Unit (city/county), District, State
Age categories are as follows, as of 09/30/2026:
Juniors (ages 9-11)
Intermediates (ages 12-13)
Seniors (ages 14-18)
In acts with multiple youth (max of 4) participating, the age category of the act is determined by the oldest participant. Please note that acts with mixed age groups will not be eligible for state competitions because only senior age members may compete at Congress and the entire act must go forward. Cloverbuds are not allowed to compete in judged acts as this is against state 4-H policy. Cloverbuds may perform at unit events where available, but as exhibition (non-judged) acts only and will earn a participation ribbon.
Share-the-Fun programs help encourage 4-H youth to display their talents in expressive arts and develop presentation skills and confidence performing in front of an audience. Judges evaluate 4-H performers based on talent, audience response, creativity, showmanship, and use of costumes/props. The goal is to help 4-H Share-the-Fun participants develop their talents in a creative and constructive manner.
Combination: Any combination of vocal, instrumental, and/or dance
Dance: Includes tap, modern, acrobatic, ballet, jazz, folk, and interpretive forms of dance
Drama: Includes mime, monologue, or acting out a short skit or scene(s) from a play
Instrumental: May also sing or dance but judged solely on instrumental performance
Variety: Includes clowning, gymnastics/tumbling, magic acts, or puppetry
Vocal: Singing which may include dance or instrument, but judged solely on vocal performance
There is a maximum number of four (4) youth allowed in any one Share-the-Fun act.
There is a maximum four (4) minute time limit. If exceeded, ten (10) points will be deducted from the final score.
Only 1 act per unit in each Share-the-Fun category may advance to the State competition
Competitors should dress appropriately for their act, including any costumes or props that add to their piece. This may not include any clothing items or props that could distract or be seen as offensive/inappropriate in nature.
Participants must compete with the same material at all levels of competition (i.e. same song/material, same contestant(s)). Acts may fine-tune their selections based on feedback from county and/or district judges. (For example, if a judge recommends adding hand movements to a vocal act, you can do that, but you cannot change the song at the next level of competition.) but changing the main performance is NOT allowed.
All live accompaniments must be part of the act and will be judged. Therefore, all accompanists must be age eligible and meet the competition criteria.
Music for any act must be provided by the contestant. A CD with a single track is preferred because it is the most compatible with show equipment. Contestants who cannot provide this type of media should check with the contest manager to see what other options are available, if any (iPod, MP3, etc.)
Contestants in the vocal category who are using musical accompaniment must provide an instrumental/karaoke version of the song, not one with the original artist’s vocals. This ensures that judges can adequately hear and evaluate the youth performer