What did you do on your spring break? A group of our Dade County 4-H’ers were busy learning to be leaders!
Three of our Teen Leaders and nine 5th-7th graders spent the first day of their spring break learning to lead. The Teen Leaders demonstrated to the younger 4-H’ers how to run a club meeting, how to lead a group song, and how to organize group games.
They also prepared and served lunch for the whole group. We discussed some important etiquette rules for eating with a large group. My favorite rule was: “Don’t sniff your food to decide if you like it.” We all decided that knowing everyone should enter and leave their seat from the left when at a crowded group table made it much easier for everyone to be seated at once.
After the delicious meal and some more games, the group came back together to take a survey of communication styles. Once each 4-H’er had discovered his or her strongest communication style, we discussed how each person could use their strengths to lead a group in different ways. The Bold communicator is practical and to the point, and is good at seeing the big picture on a project. The Expressive communicator is a good presenter, and is good at persuading others to join in. The Sympathetic communicator is a good listener, and is good at involving the stragglers in group activities. The Technical communicator is orderly and logical, and is good at making sure the details of a project are taken care of.
We have a great mixture of all communication styles in our new Junior Teen Leader group. They are full of good ideas and ready to encourage other middle schoolers to participate in 4-H activities. Congratulations to our new Junior Teen Leaders!
The next Junior Teen Leader meeting will be on Tuesday, April 17, from after school until 5 p.m. We will be preparing decorations for Awards Night and setting up for the monthly beekeepers meeting.
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