September Cloverbud 4 H Meeting

One of the  really nice things about living in Arkansas is our State Parks.  One of the great things about the State Parks is that they offer a huge variety of free educational programs.  I thought it would be fun for our 4 H club to go out to one of our local state parks for their Hook Line and Sinker Program.  It was a great benefit to me as a 4 H leader too because the only thing I had to do for the meeting was schedule it, show up, and bring the snacks!

The children got to learn a lot about fish!  We learned about fish anatomy and what makes a fish a fish.  We learned about the most common types of fish that are found in Arkansas.  We talked about fishing and different kinds of bait.  We learned about fishing safety and what kind of things you should always keep in your tackle box.  The children were given lots of visual aides including a pocket Arkansas fish guide, cards about the most common fish in Arkansas, a book called An Angler's Guide to Arkansas Fish, a booklet on World's Best Fishing Tips for Kids, and fish stickers.  They also got a pencil, a fish stringer, and a good luck hook to go fishing with.

Then the children got to go back yard bass fishing.  Each child had an opportunity to try and "catch" as many plastic fish as they could in 2 minute period.  Each fish was worth a certain number of points.  After all 15 children had a chance whoever had won the most points won a fishing kit complete with pole and tackle!  I had no idea they were going to do this.  After all the children went, we had a 4 way tie, so the four children went again and the person who caught the first fish won.  She was very pleased!

There is a pond that they stock real fish in that we could've fished if we would have brought our own bait and had more time.  But, the children had a great time catching the plastic fish.

It was a wonderful program and I am so thankful that we have such wonderful learning opportunities for our children!