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Thank you, mentors!
| January is National and Michigan's Mentoring Month, a time to celebrate the difference that mentoring can make in the lives of youth. There have been many events during the month to highlight mentoring; hopefully you have had a chance to attend a few!
January 25th is Thank Your Mentor Day. We would like to take the time to thank all of you for taking the time to make a difference in the lives of the youth you mentor or have mentored over the past year. Your dedication to the youth and to mentoring is greatly appreciated. Thank you for all that you do!
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Activity Idea: Build a Snow Fort!
| If you would like to pilot these activities or other 4-H Guided Adventure curricula, please contact Kristy Oosterhouse at oosterh6@msu.edu.
Snow forts, or quinzees, can make for great fun outdoors in the winter. To begin building your quinzee, build a large pile of snow, approximately 5 feet high. The pile should be large enough to allow for thick walls and enough space that you and your mentee can comfortably sit or lay down inside. Once the pile is large enough, let the snow sit and harden for 1-3 hours (depending on weather conditions and temperature).
After the snow has compacted, begin digging and hollowing out the pile. Place small sticks that are at least 10cm long into the snow pile at various points; these will mark your wall thickness. Start digging an entrance tunnel that angles slightly upward into the pile. Dig the tunnel straight to the back of the fort until you reach the sticks that mark the back wall thickness. Once the tunnel is complete, you can then hollow out either side of the tunnel to create the space inside. After the fort is hollowed out, grab some hot chocolate and hang out in the fort!
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Thinking Ahead: MichiganCAP
| | The Michigan College Access Portal, or MichiganCAP, is a great new resource that you can share with your mentee. The free tool is designed for students who are looking for information and thinking about college and anyone can sign up.
The website is divided into sections which include a portfolio that saves your mentee's information that they enter, a database of colleges in Michigan, information on paying for college, and test and career planning.
The portfolio allows you to keep track of the list of colleges that your mentee is interested in, a list of scholarships that they would like to apply for, any documents such as a college admissions essay, and their profile.
The college database consists of a database of Michigan colleges that allows you to search schools based on location, academics, size, sports, and more. You can also compare undergraduate, academic, and financial information between the colleges that your mentee is interested in.
The section on paying for college includes a guide to help your mentee understand the process of learning about, applying for, and finding financial aid. There are several cost calculators that you can find in this section, including one for college costs, loan costs, and estimated family contribution. The tool also has a searchable database of over 5000 different scholarships.
The planning section offers a variety of tools. The career exploration tool uses a variety of quizzes to find out the personality of your mentee and uses that to determine what types of careers or majors they may be interested in. Once your mentee has the quiz results, they can input that information into a database that searches for careers based on the type of career pathway they would like to follow, their interests, values, and the subject they are interested in, and the education level they want to achieve (including high school, 2-year degree, 4-year degree, etc.). The test preparation tool offers information, exam dates, and practice tests for the MME, ACT, SAT, PSAT. SAT Subject Tests, and Accuplacer. The planning section also has a tool to help with finding a job, including resume and cover letter writing tips, and job searching and interview tips.
For more information about the Michigan College Access Portal or to register, visit https://www.michigancap.org/.
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Seasonal Craft: Time Capsule
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 The beginning of a new year is a great time to preserve cherished items and memories of the moment. You and your mentee can save your own memories by creating a time capsule that represents your match. To create a time capsule, find a box, large coffee can, or other item that is large enough to hold the items that you want to preserve. Feel free to decorate the capsule, be creative! Collect items to place in the time capsule. You could include mementos from activities that you have done together, such as ticket stubs or a craft that you did together, or a list of goals that you have for the next year. You could even include a card or letter telling your mentee how much you appreciate them and what you have learned from them (and have your mentee write one for you!). Place the items inside the capsule and seal it with the lid and tape. Tuck the time capsule away and open it at the start of the next year to see how much has changed in a year and to relive the memories!
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Did You Know?
|  January 1st rings in the start of a New Year. Even though the midnight celebration of a New Year is probably the most widely celebrated date in the month, there are plenty of other events and holidays to celebrate in January, even at the end of the month.
26th- Michigan is 26th State- Michigan becomes the 26th State in the U.S. in 1837
27th- "Light Bulb" Patented- Thomas Edison was granted a patent for an electric lamp that eventually became the light bulb.
27th- Chocolate Cake Day- Do you love chocolate? Try making this recipe for chocolate cake with your mentee!
Chocolate Cake - 1 - 18.25 ounce package devil's food cake mix
- 1 - 5.9 ounce package instant chocolate pudding mix
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 cups semisweet mini chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar or drizzle with chocolate.
29th- National Puzzle Day- How fast can you and your mentee put together a puzzle today?
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MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer. Michigan State University Extension programs and materials are open to all without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, age, height, weight, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, family status or veteran status. Issued in furtherance of MSU Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Thomas G. Coon, Director, MSU Extension, East Lansing,MI 48824. This information is for educational purposes only. Reference to commercial products or trade names does not imply endorsement by MSU Extension or bias against those not mentioned.
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