Saturday, November 15th saw the very first Cloverbuds meeting for Arlington County 4-H since … well, you tell us!

Twelve new 4-Hers ages 5-8 and their parents joined us here in Fairlington for an hour of fun activities learning about foods and nutrition. They played a memory game with the assistance of MyPlate, read a story, and created their own MyPlates with grocery flyers, paper plates, and glue. Best of all, they got to taste and compare five different apple varieties — yum yum!

Cloverbuds is ‘4-H Lite’ for kids too young for traditional 4-H clubs (ages 9-19), in which club members run their own business meetings using parliamentary procedure and Roberts Rules of Order. Regular 4-Hers also elect officials to lead the club, form committees to plan their own educational and service projects, and compete with their projects in local, regional, state, and national competitions.

Unlike regular 4-Hers, Cloverbuds do not compete with their projects. And rather than pursuing one or two topics in-depth like older 4-Hers, Cloverbuds function more like the scouts: they come together once a month and explore an array of topics. We encourage Cloverbud parents to share the responsibility of planning activities — this way, all parents have an opportunity to share their passions with youth, and youth gain exposure to a wide range of pursuits. Some example topics include: foods and nutrition; electricity and circuits; citizenship; earth and the environment; and expressive arts.

But of course, every Cloverbuds meeting is just like regular 4-H club meetings in a couple of ways:  The group is organized and run by wonderful volunteers (did you know that 4-H is a volunteer-led program?). Also, meetings begin with the Pledge of Allegiance and the 4-H Pledge, and activities are hands-on, so 4-Hers are able to learn by doing, which is the 4-H way!

If you have a child between the ages of 5 and 8 and would like to get involved with Cloverbuds at the Fairlington Community Center, please contact me (Emily, 4-H Extension Agent). The next meeting will be on Saturday, January 10th.