Friday, May 6, 2016

4-H’ers Participate in Bear Creek Festival

Blue Mt. 4-H Livestock Club members will enhance the Bear Creek Festival to be held Sunday, May 15 on the Schuylkill County Fairgrounds. During the operating hours of 12 Noon till 4PM, club members will busy helping others attending this free event learn a little more about agriculture and nature. As this club is about livestock, the club members will bring some of the animals that they are raising for this year’s Schuylkill County Fair. Participants in the Bear Creek Festival can have a firsthand look at the animals and any questions that might arise about the animals can be answered knowledgably by the 4-H’ers who are raising that animal. A full-fledged discussion can ensue and the 4-H’er will gladly exchange knowledge that they have learned through raising these animals as livestock projects. Some of the 4-H’ers might just share some of that knowledge gained from learning to raise the animals like sheep do not have upper teeth or that cows, sheep and goats are ruminants meaning that they have four stomachs. These few facts mentioned here and a lot more can be learned from these knowledgeable 4-H’ers at the Bear Creek Festival by just asking questions.

Club members will also engage festival goer’s in two hands on activity by making jumping frogs. One will be the Origami Jumping Frog with nothing more than a piece of paper. Bear creek participants will take ordinary paper with the help and guidance of 4-H’ers will make a simple jumping frog. Some tips to consider when making the frogs are to crease any corners well as the frog will jump better and the smaller the frog, the farther it will jump. These tips may come in handy as the 4-H’ers will set up a little competition with prizes to be awarded with the frogs that make it into the competition circle with the least number of hops. A second hands on activity festival goer’s may engage themselves in are making Jumping Frog Cups. Here participants can draw or select a pre drawn frog to be applies to two small sturdy disposable drinking cups. The cup that the frog is attached to is reconfigured with two rubber bands in a crisscross shape at the mouth of the cup. The regular cup is placed upside down on the table and the froggy cup on top and pushed down. As the froggy cup is released the cup will spring back and froggy will jump. The 4-H’ers might also encourage participants with the froggy cups to enter into a small competition of which froggy cup can jump the furthest.

4-H’ers will also have a quiet corner where festival goers will be able to sit on straw bales and relax as 4-Her’s read from a book titled The Frightened Frog by Brenda Moore and Jean Ohlmann. It is an environmental tale lent to the 4-H’ers by the South Schuylkill Garden Club and endorsed by the National Garden clubs of America. Come and enjoy story time with the 4-H’ers as they read from The Frightened Frog.

Club members will be operating the food stand at the tractor pulls. Stop buy and purchase a hotdog to snack on and wash it down with a refreshing beverage while watching the tractor pulls. Have a sweet tooth then see the 4-H’ers in the 4-H building for baked goods and refreshing drinks. These are just three of the many activities to be engaged in at the Bear Creek Festival to be held Sunday, May 15 on the Schuylkill County Fairgrounds where this free fun family event is held from noon till 4 Pm.