The cold winter months have given way to moderate temperatures over the last few weeks. Children and staff want to get outside, to run around, play games, and get some sun and muddy shoes. While we take in the warmer days, we know summer is not far away, fall remains off in the distance. Just […]
Read More
The recent changes to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policies have raised some questions and concerns in our communities. Some of these changes to the Department of Homeland Security policies may affect child care centers but it is also important to recognize that we can continue to rely on our constitutional rights and […]
Read More
People talk about spring as a time of renewal, early spring flowers poke sprouts through the thawing ground. Days get a little longer and, after months of playing board games and basketball in the gym, going outside is finally more than a 10 minute option. While the winter season allows for more and varied small […]
Read More
As the mid-winter approaches, and the February cold starts to set in we are reminded of spreadsheets and budget projections for the coming year. Out-of-school time programs large and small need balanced budgets that both maintain what is necessary, and at the same time foster innovation and growth in programming. Resoundingly, Afterschool Professionals have risen […]
Read More
The term unsung heroes is commonly used when referring to afterschool professionals. A workforce that shows up everyday from 3:00 – 6:00, sometimes later. It is often a job that requires you to think on your feet, come up with a project using only cardboard, some tape, markers, and imagination. We stay in the field […]
Read More
The out-of-school time field (also known as after school, school-age childcare, enrichment, etc.) has a long history, starting in the late 1800’s in response to the Industrial Revolution in order to help give youth a place away from their work in factories as labor laws changed. Few in the field are aware of the rich […]
Read More
The holidays have passed and the cold bleak of mid-winter is setting in. Staffing has stabilized for the most part and you are busy working on the new staff schedules to coincide with the changes that may have been made. January is a good time to reset. To rethink how the first half of the […]
Read More
As program leaders we have all been there. The rush of registration is over, the program is settling in, things are going smoothly, and you finally have a minute before the next wave of holiday parties and supplies are needed. Take a breath, you made it past Halloween and are on the way to Thanksgiving […]
Read More
Being a leader often means that you are the one that everyone sees as the organizer and planner of events. As we all know, it takes a team to pull off any large scale event or production. I remember when we used to do winter plays and each site would be responsible for something (props, […]
Read More
By now, mid-October afterschool programs are moving along at a good pace. Children and staff know established routines, relationships have been formed, and we are rapidly moving toward the holiday season. This is a time to bring together the community, create connections and opportunities beyond the program, and recognize the place your program has within […]
Read More
