Taylor provides programming for University of Illinois Extension 4-H Youth Development program in fifteen counties in the west central Illinois, including: Adams, Brown, Cass, Christian, Greene, Hancock, Macoupin, McDonough, Menard, Montgomery, Morgan, Pike, Sangamon, Schyuler and Scott. Taylor's main focus is to support 4-H community clubs, volunteer development and character education. A few of the programs she offers are listed below.
Integrating Character Education into Every Part of Your School – This training for faculty and staff includes the option of follow-up consultations with the school's character education committee. How to include and incorporate bully prevention and the Illinois Social and Emotional Learning Standards (http://www.isbe.state.il.us/ils/social_emotional/standards.htm) into character education and academics can be included. Each presentation is tailored to fit the needs of the local school system. Taylor can also offer training and/or technical assistance in preparing for the IL State Schools of Character. (Audience: teachers and school administrators and support staff)
Creating Teachable Moments -- click to learn more http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/character/training_child.html (Audience: prek-6th grade teachers or childcare providers)
4-H Focus on Character & Focus on Character for Youth Groups -- click to learn more http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/character/youth.html (Audience: 4-H volunteers or other youth group leaders)
Character@Work -- learn more about this training that focuses organizational change: http://characteratwork.ao.uiuc.edu/ (Audience: small business owners)
Cooperative Learning -- Research tells us that when youth are involved with cooperative learning they not only gain teamwork skills but their self-esteem is improved, they develop higher level thinking skills, their academic achievement is increased, and they show more empathy toward others. Because of its multi-faceted effectiveness cooperative learning is valuable as a part of both the academic and social/emotional/character parts of a school improvement plan. This workshop helps participants learn the basics of cooperative learning and how it is markedly different from "group work." (Audience: teachers and other adults who teach youth.)
Volunteer Development – Taylor is instrumental in developing and carrying out VALUED Volunteer statewide orientation and training. She works with county staff to support local 4-H Community Clubs and provides training and assistance with all aspects of the volunteer development and management, including, identifying volunteer needs, recruitment and screening, orientation, training, risk management, supervision, recognition and evaluation. She has many resources, worksheets and fact sheets that help volunteers effectively do their jobs. Topics for which she can provide workshops include, but are not limited to: Club Program Planning, Working with Officers and Committees, Managing Risk at 4-H Club Events, Making 4-H Meetings Fun, Project Leaders: Strengthening the Club 4-H Program, Effectively Working with Teen/Junior Leaders, Completing an Illinois 4-H Award Application, Involving Parents, and Helping 4-H Members Choose Projects and Set Goals. (Audience: 4-H volunteers and other volunteer administrators)
Active Learning - This workshop allows teachers to practice and plan for using the pedagogy that "involves students in doing things and thinking about the things they are doing." Studies study showed that 90 percent of students who experience a concept understand and retain what they've learned versus five percent from lecture and ten percent from reading. (Audience: teachers)
Understanding Personality Styles – This program provides participants with a simple way to understand yourself, friends, family and the people you work with. Based on the National Curriculum and Training Institute Matrixx System "colors" is a simple way of describing the differences among people. The four major personality styles are labeled with a color name to make it fun and easy to remember. You'll complete activities that will allow you a chance to practice more effective ways to deal with people of different personality styles. (Audience: 7th grade thru adult)
Leadership Through Community Action – This program provides an opportunity for junior high students to work together on community issues. The program's focus is on building leadership, community problem solving and developing positive attitudes about volunteerism and community service. Illinois Learning Standards have been identified for each of the activities in this curriculum. Research tells us that being engaged in "meaningful" activities is one of the seven basic needs of early adolescents. It also shows that effective service learning strengthens academic learning. And one recently identified benefit shows that service-learning is an important aspect of many character development models. Leadership Development Through Community Action is a very valuable set of tools for enhancing junior high students' experiences. (Audience: teachers)
Positive Youth Development-How Does My Program Measure Up - This program applies current research to helping adults understand what makes a successful youth programming effort. Emphasis is placed on meeting the developmental needs of youth. (Audience: adult youth group leaders)
Preparing for an Interview - During a job interview, you need to convince the interviewer that you're the most qualified potential team member. First place gets the job. Second place provides good experience. In this workshop, you will learn and practice developing the power of marketing your skills. From the first handshake to the last thank you, you'll learn about business etiquette and effective body language. Learn how to master the interview, highlight your skills during the interview and provide a powerful follow up. (Audience: teens or adults)
Creating Meaningful Youth/Adult Partnerships - This series of workshops is most successful when both youth and adults are involved with the training. Participants look at the different perspectives from which adults tend to view potential contributions of young people. Next they assess the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for working successfully in youth/adult partnerships. Finally, groups develop plans for how they will apply the concepts to their own situation. (Audience: Adult youth group leaders, teens and pre-teens)
