Glynn Smith, age 13 and a 7th grade student at the Westport Montessori School of the Angels, is preparing for one of her biggest 4H projects of the year….and there is not a animal to be found. The daughter of Sonya and Steve Smith of Tiverton is practicing for her third consecutive 4H public speaking presentation in as many years, and the topic — music of the 20th century — is broad and far-reaching.

The idea that 4-H is exclusively about animal husbandry is one of the biggest misconceptions about the group, according to Jennifer Bristol, who, along with Kelly Carr-Sobriero and Kevin McCarthy, leads the 4-H "Home Insteaders" one of two Bristol-Warren affiliated 4-H clubs. "We help the kids decide what activities they want to get involved in, and if we don't know much about a particular activity, we learn along with them," said Ms. Bristol.

The Home Insteaders focus areas include cooking, home improvement and repair, leadership, caring for goats and chickens, and vegetable gardening. Re-established locally at Mount Hope Farm in 2013, the current group ranges in age from 5 to 14, and these days they meet at a private homestead near Mt. Hope Bay in Bristol.

Most 4-H activities include an element of healthy competition, whether it's public speaking, animal husbandry, or the arts — and the most successful competitors progress from the district level (East Bay) to the States at URI (the event that Glynn is preparing for.) Success at States will earn you a trip to the Big E in Springfield, to which the Home Insteaders usually travel on "Rhode Island day".

Nationally, there are more than 7 million young people participating in 4-H activities across the country. Founded more than a century ago, it is the nation's largest youth development organization, and though its foundation is in agriculture and homemaking, today's 4-H is just as likely to feature activities encompassing STEM learning, healthy living, or citizenship. Internal studies of 4-H'er outcomes bear out the benefits of the group, which claims their membership is 4 times more likely to give back to their communities and twice as likely to make healthy lifestyle choices.

For Glynn, whose confidence and delivery improve with each run-through, public speaking is more than just a challenging opportunity for personal growth — it's fun. She particularly enjoys the camaraderie of the presentations, even though public speaking ranks high on the list of fears for people three times her age. "I just really like listening to everything that everyone else is into," she said.

Update: Glynn enjoyed a very successful competition on Saturday, March 3 at URI, bringing home a blue ribbon for her presentation on 20th century music!

If you are interested in having your son or daughter join the Home Insteaders, they can be reached at 4hhomeinsteaders@gmail.com. For more information on 4-H, visit 4-h.org.