy of beef cattle;
how to feed, groom and show your animal; how to judge beef
cattle for market and/or breeding; how to produce high-quality
beef; and how to use data and technology in an ecient beef-
cattle operation.
Beef Bucket Calf
This project is open to 7- to 12-year-olds. Calves may be purchased or
orphaned but are to be bottle/bucket fed.
Market Beef
Select, raise and show a market steer or heifer.
Breeding Beef
Select, raise and show a breeding heifer. Learn the value of performance
data to make breeding decisions.
Learning by Doing
Exhibit at local beef shows, State 4-H Livestock Sweepstakes,
(includes livestock judging, quiz bowl, Skillathon, and meats
judging), Kansas State Fair State Beef Show, and the Kansas Junior
Livestock Show.
Citizenship
Take an active role in your community, country and world while
learning about yourself and those around you. This project will
encourage you to meet people and work with groups while
learning about local, state and national governments. You also
can make new friends from other countries and cultures through
exchange programs.
Learning by Doing
Volunteer in your community; attend Citizenship in Action in
Topeka; attend Citizenship Washington Focus in Washington, D.C.;
participate in exchange trips or host youth from another country.
Clothing and Textiles
Learn to create and sew your own clothing and accessories while
exploring the world of fashion in Clothing Construction. Or,
develop your sense of style and value through Buymanship. These
projects build your condence in managing your wardrobe or
may launch a career in fashion.
Exploring your interests through 4-H project work is
an excellent way to discover new skills and potential
careers. While projects can vary depending on your
local program and availability, this guide oers
a starting point for each of the ocial state 4-H
projects. Resources for each project can be ordered
through your county or district extension oce.
Enjoy your 4-H project experience!
Dog Care and Training
Whether you have a dog or hope to own one, this project will
help you learn more about your family’s best friend, from basic
care and grooming to advanced training commands. Learn about
dierent dog breeds and choose the best breeds for your family.
Explore dog behavior, body language and obedience training
while learning about proper nutrition to keep your dog happy
and healthy.
Learning by Doing
Show your dog at local shows and the Kansas State Fair 4-H Dog
Show. Members without dogs may participate in quiz bowls and
other activities that do not require dog ownership, such as the
Kansas 4-H Dog Conference.
Energy Management
Through the Electric/Electronics, Small Engines and Power of the
Wind projects, you will begin to grasp how we power the world
today, as well as think about how to meet future energy needs.
Electric/Electronics
Learn general electrical concepts as you experiment with making light
switches and circuits, test voltages and even build motors. Study energy
use, magnetism, electronics and transistors. Later, you can determine
your family’s electrical usage; measure electric usage of appliances; test
grounded outlets; explore electronics; build simple radios, microphones,
computers and other equipment; and explore careers in electronics and
engineering.
Small Engines
Learn how small engines work as well as how to service them safely.
You’ll start by learning the parts and cycles of engines and exploring the
importance of clean air to an eciently running engine. Later, you will
learn to troubleshoot, repair and rebuild an engine; understand rules
and regulations for small engines; and explore starting a small engine
business or career.
Power of the Wind
Learn how wind can be used for sailing, lifting, pumping water and
creating electricity. You’ll get to design and build a wind-powered boat
and wind turbines; discover where and why the wind blows; and explore
the wind in art and literature.
Entomology
If you’ve ever chased butteries, caught a ladybug for a closer
look or started a bug collection, the entomology project may be a
great t. You’ll learn the anatomy of an insect; make an insect net;
and collect, pin, label and exhibit an insect collection. Later, you’ll
study how insects move, learn about insecticides and explore
insect behavior.
Learning by Doing
Plant a buttery garden, catch and observe a spider in its web,
conduct an insect survey and start an insect collection for exhibit
at the fair.
Environmental Science
Our growing environmental science curriculum helps you not
only learn about your environment, but also explore ecosystems;
understand conservation; learn how water can be responsibly
preserved, protected, used and reused; expand recycling eorts;
and understand your ecological footprint.
Learning by Doing
Organize a park, highway, or waterway cleanup; research an
environmental topic of your choice and make a video or do a
project talk; locate credible research on climate change to decide
what you believe and why.
Exploring 4-H
This project is for rst- and second-year members. It’s a great way
to explore 4-H projects without ocially committing. Members
will be exposed to numerous project areas with the guidance of
older members and adult volunteers.
Family Studies
Learn about growing and maintaining a healthy family by
learning about child development, building family strengths and
managing a household.
Child Development
Learn how children grow and develop physically, socially, mentally
and emotionally. Observe how people express emotions, identify
characteristics of friends, learn socially accepted manners and customs,
and observe child behavior.
Family
Learn behaviors that develop friendships, develop respect for others
and their belongings, understand the need for rules; express feelings in
a positive way, cope with change and stress, learn physical changes of
adolescence, study the eects of employment on family and lifestyle, and
learn to use consensus and compromise.
Consumer Skills
Responsible nancial management is an important factor in successful
families. Learn to determine dierences between needs and wants,
develop a savings plan for a specic goal, practice comparison shopping,
learn to manage a checking account, recognize target advertising,
identify consumer rights and learn the value of employment.
Learning by Doing
Partner with a peer to explore and discover solutions to today’s
consumer topics, create an intergenerational community-service
project, and establish a baby-sitting service.
Fiber Arts
If you’ve ever wondered how to crochet a scarf, embroider a
pillowcase or make a quit, this project can help you learn these
skills and more. Fiber Arts focuses on skills passed down through
generations to provide basic family needs, such as apparel, home
furnishings and decorations.
Crochet
Learn single crochet, double crochet and many other stitches; advance to
hairpin lace.
Knitting
Learn casting on, knit and purl stitches.
Needle Arts
Learn embroidery, cross-stitch, needlepoint, candle wicking, crewel,
lacework and applique techniques.
Patchwork and Quiliting
Learn to stitch, tie and design quilts.
Rug Making
Create latch hook and braided rugs.
Spinning
Make a hand spindle or prepare wool bers.
Weaving
Learn parts of a loom or gure yarn needs for items.
Ethnic Arts
Learn textile art methods from dierent cultures that have been passed
on throughout history.
Macramé
Create ornamental knotting; learn terms, tools, techniques and cords.
Learning by Doing
Create items for fair exhibits or to donate to hospitals, shelters or
nursing homes.
Foods and Nutrition
In this project, you will have fun learning how to cook the basics
and then advance to gourmet and international meals. Develop
baking skills, learn about food preservation, explore the heritage
of many foods and understand consumer buying skills. Learn how
to make healthy snacks and modify recipes to t a healthy lifestyle.
Learning by Doing
Enter a foods exhibit in the fair, plan and prepare snacks and meals
for your family, incorporate exercise into daily life, and learn about
food safety through activities like working in a club concession
stand.
Geology
If you enjoy learning about interesting rocks or fossils, then dig
into this project. Discover the types of minerals, rocks and fossils
in your area and other geological formations across Kansas and in
other states.
Learning by Doing
Geology eld trips to various Kansas locations and collect, identify
and display specimens.
Health and Wellness
Health, exercise and recreation are vital parts of your daily lives. In
these projects you can focus on physical activity, healthy eating,
exercise, sports and recreation, or rst aid.
Bicycle
Learn and practice bicycle safety, identify parts of a bicycle, learn bicycle
maintenance and repair, and practice safe riding at night and in adverse
conditions.
Health
Learn basic rst aid and create your own rst aid kit; learn to choose
nutrient-rich “power foods” for snacks; learn how to improve personal
strength, exibility and endurance; and design your personal tness plan.
Outdoor Recreation
Go enjoy the great outdoors. Learn about hiking, camping, nding shelter
and backpacking; observe and care for nature; nd your way using a
compass, GPS, or landmarks. Apply the “Leave No Trace” ethic when
backpacking and hiking.
Adventures
Learn about dierent types of recreation identify personal areas of
strength; and learn the benets of recreation for your body and mind.
Home Environment
Interior design is all about making a house into a home. This
project will help you experiment with colors, textures, light, sound
and space to create the perfect feeling. You also can explore a
career in interior design.
Learning by Doing
Plan a room makeover, visit a design center and interview an
interior designer.
Horses
If you love horses and want to learn how to safely handle, care
and ride a horse that you own or lease at least 75 percent of the
time the horse project is for you. In this project you will learn
basic coat colors, breeds and horse anatomy; study horse health;
participate in judging contests, quiz bowl and hippology; and
give presentations. If you want to exhibit a horse in the District
Show or State Fair, Achievement Level I is required to participate.
Achievement Level I focuses on safe handling of horses. Then
once completed Achievement Level I, Achievement Levels II, III,
and IV can be taken to advance your educational knowledge
of horses. 4-H Horse Identications are due May 1 into the local
Extension Oce.
Learning by Doing
Visit a stable or farm; participate in the State Horse Judging
Contest, State Horse Quiz Bowl, Horse Panorama, horse
presentations and hippology; and exhibit at district and state
horse shows.
Horseless Horse
If you love horses and do not own or lease a horse then the
Horseless Horse project is for you. In this project, you can
learn about horses, participate in judging contests, quiz bowl,
hippology, give presentations, and can assist another 4-H
member at horse shows and trail rides. In the Horseless Horse
project a borrowed 4-H Identied horse can be shown locally in
showmanship, only.
Learning by Doing
Visit a stable or farm; participate in the State Horse Judging
Contest, State Horse Quiz Bowl, Horse Panorama, horse
presentations and hippology; and attend district and state horse
shows.
Leadership
Learn what it takes to be a leader through skills including
understanding yourself, considering others’ feelings, being
responsible, communicating, making decisions, and managing
and working with groups.
Learning by Doing
Join a Gavel Games team to run a meeting; volunteer for
a committee; chair a committee; run for an oce; attend
Campference or the Kansas Youth Leadership Forum.
Meat Goats
The 4-H Meat Goat project is quickly growing as demand
increases for meat products. You’ll learn how to select, raise and
care for a meat goat; study breeds and anatomy; learn how to t
and show meat goats; recognize diseases; keep records; select
breeding stock; learn key components in developing a goat herd;
and evaluate feed ingredients.
Learning by Doing
Participate in Meat Goat Day at K-State, Livestock Sweepstakes,
Kansas Junior Livestock Show and the State Meat Goat Show at
the Kansas State Fair.
Performing Arts
Those who enjoy being in the spotlight on stage or being creative
o stage may enjoy this project. Learn to express yourself in front
of a crowd.
Learning by Doing
Express yourself by creating and presenting a theatrical play or
musical performance; participate in camp’s talent show, create a
puppet show; create costumes, sets and props; and enter your
local Club Days or other contests.
Pets
Whether you love sh, hamster or cats or other pets, these
projects can help you learn more about your household friends
and what dierent pet species need to stay healthy.
Pets
Identify hazards for pets around your home, and learn about your pet’s
feeding and care. Learn the symptoms and treatment of diseases as well
as taxonomic classication.
Cats
Learn how to choose a cat, practice cat grooming techniques, study cat
senses, begin to understand cat behavior, study cat diseases aecting
people and learn about cat genetics.
Learning by Doing
Design a toy for your pet; create a commercial or a pet store
scavenger hunt.
Photography
Capture your friends, family and important events through
photography.
Level 1
Learn how a camera works, basic photo composition, organize a photo
story and how to use a simple camera.
Level 2
Learn shutter speeds and f-stops, the Rule of Thirds, and how to capture a
point in time.
Level 3
Use lters and a light meter and create still-life photos. See the dierences
between normal, wide angle, telephoto and zoom lenses.
Learning by Doing
Document your family or club activities through photos; enter
a photo contest or fair exhibit; enter the photography judging
contest at the Kansas State Fair.
Plant Science
Plant Science projects focus on raising a garden, growing
owers, forestry and eld crops. This includes planning, planting,
experimenting, understanding soils, seeds, insects, plant
care, harvesting, weed identication and control, processing,
exploring careers, and the relationship between trees, people and
communities.
Horticulture
Learn when, where and what to plant; learn the dierence between cool
and warm-season vegetables; learn plant parts and how they are used;
learn how to use basic garden tools; study seed varieties and starting
seeds indoors; study preventative pest controls; learn about specialty
harvests and selling your produce; study plant pollinations; study food
industry careers; and learn about biotechnology.
Field Crops
Experiment with soil testing, grow and harvest crops, plant a wheat
variety test plot, and learn about herbicides and fertilizers.
Forestry
Learn to identify trees, determine dierences between trees and shrubs,
learn about dierent trees and tree parts, graft a bud to a living tree,
discover health benets of trees, investigate forest changes and learn
about forest health and learn forest conservation techniques.
Learning by Doing
Participate in the Kansas 4-H State Wheat Expo; Crops
Identication Contest at the Kansas State Fair; and Horticulture
Judging Contest.
Poultry
This project is designed to help you learn about chickens and
other poultry. You will learn poultry breeds and anatomy and how
to care for and handle your birds. Learn how eggs are formed,
how to select and judge broilers, make an egg candler, pecking
orders; lead younger members in egg experiments; process
chickens for food; and learn about biotechnology and poultry
careers.
Learning by Doing
Participate in the Poultry Judging Contest at the Kansas State Fair.
Rabbits
The rabbit project will allow you to learn to raise and care for your
rabbits. Identify main breeds of rabbits and their anatomy, learn
feeding and watering practices, learn to groom and show a rabbit,
and care for newborn rabbits. It is best to enroll in the fall to
prepare for receiving your rst rabbit.
Learning by Doing
Join a 4-H Rabbit Judging Team; start with a doe and grow your
project by selling rabbits.
Reading
This project encourages you to harness your love of reading to
learn more abvout your 4-H projects, research new topics or
entertain yourself. As Dr. Seuss wrote, “The more that you read,
older).
Space Tech
Build model rockets, robots and explore space with telescopes.
Discover the world of unmanned aerial systems, to safely and
legally y a drone. Learn about computers and how to repair
network devices. SpaceTech projects oer you the thrill of
exploring the eld of science and technology.
Rocketry/Aerospace
Discover how a model rocket works, study equipment and procedures for
a safe launch, build and launch your own model rockets.
Astronomy
Study the dierent kinds and uses of telescopes, build a simple
telescope, learn planet order by making a key ring bead system, build
spectroscopes, distort light with lenses and prisms, and how to set up
public viewings.
Robotics
Learn about robot arms, legs, wheels or under-water propulsion; explore
sensors, analog and digital systems; build basic circuits; design a robot;
and program a robot to do a task.
Unmanned Aerial Systems
Explore the world from above the trees and discover new frontiers with
Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). This project provides the opportunity
to safely expand your understanding of UAS and the world around them.
You can explore the uses and applications of UAS, including how they link
to other projects such as geology, robotics, electronics, crop science and
more.
Computers
Learn the basic components of a computer; identify the similarities
and dierences in oce software applications; learn Internet safety.
As you get older, learn to build, maintain and re-pair computers. Learn
programming languages and network security.
Learning by Doing
Teach your new SpaceTech skills to others; launch a rocket; build a
robot and enter it at the county and state fair.
Swine
If you want to learn about raising, caring for and managing a
market or breeding hog, enroll in the swine project where you
will study pork production from farrow to nish. Throughout the
project you will identify dierent swine breeds and anatomy;
types of feeds; identify symptoms, causes, and treatments of
swine diseases; study breeding systems and performance data;
and explore career opportunities in the swine industry.
Market Swine
Select, raise and show a market hog.
Breeding Swine
Select, raise and show a breeding gilt. As you grow in the project, you
might manage your own breeding herd and sell market hogs to others.
Learning by Doing
Exhibit at a local swine show or participate in K-State’s Youth
Swine Day; Kansas Junior Livestock Show; or the Kansas State Fair
Swine Show.
the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more
places you’ll go.”
Learning by Doing
Get a library card for your local public library, share a book review
with others, and read with younger kids at an elementary school
or after-school program.
Self-Determined
The self-determined project is just that—you decide what you
do or study. Is there something you have a passion for that is
not listed? This is your opportunity to create your own project.
Research a sport, hobby or career—the sky is the limit.
Learning by Doing
Identify and pursue a personal passion or interest; set goals and
evaluate the completion of your goals; and share your hobby,
interest or activity with others.
Sheep
In this project, 4-H members can enroll in either market or
breeding. Throughout your 4-H years, you will learn to identify
sheep breeds and anatomy, manage and train sheep for show,
learn safety and management practices for maintaining a ock,
identify symptoms and treatment of diseases, study nutritional
requirements, study technology’s impact on sheep production,
and explore career opportunities in the sheep industry.
Market Lamb
Select, raise and show a market lamb; member must obtain ownership of
the animal; market ewes should not be returned to a breeding ock.
Breeding Sheep
Select, raise and show a breeding ewe or purchase a ock of breeding
ewes.
Learning by Doing
Exhibit at a local sheep show the Livestock Sweepstakes, or Kansas
Junior Livestock Show.
Shooting Sports
If you want to learn to shoot an air rie, shotgun or bow and
arrow, you should check out the 4-H shooting sports project. This
project teaches gun safety, care and safety of shooting sports
equipment, hunting practices, and provides an opportunity to
test your skills. To participate, youth must be 8 years of age as of
January 1 of the current year.
Check with your county or district extension oce about a
certied program. Local certied shooting sports coordinators
and instructors are required for each discipline. Disciplines include
BB gun, air rie, air pistol, archery, shotgun, hunting skills, muzzle
loading, small bore rie, small bore pistol, and western heritage.
Learning by Doing
Demonstrate safe use of air rie, shotgun, bow, etc., through
practice, talks, demonstrations and exhibits. Exhibit shooting
sports skills at local and district events. State matches for the
dierent disciplines are held in the fall and spring, or participate in
the Instructors Junior Apprentice Training Program (ages 14 and
Visual Arts
Encourage your creative skills in learning how to draw, paint and
work with dierent media. Explore art techniques, study art history
and culture, or challenge yourself to discover new artistic talents.
The visual arts project teaches artistic skills and the elements and
principles of design. Projects include ceramics, leather and more,
depending on your local 4-H program.
Learning by Doing
Practice drawing, painting and printing techniques in paint,
pencil, chalk, charcoal or mixed media; learn sculpture techniques;
make something from wood, leather, paper or clay; weave a
basket or wall hanging; etch glass or metal; make jewelry and wire
sculptures; create mosaics or nature crafts; discover new media.
Enter your best work in the fair and teach others the new skills
you’ve learned.
Wildlife
Kansas wildlife is an important part of the state’s heritage and
environment, ranging from bualo to birds and sh to deer. In this
project you’ll learn about wildlife behavior, habitat requirements,
how wildlife species t into nature’s scheme, how they are
managed and how they relate to humans. Some local units also
oer sport shing as an additional project.
Learning by Doing
Enter a sport shing contest; create wildlife habitat; participate
in the Hunting, Fishing and Fur Harvesting School; and enter the
Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Contest.
Woodworking
Whether you want to build a bookshelf or a whole house, you’ll
need similar skills, tools, fasteners and joints. In this project you’ll
learn how to accurately measure and mark boards, use various
tools, safety practices, identify types of lumber, and select wood
based on grain. As you get older, you’ll learn to use power tools,
discover technology in tools and explore career opportunities.
Learning by Doing
Select and build an item to exhibit at the fair; use your new skills
to volunteer or help a neighbor; and teach others something you
learn in the woodworking project.
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Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service
4H1065
K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Issued in
furtherance of Cooperative Extension Work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, as amended. Kansas
State University, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts, and United States Department of
Agriculture Cooperating, John D. Floros, Director.
