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. In order 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).* (Coming soon) 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 Showcase but are not eligible to advance to judging at the Indiana State Fair.