The Experiential Learning Model: "Learn By Doing"
4-H uses experiential learning to educate youth. Experiential learning occurs when a person is involved in an activity, evaluates it, determines what was useful or important to remember, and uses this information to perform another activity.
Do
Anchor the topic in what participants already know. Ask them to describe similar situations they’ve faced before beginning the activity. Encourage them to think about what might happen. Describe the activity you’ll have participants do. Then let participants experience the activity, perform, or do it.
Share
Ask questions about the activity and the experience after it’s completed. Participants describe the results and their reactions.
Ask youth:
- What did you do?
- What happened?
- How did it feel to...?
- What was the most difficult? Easiest?
Process
Ask questions about what was important about the experience. Youth analyze the experience and reflect upon the results.
Ask youth:
- Why did that happen?
- What if you had......?
- What are some of the problems that you had with this activity?
- What was your favorite thing that you did? Why?
- Where have you ever done anything similar to this?
- If you do the activity again, what would you do differently?
Generalize
Apply the results back to real world examples. Ask questions to help youth connect the subject matter to life skills and the bigger world.
Ask youth:
- What did you learn through this activity?
- Why is that important to know?
- Why is it important to be able to do that?
- What did you learn about yourself through this activity?
- How does this activity relate to other things you do? At home? At school? In the community?
Apply
Help participants apply what they learned to their lives to give them opportunities to practice these new skills or use the new information.
Ask youth:
- What will you do next?
- How can you use what you learned in other situations?
- How will what you learned be helpful to you in the future?
- What will you do differently in the future as a result of what you learned in this activity?
4-H is a community of young people across America learning leadership, citizenship, and life skills.
Related Resources
I Pledge
my Head to clearer thinking
my Heart to greater loyalty
my Hands to larger service
my Health to better living,
for my club, my community, my country and my world.