By Ed Moreth 

4-H members show their best communication skills

 

March 15, 2018

Ed Moreth

GRAPPLING DEMO – From the bottom of the mat, Tyler Lyscio of the South Side Sparks gives judges a few wrestling tips with the help of Matthew Thurston.

Research by the Washington Post noted that public speaking was a person's top phobia, but that didn't stop a group of kids from showing their oratory skills at the annual Sanders County 4-H Communication Finals Day.

Sixteen kids from five 4-H clubs competed in the finals, which ran from 1 p.m. until about 4:30 p.m. at Plains School Sunday. The top presenter in the senior division was Rachel Wrobleski of the South Side Sparks in Plains for her demonstration titled "20,000 Stinging Insects and Me." Second place in the senior division went to Madeline Snell of the Thompson Falls Mountaineers with her illustrated talk "Who Are the Ambassadors?" Third went to Whitepine Happy Worker Josey Neesvig and her demonstration "How to Become Self Confident." Martin Wrobleski of the South Side Sparks finished in fourth with "How to Shoot the Stick and String," an archery lesson.

Top honors in the junior division went to Clair Wrobleski with her "Pretty Petals" demonstration. In the junior division, there is no numeric order for other placers, which were Tyler Lyscio of the South Side Sparks with his "Wrestling 101" demo, Hattie Neesvig of the Whitepine Happy Workers with her "Tissue Paper Bowl" demonstration, and Andrew Wrobleski and his "The Tree Barber Shop" presentation.

The top senior division presenters were given a trip to the Montana 4-H Congress, sponsored by the Sanders County 4-H Council, said Shirley Kinkade, the administrative assistant for the MSU Extensions Office of Sanders County and one of the competition coordinators. The top junior division winners were awarded a scholarship to the 4-H camp, also sponsored by the 4-H Council.

Originally called Demonstrations Day, the name was changed last year when different categories were added, such as Video, Commercial, Career, and Promotional Package. The Speech category had been a part of the competition for numerous years, said Kinkade. However, she noted that officials created two types of speeches – Prepared and Impromptu. Mikayla Mueller, a senior with the Little Bitterroot Club, and Caitlynn Fairbrother, a junior with the Heron Noxon Explorers, were the only two to compete at finals with speeches and both were in the Prepared Speech class. Mueller, 17, was recognized with a special award for an outstanding speech sponsored by Sue and Glen Garrison.

Kinkade said that nearly 100 4-H members participated in the Communications competition the previous Saturday and Sunday in Thompson Falls and Hot Springs. Seven seniors and nine juniors qualified for the finals in Plains. Three others qualified but couldn't make it to the competition.

The South Side Sparks had the most members at the finals with eight kids. The Whitepine Happy Workers had three competitors, Thompson Falls Mountaineers had two, Little Bitterroot had two, and the Heron Noxon Explorers had one. Competitors ranged from 9-17 years old.

Judging for the seniors were Gloria Bennett, Debbie Rulleri, and Kate Baxter, and for the juniors, judges included Sarah Naegeli, Rusty Kinkade, and Karen Dwyer. The kids' presentations ranged from 5-20 minutes long and had a wide variety of topics in their efforts to impress the judges. The kids were evaluated in eight different areas: introduction, understanding of the subject, body of presentation, voice, manner and appearance, visual clarity, summary, and questions, according to Naegeli, a veteran judge, who added that the kids received 1-4 points in each section.

Most of the presentations were done in a classroom. With the help of his human prop, 9-year-old Matthew Thurston, Tyler Lyscio did his wrestling demo in the cafeteria. Martin Wrobleski and the senior judges had to go to the fairgrounds pavilion for his archery demonstration.

Ed Moreth

BALLOONING DEMO – Hattie Neesvig of the Whitepine Happy Workers presents her "How to Make a Balloon Bowl" demonstration in the junior class competition.

The only live animal Sunday was "Nya," a 15-pound cat owned by presenter Madison Toyias of the Thompson Falls Mountaineers for her presentation "Purrfect Cat Care."

It was a first time for the judges to witness a presentation of a 3-D printer, owned by Thompson Falls High School and done by Whitepine Happy Worker Theo Nygaard in the junior category, his first year to compete.

"This type of event is very beneficial to the members because it allows them to develop public speaking skills and self confidence, which are skills that carry through with them the rest of their lives," said Kinkade, who's been with the Sanders County Extension Office for 25 years. "It also allows them to get to know other kids throughout the county and throughout the state when they qualify to compete at a state level during Montana 4-H Congress," she added.

 

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