The Answers to:
WHY?
WHAT FOR?
&
HOW?
CHARACTER COUNTS
Trustworthiness
Responsibility
Respect
Fairness
Caring
Citizenship
WHY?
 Responsible Record Keeping
 To see where you’ve been, so you can decide where you’re going
 Gives you a place to start with projects
 Compare beginning to end
WHAT FOR?
 Gives accurate record of what you’ve learned
 Head start on how to keep records!
 Scholarships
 Resumes
 Job Applications
 FUN to see how far you’ve come over the years!
HOW?
Carefully!
Section 1 & Section 6, 7– Year to Year
Sections 2-5 - Ongoing!
NOT LAST MINUTE!
OPTIONS FOR DOING A PORTFOLIO
Downloadable documents from State Website
Poster
My 4-H
Project!
PowerPoint
Make sure you have all the sections represented in
the format you choose!
SECTION 1 – PROJECT RECORD
 Print 1 for each project each year
 Goals should be SMART:
 Specific
 What exactly are you going to do?
 Measurable
 How do you know you’ve achieved it?
 Actionable/Attainable
 Do you have control over the outcome?
 Realistic
 Is it reasonable to accomplish?
 Time Bound
 When do you want to do it by?
GOAL EXAMPLES
“I want to win showmanship”
vs.
“I want to learn the cuts of my animal so I can better
answer questions during the showmanship competition.”
“I want to go to State Fair.”
vs.
“I want to learn many stitching techniques to be able
to sew an apron for the Fabric & Fashion Contest to earn
a ribbon to qualify for State Fair.
SECTION 1 - SIZE & SCOPE
 What was your Income?
 What did you bring in or start with?
 Sale Price
 Value of previously owned equipment
 What were your expenses?
 What did you have to pay for?
 Cost of Project item (steer, pottery, fabric, notions, frosting, etc…)
 Feed
 Supplies
 Fuel
 Participation Fees (contest fees, enrollment fees, etc…)
SECTION 1 - MARKET SUMMARY
(LIVESTOCK PROJECTS)
 Shows you the value of your animal outside of 4-H –
TRUE Market Value (MV) if you had taken it to the local
auction.
 Things to think about:
1. If you sold at a non-4-H auction on a different day would the MV be
different?
2. Do 4-H animals receive more value than “home-grown” ranch
animals? Why or why not?
3. Did you show gratitude to your buyer for purchasing your animal
above market value?
a)
What is a proper Thank You?
SECTION 1 - KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS
ACQUIRED
 What did you learn?
 If you set SMART goals before you started your project this
should be easy!
 Think about…
1. What you did to achieve your goals
2. What skills someone may have taught you
3. Where you got the information you needed to succeed
SECTION 1 - SUMMARY
How did your project do at each level of
competition?
 What ribbons or placings did you receive for that project?
SECTION 2 – AWARDS & RECOGNITION
 Ongoing – Add to it each year!
Date
Award
or Honor
Description / Activity or Event
Level
 What have you accomplished in your 4-H career?
1998
Medal
3rd Place Junior .22 Air Pistol at County Shoot.
CO
1998
Certificate
Most Improved Beginner Sewer in Wrangler 4-H Club
CL
1998
Trophy
Champion Junior Dog Showman
CO
1999
Trip
Denver Roundup winner in Style Review
S
6/15/00
Scholarship
Livestock Judging to Northwest College.
S
SECTION 3 - LEADERSHIP
 On-Going – Add to it each year!
Date
Type
Description of Leadership Responsibilities
Level
Include the office held, activity in which you were involved, or
committee to which you were assigned.
02/23/2001 E
Song Leader for County Teen Council
CL
2001
Organized and made PSA’s for 4-H Week with club
members
CL, CO
P
SECTION 4 – COMMUNITY SERVICE
 On-Going – Add to it each year!
Date
Description of Activity
Level
1999
Bake and Take Week, delivered cookies to seven widows with my club.
CL
2000
Food for the Homeless Shelter, designed and distributed 30 ads/fliers for
placement on the bulletin boards in local businesses.
CO
2000
Helped our Junior Leader Club paint the fence at the Senior Citizens
Center for 10 hours over the space of 2 weeks.
CL,CO
2001
Helped with County Wide Koats-for-Kids drive during November and
December.
CO
SECTION 5 –
PARTICIPATION & NON 4-H ACTIVITIES
 On Going – Add to it each year!
County Opportunities
County Fair
Achievement Night
Presentation Contest
4-H Camp
Non 4-H Activities
2
0
0
2
2
0
0
3
2
0
0
4
2
0
0
5
X X X X
X
X
X X X
X
YEAR
GROUP or ACTIVITY
Level
4-H Activities
2000
Boy Scouts
C
2000
2001
2001
2001
Little League Baseball
Boy Scouts
Little League Baseball
6th Grade Wrestling
T
C
T
S
2001
Marching Band
S
SECTION 6 - STORY
 Introduce yourself
 Highlight all your 4-H projects and activities, not just the Fair.
 Explain how 4-H helped you become a better leader and citizen
 Describe how 4-H participation made you feel
 Tell about your future plans in 4-H and beyond!
SECTION 7 –
PHOTOGRAPHS & NEWS CLIPPINGS
 Do:
 Use Action Shots – you working with your animal, in the middle of creating
your project
 Add captions! Tell us what’s happening!
 Look in the newspaper for pictures of you!
 Don’t:
 Use only pictures from Fair
 Use only posed shots
 Treat these 2 pages like a scrapbook
PORTFOLIO JUDGING
 Portfolios should be completed by September 30
 Judging completed by October at club level, November in
County 4-H Office
 Portfolios are used to attain Silver and Gold Achievement points
for the Wyoming 4-H Honors club membership.
PARTING THOUGHTS
 Powerpoints & Posters –
 Not as valuable when you are competing for State 4-H scholarships – they
will want a paper copy of the cumulative portfolio
 Acceptable at the county level or within clubs
 Start Early!
 Review often and update the ongoing sections
 Use the Story to tell us about your overall 4-H experience not
just your Fair experience.
 It’s YOUR record above all else. Make sure you document what
you might forget and need to know later!