About 4-H Projects

What are 4-H Projects?

4-H'ers learn more about a subject matter they choose to study through completing hands-on activities, called projects. The Marion County 4-H program offers more than 60 projects for area youth. To enroll in a project, members must sign up for them at the time of enrolling in 4-H. There is no limit to the number of projects youth can sign up for.

How to Complete Projects

Each project has a manual that guides the youth through the learning process as well as a set of guidelines that helps them meet the project requirements. Each project has a beginner, intermediate, and advanced level, allowing youth to build on their knowledge each year and continue to challenge their skills. Our adult volunteers and staff who are knowledgeable on a particular subject will often provide workshops to allow youth to learn about that topic in a social environment.

Exhibiting Projects

Youth may exhibit and display their completed projects at the annual Marion County 4-H Showcase to show the community what they have learned. Most projects, except those noted below, are also eligible to advance to the Indiana State Fair.

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Questions?

Contact the Marion County 4-H office:

marion4h@purdue.edu
317-275-9305

 

Marion County 4-H Project Handbook

Animal Science Projects

  • Animal Education. Learn about livestock and pets and showcase what you learned by creating a display, poster, or notebook.
  • Cat. Learn about how to care for your cat through nutrition, housing, health care, and more.
  • Dog. Learn and participate in obedience, showmanship, and agility courses with others.
  • Poultry. Learn how to properly care for and showcase your birds.
  • Pets and Other Small Animals.* Learn how to take care of a pet that lives in your home such as a lizard, cat, fish, hedgehog, or others.
  • Veterinary Science. Learn about what vets do and showcase what you learned by creating a display, poster, or notebook.

Communication & Expressive Arts Projects

  • Arts & Crafts
    • General Arts & Crafts. Express your creativity through a variety of mediums!
    • Construction & Architectural Replicas. Create replicas using building blocks, Legos, erector sets, or other materials.
    • Fine Arts. Express your creativity through oils, charcoal, pastels, pencil, ink, acrylics, or watercolor.
    • Model Craft. Create small-scale models, such as planes, cars, trains, and more.
    • Needle Craft. Express your creativity through knitting, embroidery, crocheting, needlepoint, and more.
  • Cake Decorating. Learn the skills to decorate a cake with different tools and ingredients.
  • Communications. Show off your abilities in public speaking, presentations, demonstrations, and creative writing.
  • Collections & Hobbies.* Showcase your skills and passions through things you collect and hobbies you love to do.
  • Consumer Clothing. Learn about clothing selection, outfit planning, taking care of clothes, and personal grooming.
  • Home Environment. Learn about home design, decoration, and taking care of the things in your home.
  • Photography. Learn how to take quality photos using anything from a professional camera to your smart phone.
  • Sewing & Fashion Revue. Learn how to sew wearable and non-wearable items, then take to the runway to showcase what you made.

Engineering & Technological Science Projects

  • Aerospace. Learn about flight, model rockets, drones and more.
  • Computer Science. Learn all about computers - how they work and programs to exploring connections and managing networks.
  • Electric. Learn about circuits, breakers, wiring techniques and more.
  • Small Engine. Learn about the engines in smaller machines and all of the knowledge needed to build and fix them.
  • STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).* Learn about topics like robotics, chemistry, 3D printing, hydroponics, careers, and more.
  • Woodworking. Learn about the skills and knowledge required to construct anything out of wood.

Healthy Living Projects

  • Bicycle. Learn about bicycle maintenance, operation, safety, and more.
  • Child Development. Learn about how children learn at different ages.
  • Foods. Learn about smart food purchasing, food science, food preparation, and more.
  • Health. Learn about many parts of our health like first aid, hygiene, nutrition, physical fitness, and more.
  • Shooting Sports. Learn about the safe operation of firearms and archery equipment.
  • Sportfishing. Learn about fish, fishing, and the habitats that fish live in like lakes and streams.
  • Sports.* Learn all about safety, sports equipment, and the value of exercise.

Leadership & Citizenship Projects

  • Civic Engagement & Education.* Learn about local government, communities, decision-making, and how to be a well-informed citizen.
  • Genealogy. Learn about your heritage, ancestors, and find out where your family lived, traveled, and more.
  • Leadership. Learn about the skills needed to be an effective leader of yourself and others.

Plant & Environmental Science Projects

  • Beekeeping. Learn about beekeeping, honey, plants that attract bees, the equipment a beekeeper needs, and more.
  • Entomology. Learn how to collect, preserve, and identify insects, and about their relationship with humans.
  • Floriculture. Learn how to grow healthy plants like flowers and turn them into beautiful arrangements.
  • Forestry. Learn how to identify trees, the benefits of trees, the importance of our woodlands, and more.
  • Garden. Learn about planning a vegetable garden, planting, fertilizing, harvesting, and more.
  • Geology. Learn about the Earth's crust, Indiana rocks and minerals, fossils, and more.
  • Soil & Water Science. Learn about soil and water quality, how they interact, and how we can protect and preserve them.
  • Weather & Climate Science. Learn about what causes weather, why we have different climates on Earth, and more.
  • Wildlife. Learn how to identify wildlife, their habitats, how they interact with other wildlife and humans, and more.

Other

  • Self-determined.* Have something you want to learn about and showcase, but can't figure out where it fits? This project is for anything else!

 

*Indicates a county-only project. County-only projects are project categories that Marion County 4-H members have asked to add because they have an interest in something that is not offered across the state. These projects are judged at the Marion County 4-H Showcase but are not eligible to advance to judging at the Indiana State Fair.