The old
adage "time flies when you're having fun" has never applied more to my life
than during the past two weeks! I began my internship at the Fleming County
Cooperative Extension office on Monday, May 18th. Shortly after arriving for my
first day the 4-H agent Staci Thrasher and I sat down to start filling out my
calendar for the summer. After filling out my calendar I jumped right in to
help Staci set-up for the Licking Area Teen Leadership Academy banquet to be
held at the office that night. The banquet recognized nineteen 4-H’ers from five
different counties for successfully completing the teen leadership academy.
On
Wednesday I headed to Blue Licks Battlefield State Park in Carlisle to meet
with the 4-H agents that would be going to camp during our week. We made cabin assignments,
designed our camp schedule, and made arrangements for instructors to teach the
various classes that will be offered that week. I am very excited to be
teaching a scavenger hunt class during Cloverbud Camp and an arts and crafts
class during 4-H Camp. After finalizing the details, Staci and I headed off to
Hillsboro Elementary School to deliver owl pellets to the 4th grade
class for their dissection.
Thursday was a very busy day! We
started the day by hosting a farm safety day at Fleming County High School, over
200 4th graders attended and learned about various farm safety
topics ranging from animal safety to electrical safety. I taught the farm
animal safety lesson and even got to play with two adorable pigs!
Thursday
evening meant it was time to clean country hams. I had a little experience with country hams
in Dr. Gregg Rentfrow’s meat science class, but getting the opportunity to help
these 4-H'ers with their country ham project was awesome! We took each ham out
of the ham house, unwrapped and washed them in a cold water bath. These hams
were placed in the ham house in January, so the kids were extremely excited to
see how their ham had changed since then. Many of them were slightly grossed
out that they had molded a little bit, however after learning this was a
critical phase in curing meat they were more than happy to see the change in their hams. After being washed the hams were placed in a new sock and re-hung in the
ham house. They will be taken down and prepared for the Kentucky State Fair in
August.
Friday was spent with
the students of Ewing Elementary for their annual Spring Fling field day.
Bounce houses, relay games and other activities were a highlight for many of
the students. Staci and I hosted the relay games. I’m not sure who was more entertained,
me or the students. Everyone in attendance had a great time!
On
Sunday I attended the Fleming County 4-H Golden Reins Horse Club’s spring horse
show. I don’t have much experience with horses however I learned quite a bit
from the 4-H horse club members during the event. The show had 26 classes
ranging from showmanship to barrel racing. Barrel racing was my favorite,
watching those horses circle around the barrel pattern and race back to the
finish line in under 20 seconds was incredible!
During my second week I
have been busy working on an article about the Golden Reins 4-H Horse club’s
first show. I have also been preparing a lesson to teach next week on retail
beef cuts for our farm tour.
These past two weeks
have happened so quickly, however each day has been a new, fun filled
adventure! I can't wait to update you on the adventures to come!
Until Next Time,
Katie D. Conn
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