Presentation Guidelines: Interior Design and Home Space
Purpose/Objectives:
To acquire knowledge of energy efficiency and conservation techniques.
To help people understand how energy is used in their homes.
To demonstrate ways to improve health, safety, comfort, and durability of the home.
To develop necessary skills in making home improvements.
To acquire knowledge of design and art principles and materials involved in making the home more attractive and convenient at a minimum cost.
To create an awareness on the benefits of recycling, and improve water, land and air quality by properly disposing of waste materials.
Gain knowledge about the contaminants which can threaten our residential drinking water and methods to correct.
Gain knowledge of home water treatments.
Gain knowledge of home septic systems.
To develop self-confidence and public speaking skills.
Eligibility: Individuals or teams may compete.
9-10 - 4-H'er must be 9 years old prior to January 1 of the current year and not have reached their eleventh burthday before January 1 of the current year.
11-13 - 4-H'er must be eleven years old prior to January 1 of the current year and not have reached their fourteenth birthday before January 1 of the current year.
14-18 - 4-H'er must be fourteen years of age prior to January 1 of the current year, and not have reached their nineteenth birthday before January 1 of the current year.
Presentation Ideas:
Limited Living Space
Closet make-overs that expand storage space (using inexpensive storage devices, replanning the way space is used, adding rods and shelves for specialized storage)
Storage ideas for special areas such as kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms, family rooms (open storage, inexpensive shelves, decorative containers, do-it-yourself projects, furniture pieces)
Little storage ideas that can make a big impact (baskets, decorative containers, plastic dividers, hooks, etc.)
Using color to make a small room look larger
Using color to separate areas in a house
Make one room work like two
House design with smaller areas of living space
Space that is adaptable as family needs or lifestyle changes
Furniture arrangement to make a small room look larger
Small-space decorating ideas - to make little rooms look bigger
Window hang-ups - new, inexpensive window treatments; how to update window treatments
Develop outdoor living areas (decks and patios) that expand living space
The Healthy, Safe House
Residential indoor air quality (identifying air pollutants)
Radon in NC homes (is it a problem, how to test, how to control)
Household cleaners and chemicals - making a home audit, how to use and store them safely
Mildew of furnishings, walls, in closets-how to remove and control
Moisture problems and prevention inside the house
Moisture problems and prevention outside, under, and around the house
Ways to improve ventilation in the home
Ceiling fans to help you feel cooler in summer, warmer in winter
Picking the right house paint
Exterior paint pointers (brushes, when to paint, etc.)
Decks and patios need special treatment (types of wood, waterproofing)
Home improvement and maintenance jobs in and around the house
Home cleaning and care
Simple home repairs
Housing "facelifts" or inexpensive ways to change the exterior of a home through color/trim/accents
Making a small house look larger with color
Shutters, window boxes, trim can change the appearance of your home
Energy-efficient and decorative lighting
Lighting and color can give a room a new look
Residential Water Conservation and Water Quality
Ways to save (conserve) water in your home-big and small
Installing water-saving devices (low-volume shower head or faucet aerators)
"Tuning Up" the toilet to save water
Making a water use/conservation home audit
Stop water waste by fixing leaking faucets and toilets
Insulating the water heater to save hot water use and energy
Water heater watch-draining sediment, setting back thermostat, wrapping with insulation
Home water treatments
Residential drinking water contaminants and methods to correct
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Tips
Walk-through energy audit
Home insulation-new materials and methods
Building a new energy efficient home
Storm Windows in the house (new "shrink film'' storms, rigid plastic, inside-mounted units)
How to make a storm window
Draft dodgers-a decorative way to improve comfort
Caulk for comfort-types, tools, selection, use' application
Weatherstripping-new types, where to install, how to measure and apply
"Smart" windows-double-glazing, low-e windows, frames with thermal breaks
Window treatments that can be decorative and have insulating benefits
Home furnishings and energy saving
Summer shading to reduce high cooling costs (awnings, screens, overhand, natural materials, louvers, window films, shutters)
Use of load management programs to save on energy costs
Special utility programs that help save heating and cooling dollars apply
Alternative Energy Application
Passive and active solar systems
Growing with the sun-greenhouses (passive solar system)
A window greenhouse-Warming up a room in a small way
Furnishing a sun space
Solar water heating (active solar system)
Solar hot water systems
Have a solar home (projects for existing homes)
How a house plan can be designed to use the sun
Decorating a solar home
Fireplace accessories that improve energy efficiency
Energy efficient home designs
Alternative heating appliances
Waste Management
Recycling-Are you buying the package or the product
Enviroshopping-The importance of packaging and how to select packages that have the least waste
Waste reduction-How to reduce the trash in your home by decision-making, recycling
Planning a recycling center for the home-location, how to store the recyclable materials
Household hazardous waste-How to recognize, how to manage, and how to reduce in the home
Accessible Housing
Physical disabilities which may require adjustments in a home
Making a house accessible and most important areas
How to design an exterior ramp
Make doorways accessible to people who use wheelchairs, walkers, or need assistance
Re-arrange or re-organize a kitchen for someone with a mobile disability
Adapting a house for a person who has limited or no hearing
Low-cost accessible aids for any home
User-friendly furnishings for an accessible house
Re-arranging furniture to aid a blind person, a person who uses a walker, someone in a wheelchair
How to make steps safer for everyone
These areas will have to be simplified for some age groups and may require your assistance to "translate" into a workable presentation. An example would be "making a house accessible." The younger 4-H'er could talk about low-cost, accessible aids for any home such as tools that would help reach things on high shelves. He/she might include information on the three major disabilities (physical, visual, audio) and how they may affect other family members. The middle 4-H'er might develop a presentation that looks at stair or step safety. He/she could show several things which could be done to stairs to improve safety, or he/she could talk about the need for ramps, where they should be placed, how they should be designed. The advanced 4-H'er cold discuss the ADA and its implications for businesses and residences, ways to evaluate the needs of people in home county or community, and how citizens could impact public policy decisions.
Resources: Topics selected from these areas are supported by such materials as:
Reference materials from housing and furnishings in-service training
Extension publications, bulletins, and visual resources
The 4-H Energy Notebook house in every county center
Water conservation and quality materials (Blue thumb packet sent to all county centers each spring)
Water quality and waste management information found in Water Quality and Waste
Management Notebook
Water Quality Home Page on the web
Healthy Indoor Air Quality for America's Home Curriculum (1997)
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences Resource Manual - Housing and House Furnishings section (a copy in each county - 1996).
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences homepage - Housing
Rules/Regulations:
The demonstration must be no more than 12 minutes in length.
Each participant must furnish all his/her own supplies and equipment.
Score sheet is the standard 4-H Presentation score sheet.
Have a neat appearance. No special costuming required.
Types and usefulness of visual aids is determined by the type of presentation. No extra credit is allowed for "professional" visuals.
Speak loudly, clearly, and not too fast! Try to talk to your audience like you would to family or friends, rather than just reciting from memory.
If you use posters, don't put too much information on them, use large letters and just show main points or key words.
Use an outline, posters or props to guide you through the presentation, instead of reading a script.
Look at your audience as much as possible, smile, and have fun!
Judging:
Judges will watch the presentation, ask the presenter a question or two, then fill out the standard judge's score sheet. Once the division winners have been announced the judges will provide some positive, constructive, verbal feedback to the participants about their presentations.
After Congress the score sheets will be mailed to the assisting 4-H agent so they can go over the scores and comments with the 4-H'er to help them improve their presentation skills.
Awards:
District awards: One $50 scholarship to NC 4-H Congress. State awards: $25 award for each division winner.
Return to 4-H Presentation Guidelines 
