4-H Delivers

Kid Power Creations, A Primary SET Project

The Issue:
Currently in the United States, there is a national push to place more emphasis on science, engineering, and technology (SET) education which thus provides youth with life skills needed for the future. By providing more SET education to youth, the U.S. will be in a better position to train more scientists and engineers which will help the U.S. stay competitive on a global scale.

What has 4-H Done?:
The Two Rock 4-H Club developed a robotics project to instill confidence and motivation in youth mastering science, engineering, and technology. Through the use of skill building projects, 14 project members learned about various aspects of technology and how apply these concepts to everyday applications. Youth are encouraged to try new ideas and approaches with the understanding that they learn a lot from success and failure. The primary SET project, Kid Power Creations, concentrated on building devices that get their power from alternative sources.  They included a solar powered race car, an air powered rocket using compressed air, a water powered rocket utilizing pressurized water and a mechanically powered trebuchet. Each project was accompanied by a learning guide, set of instructions and related questions. The youth were able to use their inventions during a solar car race and a rocket launch competition.

The Payoff:
The Two Rock 4-H club set up interactive demonstrations through several outreach activities including the Sonoma 4-H Chicken-que, Petaluma Butter and Eggs Parade, State 4-H Field Day and National Youth Science Day wind-power experiment at the Petaluma Farmers Market. Overall, about 400 paper tube rockets (one rocket per child) were built at the various events and many more community members witnessed the project. For example, the 4-H group had their own 4-H SET float at the Butter and Eggs Parade which is viewed by thousands of people. Additionally, several projects were submitted to the Sonoma County Fair so that fair goers could also learn more about 4-H SET.