4-H County Fair

Gouverneur/St. Lawrence County Fair

For a week in July or August each year, 4-H youth in St. Lawrence County have an opportunity to share and showcase the projects they've been working on, at the St. Lawrence County Fair. The public is invited to come and see what youth in this program are doing. Highlights of the Fair include: 4-H livestock shows, plant science projects, entomology displays, public presentations and more!

The most common area for youth to show off their exhibits is through the 4-H competitions. The animal competitions include: dairy cattle and showmanship, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, dogs, and cats. The project exhibits include areas such as communication and expressive arts, food and nutrition, fine arts and crafts, textiles and clothing, horticulture, etc. All 4-H exhibits are evaluated using the Danish Judging system. This means that each project or animal is judged according to a standard that rates its own merit rather than against another participants work. The standards are as follows:

Blue or Excellent: The workmanship shows little need for improvement.

Red or Good: The workmanship is satisfactory or average but there are definite areas for improvement.

White or Worthy: The workmanship slows that a worthy effort has been made and that the finished product is usable for the purpose intended; however, there is much need for improvement.

Judging should be an educational experience. It should teach standards of excellence and help youth set their own standards, and to motivate improvement by teaching where and how to make improvements.

Above all, it must be recognized that “the process is more important than the product.” Margaret Wylie

Last updated December 19, 2023