| Explore the Changing Season: Back to School | |
"The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows"
-Sydney J. Harris
August is filled with backpacks, notebooks, pencils, and mentees trying to enjoy the last bits of their summer. Back to school season starts this month with college students returning to their classes and K-12 students preparing to return at the end of the month or beginning of September. Enjoy the last few weeks of summer by going to the beach, taking long walks (see the section later in this newsletter for creative ideas for your walk!), or creating craft projects to decorate your mentee's back-to-school items!
How are you and your mentee preparing to spend the last few weeks of summer? Let us know on our Facebook page by clicking the "Find us on Facebook" link in the side bar to the right!
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| Match Activity Idea: 4-H Evening at the MSU Children's Garden | Michigan 4-H Youth Development is hosting the first 4-H Evening in the Garden event on Tuesday, August 16th, from 4pm to 7pm at the MSU Children's Garden. This free event is open to the public and will showcase current 4-Hers and their projects along with hands-on activities and presentations.
Activities include 4-H science and robotics, Project FISH, gardening, small animals and veterinary science, entomology, geocaching, performing arts and more. Along with eating ice cream from the MSU Dairy Store, there is sure to be an activity to meet each child's interest.
For more information and to register in advance, go to http://www.4hgarden.msu.edu, select "Calendar," then "August" in the drop-down box. Next, click on "An Evening in the MSU 4-H Children's Garden." |
Seasonal Craft: Food Stamping
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Celebrate back-to-school season by creating this simple tote bag with a teacher's favorite: apples!
Materials
1-2 apples (will need 1 apple half per color)
Acrylic paint, assorted colors
Paint brushes (one per color)
Canvas tote bag
Paper plate
Newspaper
Cardboard or magazine
Directions
Set up your work area by spreading out newspaper. Insert the cardboard into the tote bag. This will help prevent the paint from leaking through the bag. Cut your apples in half (try to keep the stem in place at least on one half). Squeeze out your paint on the paper plate, making sure to keep colors separate. Using the paint brushes, dab (not brush) paint onto the cut apple half until thoroughly covered in paint. Place the apple paint-side down onto the tote bag and press for a few seconds. Repeat with desired colors until your pattern is complete. Let the paint dry before removing the cardboard (will take a few hours).
Don't have apples? Try using these other fruits or vegetables to create your artwork: broccoli, starfruit, pears, celery, cauliflower, bell peppers, or potatoes.
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Thinking Ahead: College Positive Mentoring Toolkit
| Be a college positive mentor! The role of a college positive mentor is to offer encouragement and support to promote the college-going mindset, expose their mentee to the resources and options that make college possible, and equip them with the tools and knowledge to explore and pursue higher education, according to the new College Positive Mentoring Toolkit developed by Mentor Michigan and Michigan Campus Compact.
Check out the toolkit to learn different ways to encourage your mentee to consider and plan for attending a post-secondary institution. The toolkit is designed to provide mentors with information, conversation starters, match activity ideas, and ready-to-use activities to help your mentee take important steps toward higher education. The toolkit includes information for use with mentees of any age and is broken down into elementary, middle, and high school sections.
The College Positive Mentoring Toolkit is available to download online at www.mentormichigan.org. |
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Activity Idea: Go for a walk!
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If you would like to pilot these activities or other 4-H Guided Adventures curricula, please contact Kristy Oosterhouse at oosterh6@msu.edu.
 Walking is one of the simplest ways to be active and enjoy the outdoors! Walking also fosters talking and observing, which allows you are your mentee to become better aquainted with one another and the community. You can choose to take a walk in a park, around your neighborhood, or even walk on your way to another activity. A great way to get to know the area around you and making connections with nature is by using a simple twist on the Alphabet Game. With your mentee, identify items on your walk that start with letters of the alphabet and then try to explain how each item is connected. For example, if you are taking a walk this fall around an orchard, "A" is for "Apple" from an apple tree, "B" is for "Bees", which help to pollinate the apple trees, and "C" is for "Cider", which is made from apples.
Another idea to try if you and your mentee have pedometers is to challenge each other to see who can take the most steps from now until your next visit. You could even set goals--obtain a map of your state, country, or the world and identify places that you would each like to visit. Determine how many miles away each destination is and see who can walk to their destination first! You can even make up a counting system, such as one step equals 10 miles, to reach farther away destinations. |
Did You Know?
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How will you and your mentee spend time during the month of August?
15th - National Relaxation Day - Spend the day relaxing with your mentee soaking up the sun, reading a book, or catching a movie!
18th - Nineteenth Amendment signed- Women are given the right to vote in the U.S. when the Nineteenth Amendment is signed on this day in 1920.
21st - Hawaii becomes 50th state in the U.S. - Celebrate the day that this tropical state joins the U.S. by having a luau with your mentee!
30th - Toasted Marshmallow Day - Celebrate this fun holiday by making s'mores over a campfire & roasting marshmallows! Don't have a campfire to roast marshmallows? Place a graham cracker, topped with chocolate & then a marshmallow, on a cookie sheet & broil it in the oven until golden (watch carefully!). Mmmm!
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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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