Nebraska 4-H educates youth about making healthy and safe decisions in their daily lives. Through health and wellness programs, youth gain knowledge and develop skills for making health and safe decisions in their daily lives, gain an understanding of what positive relationships look like, practice healthy and safe decision making, exhibit increase resiliency, develop positive relationships with adults and peers, and maintain a healthy and safe lifestyle leading to decreased health related problems and medical costs.
Through these programs, youth practice critical life skills, including:
- Resiliency
- Personal Safety
- Decision Making
- Healthy Lifestyle Choices
- Self-Responsibility
- Stress Management
Signature/Statewide Programs:
- Health Rocks | Elementary - Middle School
Health Rocks! applies 4‑H’s successful Positive Youth Development model with life skill development and decision-making philosophy to the challenge of reducing tobacco, alcohol, e-cigarette/vaping and drug use. Through the power of youth/adult partnerships, Health Rocks! instills in youth participants invaluable confidence and communication skills necessary to make responsible decisions and develop the internal strength to resist risky behaviors. Health Rocks! builds leadership skills to empower 8-14 year old youth and families to help establish life-long healthy habits.
- Smart Cents | Middle School
The overall goal of Smart Cents is to increase the ability of youth to make informed decisions about financial health while strengthening their use of social and emotional skills necessary for success as they grow into responsible adults. This curriculum will teach middle school youth about financial decision-making, spending and saving, credit and debt, income and employment, investing, and risk management.
- Building Better Babysitters | Middle School - High School
Knowledgeable and safe babysitters are a valuable resource. This curriculum targets 12-18 year olds interested in babysitting for either family members or through their own business. These curriculum shares basic safety, knowledge, and appropriate play for babysitting all age groups. This training also touches on nutritious snacks, how to handle emergencies, and starts youth thinking about babysitting as a business. Building Better Babysitters aims to increase young people’s confidence in caring for children.