Visitors to the Nebraska State Fair Aug. 22 to Sept. 1 at Fonner Park in Grand Island can view more than 10,000 4-H exhibits from 2,500 exhibitors across the state, representing all 93 Nebraska counties.
The Nebraska State Fair is the capstone event for 4-H’ers to showcase their educational experiences that have taken place in the past year, said Shane Potter, assistant extension educator in 4-H youth development.
Exhibits will be displayed in about 43 project areas, including animals, food, clothing and textiles, robotics, computers, environment, vet science, heritage, leadership and many more, Potter said.
Nebraska 4-H will also be celebrating Extension’s 100th birthday at the Nebraska State Fair, where inside the 4-H Exhibit Hall visitors can get a party hat to celebrate.
Other activities inside the 4-H Exhibit Hall include several free, interactive activities for kids. This includes exploring careers, biological systems engineering, “ag-citing” science and learning child, animal science, healthy lifestyles, community engagement and science.
“Visitors to the 4-H Exhibit Hall can participate in their first class from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln,” Potter said.
Nebraska 4-H and UNL academic departments teach activities.
4-H will also be participating in Nebraska’s Largest Classroom on Aug. 25, 26 and 28.
Nebraska’s Largest Classroom is a self-guided field trip where students and teachers can take part in activities and educational content at the fair.
Dozens of contests, including the Companion Animal Show, Tree ID Contest, Presentations Contest and more will be taking place during the State Fair. For more information, including schedules, visit http://4h.unl.edu or http://statefair.org.
In the 4-H Exhibit Hall, the 4-H Foundation will also have a photo booth available, where visitors can take a photo with fun 4-H props that can be shared through social media.
A Nebraska State Fair 4-H app is available to keep track of events, results, latest news and a fair map. Visitors can scan symbols across the 4-H Exhibit Hall and see videos of 4-H’ers talking about their projects that are on exhibit at the State Fair. The app can be downloaded at http://4h.unl.edu.
The app can also be used to play the Seek and Scan game at the fair. There are 36 static 4-H exhibits that feature videos. These videos will provide fairgoer’s with a glimpse of the learning that took place behind the 4-H exhibits they see at the fair. To play the Seek and Scan game, fairgoer’s should download the Nebraska State Fair 4-H app and scan the symbols placed on the signs next to the exhibits at the State Fair. Prizes are available.
UNL Extension is in the university’s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
