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A new survey shows that teen mental health has suffered from social distancing and the widespread uncertainty brought by the coronavirus outbreak. The survey, commissioned by National 4-H Council and conducted by the Harris Poll, reveals the majority of teens are experiencing mental health issues right now — and are often unsure of where to turn to for support.

Seven out of 10 teens revealed they are struggling with mental health in this stressful climate, and 81% said they believe mental health is a significant issue for their peers nationwide. Many teens are experiencing or have experienced anxiety (55%), excessive stress (45%), and depression (43%). The survey, which assessed young people’s perceptions of mental health issues both in their communities and across the country, shows that 64% of teens think their generation will experience long-term mental health effects from the pandemic.

The survey also reveals that teens feel pressure from outside forces to succeed in school and life. As schools shifted to online learning, 71% of the teens said schoolwork made them feel anxious or depressed. But rather than sharing their vulnerabilities with one another, approximately two-thirds of the teens said they felt pressure to keep their feelings to themselves, pretend to feel better so as not to worry anyone, or deal with their feelings on their own.

Seeking Other Ways to Cope

Feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression may continue to rise as teens seek alternative ways to cope. Forty-five percent of respondents said they try to ignore their feelings or spend more time alone when mental health issues arise, and 46% say they turn to social media to learn about coping techniques. Between social media, schoolwork, and virtual gatherings, teens currently spend about 75% of their waking hours (9 hours a day) engaging with a screen, which may not make up for the real-world connections they have lost since early spring.

The good news? Teens know mental health is a problem – and they have ideas for what needs to change. For example, over 80% of teens would like to see Americans talk more openly about mental health and 79% would like a safe space where people their age can have open conversations.

Helping Teens with Mental Health

In 4-H, we believe that youth mentorship programs can be invaluable to helping teens cope with stress, both now and in a post-COVID world. 4-H Healthy Living programs provide youth with a better understanding of how their choices can help themselves, their families, and their communities. With programs focused on issues such as substance abuse prevention and mental health, 4-H helps youth build a firm foundation that encourages good decision-making and strong interpersonal skills. Social-emotional health is the cornerstone to confident, caring young leaders who understand how to take care of themselves both mentally and physically, which is key to holistic well-being.

For more information on the state of teen mental health, view the full survey results here.

Learn more about 4-H Healthy Living programs and download the 4-H Healthy Living Activity Guide for activities that youth and teens can do at home to help them make healthy choices.

Rural America is beautiful and is the heart of this country. I was born and raised in rural south-central Virginia in Charlotte County, and I love my community. It is my home. Unfortunately, there is a “Digital Divide” in our country that’s impacting opportunities in rural areas.

Businesses that have left rural communities that were dependent on them are suffering, and many rural communities have workforces that are not ready for the 21st-century workplace. As a result of the lack of sustainable jobs, the youth of these communities leave for better opportunities. It hurts the rural local economy by causing a ‘drain,’ and the loss of young people reduces new ideas and entrepreneurship, which further reducing local growth.

Many communities are impacted and must ask themselves, “How can we fix this?” The answer comes in the form of a 4‑H program. 4‑H Tech Changemakers is a teen-led program that empowers young people to change their community’s future using technology and digital skills.

The program introduces teens to opportunities that will help them build leadership skills, take action, present to local government officials, and develop a strong, positive reputation in their community. Teens participating in the program grow into responsible contributing citizens in an environment where they can make decisions and mistakes safely.

Through the 4‑H Tech Changemakers program in my county, we teach website development, social media marketing, and drone mapping to local farmers. We have met with the state governor, supported our local growers’ association, and even helped save the loss of over two acres of soybeans of a local farmer using a drone. I have spoken to over 200 4‑H professionals and youth about how important digital skills can be in helping rural economies thrive and keeping young people, like myself, contributing to the future of their town.

 

Kindness is a choice, and resilience does not always come easy. As simple as those things may seem, they can sometimes be challenging attributes to exude. I realized that many years ago, when I was faced with a situation that was very pivotal in my development as a True Leader.

I was eating supper at Rock Eagle 4-H Center for an event as a member of Georgia 4-H’s Southeast Junior District Board of Directors. Many of my friends surrounded me as we enjoyed each other’s company. As time passed by and through all the laughing and camaraderie, my eyes wandered around the room. My gaze became fixed on this seemingly lonely girl sitting a few tables away; she was by herself. The situation concerned me. After a few minutes of deliberating whether I should stay and enjoy the comfort of my friends and our fellowship or get up and join the girl sitting in isolation, I knew what I needed to do. So, I stood up and made my way to her table. We began talking, and initially, she was very reserved. However, our conversation grew livelier, her smile became bigger, and several others meandered our way. By the end of the meal, the entire table was filled with 4-H’ers of all different shapes, sizes and colors.

In that moment, I realized that the accepting and inclusive environment that I had come to know so well in 4-H did not just emerge out of nowhere. It is not always easy, but taking action to create an atmosphere of positivity and belonging is what must be done if we desire to live in a world where love does indeed overcome hate.

It took many brave people to step up and be proactive about leaving their comfort zones to ensure that others felt loved and included in 4-H. It took people leaving their tables to join those who were alone. It took a special person many years ago to do the same thing for me when I was the one sitting across the room by myself. If it were not for those people, I would not be who I am today, and 4-H would not be either.

Be the one who steps up, joins the lonely, empowers the outcast, encourages growth, and inspires positive change.

 

I’ve never missed a county fair in my life. In fact, I was almost born at one. My county fair will always hold a special place in my heart. I want to ensure all young people have the chance to participate – particularly three little boys in my life who have special needs.

Individuals who have special needs can participate in lots of activities – they just need support. Even I need support when it comes to some tasks in my life. I’m a big-picture thinker, which means I struggle to plan for small details in my life. That doesn’t mean I’m left to figure it out myself or fail. I simply ask for support.

My friend Jacob and my brothers Asher and Elias aren’t fortunate to have the verbal communication skills to ask for support when they need it, so I look for ways to support them based on their needs.

For my friend Jacob, support means two pairs of extra hands – a person to push his wheelchair and a person to keep the goat from eating its tires – and learning to use a device that helps him speak through pressing buttons. This requires teaching the goat to stay calm around a big, scary wheelchair. I also spend lots of time teaching Jacob all about his goat; what keeps it calm, what might scare it, what it eats, and how to name body parts when the judge asks.

My little brother Asher thrives on routine. To show a goat, Asher needs help developing a routine for moving around the show ring. Asher also has severely limited verbal communication. He and I spend much of our training time learning simple body parts he can point to and show the judge. We walk into the show ring with a laminated index card that tells the judge which questions Asher has practiced.

My youngest brother, Elias, has no trouble leading a goat much bigger than him. In the summer, he can often be found leading his goat and as many others up and down the driveway. Elias is more than strong enough to lead a goat in the right direction; he is ready to learn finer steps to goat showing. Fine-tuning, however, requires patience. Supporting Elias means teaching him that goats respond to gentleness and positive correction.

Through my involvement in 4‑H, I have been lucky to have a support system that encourages me to be a leader and help bring positive change to my community. Knowing I have a team of mentors and friends who are always there for me has given me the confidence to take on challenges and step out of my comfort zone to try new things. I encourage you to think about how you can provide support to those in your community – especially those who struggle to ask for it. You don’t have to have a degree in psychology or childhood development to figure out how to offer support. Often, support can come even in the smallest, simplest of things which can mean the world to an individual.

It was the week before Christmas Day 2018. My family and I were in our vehicle, traveling to Illinois to visit family over the holidays. Still a bit groggy as I had just woken up from a great nap, I received a phone call from a number I did not recognize. I had been expecting a call, and the suggested caller was National 4‑H Council. Anxiously, I answered. Suddenly, my jaw hit the floor, as I received the news that I had been named the 2019 4‑H Youth in Action Award Winner in Civic Engagement. My mind began racing at the thought of all the grand opportunities and individuals I knew I would encounter along this journey, and the reality is… I was not wrong.

I had just started the Alma Entrepreneur Tour, a project that connects rural youth to successful entrepreneurs in our community to highlight the importance of persistence, resilience, and individuality—specifically in the workplace. My fantastic 4‑H agent, Leah Wooddall, approached me about applying for the Youth in Action Awards, but I quickly declined and told her I was not qualified and would never stand a chance against the other applicants. Meanwhile, I continued with my project, and it was extremely successful! I had known about the 4‑H Youth in Action Awards program for a few years; especially because my biggest role model of all time from Georgia 4‑H was named a pillar winner in 2018. However, never in a million years would I have thought that I could accomplish the same thing. Zooming up to present day, I stand in awe of the fact that I am being seen by others in the same light that I still view my biggest role models.

If you have ever considered applying for the 4‑H Youth in Action Awards program, I strongly recommend you do, regardless of how qualified or experienced you are! I decided to apply two-and-a-half hours before the deadline and clicked “submit” 30 seconds before it was due, and look where I am today. I am just a South Georgia boy with a passion for empowering others to be confident in themselves and a story of self-love and acceptance. To think that something as simple as making the decision to live my truth has earned me the platform I have today is mindboggling. You see, I did not have to do anything bizarre to earn this award. I just decided to be myself and take action for something in which I believed. Sometimes, though, that is the most bizarre thing one can do. You might be surprised by how much good can come from making the decision to shine your light. I know I was.

4‑H Youth in Action: Living My Truth

In this exclusive “Reflecting on Kindness” series, Ponysitters Club members reflect on moments from episodes that allowed them to express different forms of kindness.

In this week’s journal entry, Trish demonstrates kindness through the themes of secrets, guilt, anxiety, honesty, sharing what’s on your mind. She shares how these themes allowed her to express kindness by not bottling up negative emotions, trying to protect people you care about, trusting friends enough to confide in them.

After the Club returns from a camping trip in “Fire Scare” (S01E07), Trish begins to act differently. Other Ponysitters pick up on this, but give her space to work out whatever is on her mind. Eventually, the pressure gets to be too much and Trish reveals what’s been bothering her: she thinks Grandpa started a forest fire that’s creeping nearer and nearer to Rescue Ranch! She learns that it feels a lot better to let those you care about know what’s bothering you, and if you’re worried about a loved one, to let them know right away — there might not be a reason to worry.

Trish

Dear diary,

Phew, what a day! I spent most of today worried that Rescue Ranch might burn down and that Grandpa might go to jail and I’m exhausted from all that worrying! I like keeping my energy level high, but I never want it to be this high ever again!

I guess I need to explain. We just had our first Ponysitters Club camping trip and it was pretty great — Skye learned she was allergic to wildflowers, Isabella learned everyone is allergic to poison ivy, but a fun trip apart from that. When we were just about ready to leave, Grandpa and I were in charge of putting out the campfire. That’s where it all started to go wrong.

He threw a bowl of water into the fire pit, but afterwards I could still see a few sparks. I went to help Billy pack up and trusted that Grandpa knew how to put out a fire, but I really wanted to double check and make triple sure it was out before we left. I didn’t get a chance though, and I didn’t really think much more about it until I heard about the forest fire.

When we got back to Rescue Ranch, we could see huge clouds of smoke coming from the campsite. As soon as I saw the smoke, my stomach just dropped. I started to sweat and feel sick and my mind was racing and I couldn’t slow it down no matter what I did. I know I should have said something right away, but I was worried Grandpa would be in trouble if I told anyone he started the forest fire. I thought he might go to jail, and then Rescue Ranch would have to close and there would be no one to care for the animals and no more Ponysitters Club. Even worse, I felt like I was just as responsible as Grandpa since I noticed the leftover sparks and didn’t tell him.

I felt so guilty for the rest of the day. It was eating me up inside so much I couldn’t have fun with the Ponysitters. Everyone definitely noticed — I kept running to the bathroom and drifting in and out of conversations. Eventually, I just HAD to tell the Ponysitters, and what a relief! I immediately felt soooo much better after sharing how I was feeling with my friends, and they helped give me the courage to tell Grandpa and Billy. Grandpa let me know that after I left, he threw another 10 bowls of water into the fire pit to make extra, extra, extra sure it was out. Even better, the forest fire died down shortly after I got my secret off my chest — maybe it was nature telling me that it’s better to share secrets that are making you upset with people you trust. I’m so glad Grandpa and I don’t have to go to jail!

Did you know that kids can become a real member of the Ponysitters Club? Learn how to join and be sure to inspire your kids to be doers by downloading the 4‑H Inspire Kids to Do Activity Guide!

Here at 4‑H, we encourage kids and parents to continue to learn by doing whenever possible. By encouraging kids to engage in their surroundings and explore their curiosity, we give them the opportunity to learn skills that easily translate to various parts of their lives. What’s a good way to spark your child’s interest in doing home projects together? Baking bread!

Every kid likes a sandwich – grilled cheese, PB&J – no matter the sandwich, there’s always that one common ingredient – bread! Even if you think your child doesn’t have an interest in cooking, introducing a fun way to make a favorite snack might just challenge them to take a chance.

Here’s a step by step guide from our Inspire Kids To Do Activity Guide that The Typical Mom Blog decided to try as well!

How To Make Bread In A Bag

You don’t need much to make bread in a bag, you’re ingredients are:

  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 pkg. yeast quick-rising
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp nonfat dry milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 c water HOT
  • 3 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 c whole wheat flour

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 12

Your basic steps for making bread in a bag:

  1. Combine all-purpose flour, yeast, sugar, dry milk, and salt into a freezer bag, squeeze air out and zip closed.
  2. Shake to blend ingredients, then add your hot water and oil into this mixture.
  3. Reseal your bag and work together using your fingers until well combined.
  4. Add whole wheat flour, reseal bag and mix again thoroughly.
  5. Add a bit of the remaining 1 c. all purpose flour at a time, kneading in the bag in between, until the dough stiffens and begins to pull away from the bag.
  6. Once this is achieved, remove dough from bag and put on a floured cutting board to knead with your hands.
  7. Knead for 2-4 min. until smooth and elastic, cover dough in a bowl and let it rest for 10 minutes.
  8. Use a rolling pin to roll dough into a 12×7″ rectangle, place in a loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.
  9. Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Put in a warm location for 20 min or until dough doubles in size.
  10. Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for 25 min. or until top is golden brown and knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Did you try making Bread in a Bag with your family? If so, share your photos on social media using #InspireKidstoDo!

For more tips and ideas to help inspire your kids to be doers, download the 4‑H Inspire Kids to Do Activity Guide!

Inspire Kids to Do: Bread in a Bag

NBA star Jarrett Allen has a long-standing relationship with 4‑H, sharing his passion for technology with New York 4‑H’ers. In February 2017, the Brooklyn Nets center teamed up with local 4‑H kids during National Engineers Week 2018 to perform the 4‑H National Youth Science Day Challenge, Incredible Wearables. The challenge focused on the technology of building a wearable fitness tracker, an obvious interest for the rising athlete.
 
Since then, Allen has teamed up with 4‑H to showcase his unique interest in STEM through community outreach events and 2018 4‑H NYSD.
 
For his second meet-up with 4‑H, Allen performed the Code Your World activity, letting local students code a shot.
 
In this exclusive “Reflecting on Kindness” series, Ponysitters Club members reflect back on moments from episodes that allowed them to express different forms of kindness.

In this week’s journal entry, Skye demonstrates kindness through the themes of leadership, teamwork, self-confidence, compromise, and asking for help. She shares how these themes allowed her to express kindness by accepting shortcomings without anger or sadness, asking for help when needed, and empathetic conflict resolution.

As the leader of the Ponysitters, Skye has a uniquely challenging role. Others look to her for direction and when things don’t go smoothly they look to her for a solution. Luckily for her, and as shown in “Teamwork Trouble” (S01E06), she has leaders that she can look up to in the form of her mom and grandpa whom she can reach out to for advice. Good leaders need to examine themselves critically, but they need to ask for outside feedback too.

Dear diary,

What a day! I feel like the Ponysitters are a tighter group who understand each other a bit better after today, but we had to go through a rough patch to get there. Running into a coyote on the trail wasn’t even the biggest part of the day! Let me tell you all about it.

So, Ethan has been showing up late for Ponysitters Club meetings for a while now. I didn’t want to make a big deal about it, but this time he wasn’t even paying attention after he finally did show up. On top of that, Trish and Olivia starting fighting about who was going to do which task to help with making the Rescue Ranch more accessible to people with disabilities. I was trying to stay calm and help resolve the issue, but there was just too much going on at once and I got overwhelmed. I didn’t feel like a very good leader — aren’t I supposed to be the one who helps solve problems instead of letting them get worse?

I let everyone go off and do their tasks and hoped it would be okay while I took Puzzle for a walk through the woods. We were enjoying a nice quiet walk together when out of nowhere we got stopped in the middle of the trail by a coyote! I love all animals of course, but my only thought at that moment was to try to stay calm, protect Puzzle, and get the coyote to leave. Luckily I remembered mom teaching me that coyotes are more afraid of you than you are of them, and to make your body look big and make noises to scare them away. Sure enough, he ran away and Puzzle and I were free to go check on everyone else’s progress.

It was just as I had feared — Olivia and Trish were still fighting, and Ethan came from soccer practice to let us know that he had too much on his plate to keep working at Rescue Ranch with us! Now I felt like an ESPECIALLY bad leader. I knew I needed help, and I needed to tell mom about the coyote incident, so I went and told her what was going on. She reminded me of a few things, and what stuck with me most was that being a leader is about seeing how your group’s personality differences fit together. She was so right — I had been so focused on assigning tasks and trying to solve conflicts that I forgot to encourage the Ponysitters to play to their strengths!

Once we all met up, made up, and had a talk about our strengths, we agreed that we’d put our heads together and figure out a way to convince Ethan’s dad to let him stay in the Club. And sure enough, just as soon as we got back to working together like we know we can, we got his soccer team to practice at the Ranch and totally saved the day!

I always knew the Ponysitters would get back to being the Ponysitters, but sometimes it takes a bit of hardship to remind us who we really are. Sometimes you’ve got to ask for help to see what you’re missing too — I definitely need to remember that one. Talk to ya later, diary!

Did you know that kids can become a real member of the Ponysitters Club? Learn how to join and be sure to inspire your kids to be doers by downloading the 4‑H Inspire Kids to Do Activity Guide!

 

The 4‑H Youth in Action (YIA) Program recognizes four young leaders in our core pillar areas: agriculture, civic engagement, healthy living and STEM. Some perks of being a Pillar Winner include a $5,000 higher education scholarship and getting to network with 4‑H celebs, but our favorite perk is the all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C. for the National 4‑H Council Legacy Awards. In honor of this year’s 10th Anniversary 4‑H Legacy Awards on March 12, 2019, we’re highlighting the success stories of a few notable past Youth In Action winners.

NATE SEESE – Youth in Action Winner 2012

NATE SEESE - Youth in Action Winner 2012 

For Nate, being a Youth In Action winner opened the door to many opportunities and he’s continued his passion for science and agriculture well into his time in college. He currently works at Pat Edger’s blueberry and strawberry genetics lab and is about to graduate with a degree in Crop & Soil Sciences from Michigan State University. He plans to continue working in the lab post-graduation, building his resume and continuing growing his skills before pursuing graduate school.

Nate’s Youth In Action Win? He coordinated with local businesses to donate meat from his 4‑H projects to the local Byron Center food pantry. In just two years, he provided 1,000 lbs of meat to the pantry.

NOSA AKOL – Youth in Action Winner  2015 

NOSA AKOL - Youth in Action Winner  2015 

Nosa received a scholarship from the Endwell Rotary & Rotary International to participate in a humanitarian aid trip conducted through the State University of New York (SUNY) where she is currently majoring in Political Science & Diplomacy. In the Spring of 2018, she was accepted into SUNY Oswego’s Study Abroad Program in Seoul, South Korea where she is now an exchange student at Yonsei University, a private research university considered to be the most prestigious university in the country.

Nosa’s Youth In Action Win? 4‑H gave her the confidence and independence to overcome bullying. She also performed research on Women’s Empowerment in South Sudan and helped to build a Hunger Banquet with her 4‑H club. Nosa hopes to one day return to South Sudan so she can “pay it forward” by pursuing a career in international development.

RU EKANAYAKE – Youth in Action, Healthy Living & National Winner 2016 

RU EKANAYAKE - Youth in Action, Healthy Living & National Winner 2016 

Since winning the Youth in Action Healthy Living & National Award, Ru’s focus has never strayed from healthcare and wellness. At Cornell, she joined the Student Assembly Health & Wellness Committee where she spearheaded a sexual assault prevention initiative that engaged multiple student groups, Greek life, and served almost 700 students.

Through a YIA connection, she interned with the executive policy team at Molina Healthcare where she helped write policy supporting alternatives to prescription opioids,  and she interned for the Prostate Cancer Foundation helping to develop policy analysis of the Right to Try legislation. If that’s not enough, she’s currently freelancing there helping to create an online widget to connect prostate cancer patients with applicable trials – all while currently studying in Prague, Czech Republic and serving on the National 4‑H Council Youth Advisory Committee. Her Youth in Action Win? Creating the first 4‑H Healthy Living Blog.

JACOB SHUMAN – Youth in Action, for Agriculture Winner 2016 

JACOB SHUMAN - Youth in Action, for Agriculture Winner 2016 

Since his win in 2016 Jacob has been studying at Ohio State University – Agriculture Technical Institute in Wooster, OH where he’s enrolled in the Agriculture Community Leadership program, specializing in Extension Education and minoring in entomology.

Jacob knows how critical honey bees are to life on earth and has continued to focus on their importance. As a result, he has been working with Dr. Reed Johnson as a research assistant working with honey bees as an extension of his YIA project. Jacob is, the president of the Ohio State University Bee Club, where he began his own research project on Drone Honey Bees, specifically on Drone Congregation Areas. Last summer, Jacob judged the Beekeeping Level I and II projects at the Ohio State Fair, where just six years ago he was a competitor and beginning his career in beekeeping.

His Youth In Action Win? He created Teens Educating Adults & Children about Honey Bees (TEACH B.) He also led live bee education, demonstrations, and lessons on the importance of bees to agriculture and the economy.

AMELIA DAY – Youth in Action, Citizenship/National Winner 2017 

AMELIA DAY - Youth in Action, Citizenship/National Winner 2017 

Amelia currently works at an Interior Design Firm and recently began getting her Associates of Science in Culinary Arts at Helms College. She was a Georgia 4‑H Camp Counselor for two years and coached the county 4‑H Consumer Judging team to a state win.

Her Youth in Action Win? Her project, Operation: Veteran Smiles, a program that provides care packages and encouragement to veterans in VA hospitals all over the country.. Since being selected as the 2017 4‑H Youth in Action Citizenship & National Winner, her project has blossomed, becoming an official 501c3 corporation. OVS is also the official community service project for U.S. Cellular and Touchstone Energies, and with the help of more than 8,500 volunteers, has delivered more than 14,000 cards, care packages and smiles to veterans across 16 states.

Check out this year’s Youth in Action winners and finalists here!

If you’re ready to help us continue to support exceptional youth across the nation, consider donating $10 in honor of the 10th Anniversary 4‑H Legacy Awards! Your support will help kids learn by doing, grow from failure and develop the skills they need to handle what life throws their way.

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