Addressing COVID Isolation: Get Kids Moving! (Part 2)

Source: A World Fit For Kids

By Sam Piha

Research suggests that physical activity and outdoor education can help young people recover from isolation and fear experienced due to the COVID pandemic. In this blog, we continue with our interviews with youth development experts, Ed Center from The Village Well and Brad Lupien and Bob Lund from ARC Experience.

“Adolescents coming of age during the pandemic have experienced social “learning loss,” and will need remedial support in social, not just academic, development, …. And at a time when recess and physical education programs may feel a squeeze from schools seeking more time for reading or math, studies suggest boosting students’ physical activity time also has an important role. It may help students rebound from the social isolation many have experienced during the pandemic.” - Sarah D. Sparks, Kids Are Feeling Isolated. P.E. May Help Them Bounce Back

Q: What are some physical activities you would recommend for youth in afterschool? 

Ed- The most important thing is to offer a range of free or low-cost opportunities for different types of activity. I'm surprised that our culture still labels children as athletic or not based on just two factors: speed and coordination. If you can get to the ball first and do something cool with the ball, you are athletic. What about those who can run for miles, who find joy in the wilderness, who want to lean into their flexibility, who harbor hip-hop, half-pipe, or pirouette dreams? 

Generally, after school programs do a decent job of exposing kids to different activities to explore interests and passions. My criticism is that public schools and afterschool programs usually fail to take the next step, giving youth opportunities to pursue those passions through deep engagement and mastery. Our programs offer the six-week karate enrichment options, but how do we support the kid who finds a calling and wants to go further? We chose our local park and recreation after school program for our kindergarteners because of the diversity of the students, and because they practice tennis every day (shoutout to Tennis Learning Center in San Francisco).

Brad and Bob- The simplest way to get students moving is to have them play. Offering opportunities to play games that don’t just reward the tallest or strongest students will encourage more participation rather than limiting it to the best athletes. From an outdoor perspective, introducing students to new challenges and experiences in a low-risk, low-pressure environment allows us to meet students where they are. On the simplest end, a simple hike to a new destination gets kids out and moving (and away from their phones). If resources allow, geocaching, kayaking, bike riding and rock climbing are all wonderful ways to encourage students to push their own boundaries, to explore their communities and to build their self-confidence, along with their physical strength.

Source: www.pexels.com

Q: Are there any resources that afterschool leaders can use to develop physical activities for youth? Would you advise any training for staff and coaches?

Ed- The resources are already there in the community. The key is to provide program staff with time, flexible resources, and training in partnership development. Someone has a cousin who is passionate about West African dance and would love to bring that to the students. That person should be paid for their time and given a small budget for supplies or field trips. Let's stop the scarcity and tireless hustle mentality.

Brad and Bob- Many of us in education get caught up on the idea of having the right “gear” as the reason that we deliver boring physical activities, as if the equipment is what makes games fun. Many students are reluctant to try something new out of fear of failure, so training staff to encourage effort and participation, not just results is huge, as it builds an environment where all are welcome, not just the best athletes. Your staff can be your greatest asset in that they can leverage their existing relationships with students to get them to try something new and to push themselves—just a bit—out of their comfort zones. In that same vein, if staff are playing too, they will have more fun and you’ll see a sizeable increase in student participation as they can both more actively manage the game as well as provide behavioral role models for the activity.

MORE ABOUT...

Ed Center

Ed Center is a queer brown dad who coaches parents and other kid-raisers toward greater connection, calm, and joy. Ed worked in education for 25 years, starting as a high school teacher, always focused on the needs of kids of color. During the height of the pandemic, Ed’s son suffered an acute mental health crisis. Searching for support, Ed discovered the field of positive parenting and learned strategies and tools to strengthen his connection with his son, leading to healing for the whole family. However, Ed was frustrated with the lack of attention to diverse cultures and traditions in the positive parenting courses and literature, as well as a dearth of focus on healing trauma in children and parents. He started to bring more connection, joy, and healing to families of color. The child of a Filipino American mother and White-American father, Ed grew up in Hawai’i, and feels at home there, in the Philippines, in San Francisco, and wherever he smells good barbecue. The Village Well, which Ed founded, focuses on an approach to parenting that starts with your own wellness and healing and moves to building more connection and meaning with your family. They offer culturally grounded support that honors your unique family.

Brad Lupien

Brad Lupien is President & CEO of ARC Experience. His career began as a teacher and social worker in the juvenile justice system and as a special education teacher in Boston, MA. He taught middle and high school young people identified as having behavioral and emotional disabilities. To address his students’ multiple risks, Brad began an afterschool Outdoor Education Club for his gang-involved students. He modeled the method after his experience serving as a summer guide for teens, leading month-long adventures in the Rocky Mountains. Previous board roles include Interfaith Family, Learning in After School & Summer (LIAS) Region 11 Workforce Advisory Group, the youth Take Action Campaign, San Diego Education Synergy Project. Lupien is a team member of the Policy Committee for California Expanded Learning Division (EXLD) of the California Department of Education and a Steering Committee member of the California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance (CA3). Lupien was recently appointed by California Senator Pro Tem Toni Atkins to the Governor’s California Before- and After-School Advisory Board.

Bob Lund

Bob Lund is the Director of Outdoor Education Programs at ARC Experience. Growing up in Long Beach, Bob was fortunate to have had many opportunities to appreciate the outdoors from an early age. Because of his family’s frequent camping and off-roading trips as a child, he was well suited for taking on a variety of staff roles at summer camp including high adventure, aquatics, and in camp administration. His natural leadership abilities and affinity for outdoor adventures drew him to join the Boy Scouts at a young age and he achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in 2001. Bob spent his career working with high schoolers with special needs and delivering exceptional enrichment programs to students of all abilities throughout the Pacific Southwest.

ARC Experience is an award-winning, nationally recognized organization running afterschool and experiential education programs for the past 20 years in communities throughout California. They provide afterschool, outdoor, enrichment, and leadership development to elementary, middle, and high school students as well as college students and professionals.

UPCOMING WEBINARS:

Do your children or students trigger you? Do you match anger with more anger? Or do you want to hide from conflict? When we face certain situations, our bodies react with fight/flight reactions. You CAN interrupt these reactions and replace them with productive responses. You can hold calm power, both inside and out.

This webinar will dive into the habits, tools, and techniques that help both you and your kiddos stay regulated. We’ll cover:

• Your reactivity profile,
• Closing the stress cycle,
• Regulation techniques for kids and grown-ups,
• Mindfulness for the fidgety,
• Personal wellness plans,
• What to do when the sh*t hits the fan

To learn more and register, click here.

Play comes natural to kids and to out-of-school time educators! Research across youth development and education fields have identified principles that define playful learning and the positive youth outcomes that can come from intentional play. In this webinar, we will explore this topic and learn about free resources you can use to incorporate high-quality playful learning opportunities into your programs and how to advocate for more play in the lives of children. To learn more and register, click here.

Addressing COVID Isolation: Get Kids Moving! (Part 1)

Source: A World Fit for Kids

By Sam Piha

Many youth who returned to school this year were socially isolated due to the pandemic. While schools are concerned with academic learning loss, schools need to understand that young people may be fearful and anxious. How can we help? Get kids moving!

During the COVID shutdowns young people had few opportunities for exercise and playing with friends. 

Research suggests that physical activity can help young people recover from isolation experienced due to the COVID pandemic. Research also suggests that physical activity in nature can help young people recover from the isolation and fear experienced due to the COVID pandemic. To learn more, check out our LIAS Blogs on Play and Nature.

Source: Girls Inc.

“Our results suggest for those students that are returning to school and that were socially isolated ,” Enrique Pérez-Cardona, a professor, and the chairman of the education department at the University of Puerto Rico said. “The school has to be prepared and define a good physical education program, so those children can try to release those negative effects of isolation.” - Sarah D. Sparks, Kids Are Feeling Isolated. P.E. May Help Them Bounce Back 

“At a time when recess and physical education programs may feel a squeeze from schools seeking more time for reading or math, studies suggest boosting students’ physical activity time also has an important role. It may help students rebound from the social isolation many have experienced during the pandemic.” – Sarah D. Sparks, Kids Are Feeling Isolated. P.E. May Help Them Bounce Back 

To learn more, we interviewed three youth development experts: Ed Center from The Village Well and Brad Lupien and Bob Lund from ARC Experience. You can find a complete bio for these experts at the end of Part 2 of this blog.

Q: Research suggests that physical activity can help young people recover from isolation experienced due to the COVID pandemic. Do you believe this is true?

Ed- This is key in a biological and a sociological way. Stress itself is not a bad thing. Stressful events are part of life and can help us build assets and resiliency. Stress becomes toxic when we are unable to complete stress cycles, meaning that our fight-flight systems kick in with adrenaline and cortisol, but we don't move through them into safety, resolution, and calmness. 

The simplest way to complete a stress cycle is to move. A brisk walk is great, dancing is phenomenal, soccer is transformative. Physiologically, this metabolizes the stress hormones and brings us back to equilibrium. The social components of physical activity are equally important. Young people connect through physical play, whether through organized sports, dance, or skipping stones across an urban lake. 

Source: NHP Foundation

Every teacher and afterschool leader reports that we've seen a delay in social skills over the last three years. Outdoor play, supported by nurturing adults, offers a perfect environment for kids to build these skills and form the connections with peers and adults that are the hallmark of positive youth development.

Brad and Bob- Absolutely. We are seeing that, in addition to learning loss and socialization issues caused by the COVID pandemic, many of our students have seen downgrades in their physical fitness. Getting outside and moving around, especially with a group of friends, allows many of our students to not only improve their physical health, but also their mental health and feelings of connectedness as well.

Q: Research also suggests that physical activity in nature can help young people recover from isolation and fear experienced due to the COVID pandemic. Do you believe this is true?  

Brad and Bob- Outdoor education is a great way to experience the world around them while affording opportunities to socialize in a safe manner. When properly done, guided physical activity in the outdoors has a litany of benefits, including building community and trust with peers, reducing feelings of isolation as well as providing opportunities for self-control and to demonstrate grit.

Q: There is pressure for afterschool programs to divert their resources away from things like physical activities and outdoor ed to address academic learning loss. What are your thoughts on this?

Ed- Yes, we have a learning loss crisis and need to address that. What perpetuates that crisis? In large part, we have a mental health services gap, a connection gap, and a lingering malaise for black and brown youth whose families bore the brunt of pandemic sickness, death, and economic difficulty. My son goes to a tony private school. Are they freaking out about learning loss? No. They are giving themselves years to help their students catch up, in the meantime they continue to emphasize field trips, experiential learning, service learning, sports, dances, and social activities. Let's stop quantifying poor kids as numbers that need to be improved and start creating rich learning experiences to prepare them for life. These experiences include connection, wonder, play, and movement.

Brad and Bob- We’ve all heard the saying “what gets measured gets done” and this is often all too true in K-12 education. Unfortunately, this has meant a shift towards standardized testing and numerical evaluation of our students and those numbers—which get measured very precisely—become the focus rather than on building whole, well rounded individuals. 

Physical activity and exercise are important parts of the human experience, even if they aren’t as easily quantifiable as a math test. Programs that encourage students to move and play provide a wealth of positive results, including improving student’s mental health, and can provide a force multiplier effect, increasing the student’s performance in the other parts of their school day.

TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 2.

UPCOMING WEBINARS:

Do your children or students trigger you? Do you match anger with more anger? Or do you want to hide from conflict? When we face certain situations, our bodies react with fight/flight reactions. You CAN interrupt these reactions and replace them with productive responses. You can hold calm power, both inside and out.

This webinar will dive into the habits, tools, and techniques that help both you and your kiddos stay regulated. We’ll cover:

• Your reactivity profile,
• Closing the stress cycle,
• Regulation techniques for kids and grown-ups,
• Mindfulness for the fidgety,
• Personal wellness plans,
• What to do when the sh*t hits the fan

To learn more and register, click here.

Play comes natural to kids and to out-of-school time educators! Research across youth development and education fields have identified principles that define playful learning and the positive youth outcomes that can come from intentional play. In this webinar, we will explore this topic and learn about free resources you can use to incorporate high-quality playful learning opportunities into your programs and how to advocate for more play in the lives of children. To learn more and register, click here.

Civic Engagement and Activism in Afterschool Programs: The Benefits of Youth Participation

Source: www.playcaptains.com

By Sam Piha

We are continuing to post a series of blogs to inform and encourage expanded learning programs to start today infusing civic engagement and activism in their afterschool program. NOTE: There are many program resources on the topic, some of which are detailed in our paper, Youth Civic Engagement and Activism in Expanded Learning Programs. You can view blogs from this series here. We also conducted a webinar on this topic which can be viewed here.

In this blog we discuss the benefits of youth participation in civic engagement and activism activities. 

Research and experience tell us that involving young people in civic engagement and activism activities brings benefits to youth participants. Some of these are detailed below. Benefits are also accrued by the organizational partners and the larger community, as well as adult program staff. 

Now I’m very confident in myself. I know that I can make changes. Sometimes I used to think that our lives were kind of pointless. And now, it’s like, you can make real changes. Now it’s the school and maybe in my career and my adult life, I could actually do something with a lot of determination and will.”  – Rosalinda, 12th grader 

Benefits of Civic Engagement and Activism for Youth Participants

• Helps them make new friends and contacts and increases their social and relationship skills
• Helps them build social capital
• Increases self-confidence and promotes a positive sense of agency and empowerment
• Combats depression and helps them stay physically healthy
• Supports healing from trauma
• Provides a sanctuary
• Opportunities to serve others and give back to the community
• Prepares them for leadership roles
• Opens their minds to new ideas and people
• Fuels passion and purpose
• Teaches collaboration
• Brings fun and fulfillment to their lives
• The happiness effect: Helping others kindles happiness, as many studies have demonstrated
• Learn valuable job skills and can offer career experience
• Increases connection to the community
• More likely to remain civically engaged as adults

Contributing provides adolescents the experiences they need to complete the key tasks of this life stage: building autonomy, identity, and intimacy. Making meaningful contributions to others allows adolescents to see that they can have a positive effect on the world, giving them the confidence necessary to build autonomy and agency. When their contributions are recognized, young people come to understand their place and value in the world, developing their sense of identity. Having the opportunity to provide meaningful social support to friends and family builds the intimacy they’ll need to form positive, long-lasting relationships in adulthood.” - Meghan Lynch Forder, What Teens Gain When They Contribute to Their Social Groups

Source: Greater Good Science Center

In economically distressed communities who are the targets of structural racism, we have seen how youth benefit from the opportunity to reflect critically on the world — to ask questions and denaturalize what feels like “normal” by visiting neighboring communities and imagine radical futures and the opportunity to generate solutions through policies or public narratives. These experiences contribute to a sense of agency and belonging that prepares young people to navigate the world with confidence and critical analysis; in some cases it can also offer a context for “healing” that involves personal and social transformation.” – Dr. Ben Kirshner, University of Colorado, Boulder (from an interview published in Youth Civic Engagement and Activism in Expanded Learning Programs).

WHAT PROGRAM LEADERS SAY ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF YOUTH CIVIC ENGAGEMENT:

“They gain job experience, something to put on their resume, and they learn how to and create a resume. They report feeling that they can make a difference in the lives of children in their own neighborhood as well as in other neighborhoods other than their own. They broaden/deepen their social capital. They benefit from caring relationships with adults and other teens.” - Rebecca Fabiano, Fab Youth Philly

“Students build social capital, a valuable skillset they can apply in virtually any career and in civic life, a highly-attractive college, career, and civic portfolio, opportunities to collaborate vs. compete with their peers and opportunities to effect the change they want to see in the world.” - Rachel Belin, Kentucky Student Voice Team

“Youth empowerment and a sense of engagement at all levels. Youth gain a sense of self in the larger world and political environment. They gain a sense of being a part of the system with the ability to affect vs being passive members of a community where things happen to them.” - Brad Lupien, Arc Experience

“Youth have an understanding of the country’s democratic process and understand how to navigate the barriers to participation. Youth are able to form their own opinions and political ideology. Leadership skills like public speaking and collaboration are key to success in the program. Lastly, it is essential for youth to walk away with the experience of creating community with youth of different backgrounds and identity.” - Jenifer Hughes, YMCA of San Francisco

“The concrete skills youth develop through the project-based approach we use have different types of real- world applications. They learn to conduct hands-on research like site visits, interviews, and surveys. They learn to think critically about why disparities persist and are challenged to do innovative problem solving. They become more comfortable with public speaking and with speaking to legislators and other stakeholders. Many students do go on to major in political science, join civic-oriented clubs on campus, pursue careers in politics, etc. But I’ve seen that even students who go on to do things in other fields report that what they learned here has prepared them for the “real world” in more ways than one.” - Laura Jankstrom, YOUTHACTION NYC

“4-H empowers youth to practice and recognize the importance of civic and social responsibility by strengthening their leadership and citizenship skills. It prepares them for life, inspiring them to be invested, informed and accountable for generating the change they want to see in the world—and to create their own success in the future. 4-H participants are four times more likely to actively contribute to their communities and two times more likely to get better grades in school.” - Rebecca Kelley, J.D., 4-H 

Civic Engagement and Activism in Afterschool Programs: The Importance of Program Staff

By Sam Piha

We are continuing to post a series of blogs to inform and encourage expanded learning programs to start today infusing civic engagement and activism in their afterschool program. NOTE: There are many program resources on the topic, some of which are detailed in our paper, Youth Civic Engagement and Activism in Expanded Learning Programs. You can view previous blogs from this series here. We also conducted a webinar on this topic which can be viewed here.

In this blog, we discuss things to think about when preparing adult program staff to lead civic engagement and activism activities.  

Hiring - We know that the effectiveness and quality of youth program activities rests on the competency of the adult leaders that we hire. What traits are we looking for in adults that will lead youth civic engagement and activism activities? 

In numerous studies, the most highly rated characteristics of effective initiatives all involved characteristics of adults who: 1) relate well to youths; 2) care about young people; 3) are honest and comfortable in talking about issues; 4) are sufficiently trained to implement the program; 5) support and understand the program's goals; and 6) have a good overall understanding of adolescent development. Another important dimension is to seek out adult advisors and youth coordinators who reflect the diversity of the community. Equally important, young people need to see adults exchanging ideas, collaborating and having fun with people from different backgrounds.” - Wendy Schaetzel Lesko, Maximum Youth Involvement: The Complete Gameplan for Community Action

Staff Training - How necessary is it to prepare and train the staff? According to Youth On Board, “Adults need help learning how to collaborate with young people just as much as youths need help adjusting to their transformed role. Even though we all were young once, it is easy to forget. What a difference a few decades make in widening the proverbial generation gap! Adultism workshops by such groups as Youth On Board are designed to confront negative stereotypes and unspoken fears about teens. Trainings need to permeate the institution from the boardroom on down. Broader diversity training for staff, board members, youth staff and/or volunteers can be another worthwhile investment—especially if sessions go beyond the issue of age to include socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, regional background, family history, personality type, etc.”

Staff support for civic engagement and youth activism will look different across different kinds of organizations. Some, for example, are multigenerational political organizations where adults work alongside youth in apprenticeship-type relationships. In these settings, adults should be prepared for a cycle of modeling, coaching, and fading: this involves sharing strategies with youth while also listening and learning from young people as partners in social change. In organizations that are more apolitical or refrain from explicit political activisms, staff should be prepared to facilitate youth decision-making and planning; moreover, staff should not be afraid of situations where youth may “fail” in their campaigns - there is lots to learn from setbacks.” – Dr. Ben Kirshner, University of Colorado, Boulder (From an interview published in Youth Civic Engagement and Activism in Expanded Learning Programs).

We asked some program leaders for advice on preparing staff to lead youth civic engagement and activism activities. Below are some of their responses. 

“RYSE hosts three separate week-long staff development sessions annually, in addition to multiple training opportunities provided for all staff throughout the year. Training includes, but is not limited to: restorative justice, non-violent communication, adolescent brain development, lobbying rules for non-profits, gender justice, and more. RYSE leverages our partnerships with Power California Alliance and the YO! California Network, for additional training and capacity building support covering youth organizing, campaigns and integrated civic/voter engagement.” – Jamileh Ebrahimi, Youth Organizing Director, RYSE Youth Center

“Staff co-participate in Teens Advocating for Civic Engagement (TACA) and the California School-Age Consortium (CALSAC) events to gain experience and receive professional development specific to civic engagement.” - Brad Lupien, Arc Experience

“We train teens ages 15-19 in playful learning, facilitation, leadership, and other workplace skills for them to play and lead games with children on the Play Streets, at playgrounds and in early childcare centers throughout Philadelphia. Adults receive approximately 60-80 hours of preemployment training, including data collection training facilitated by Temple Infant & Child Play Lab.”- Rebecca Fabiano, FAB Youth Philly

“4-H developed several program guides to support adult leaders:

• True Leaders: Culture, Power, & Justice is designed to engage youth in critical dialogue and collective action in order to contribute to a more empathetic and just society. This is a Facilitator Guide intended for use with youth in Grades 6-12. Youth have an incredible opportunity to see the world as bigger than themselves. This curriculum offers dynamic opportunities for youth to explore their identities, different cultures, new perspectives, and the histories that have shaped power and privilege within our communities. 
• Citizenship Adventure Curriculum is designed to engage youth in changing a piece of the public world, discovering the possibilities of democratic citizenship and building a commitment to taking action in new and exciting ways.” – Rebecca Kelley, 4-H

REMINDER! Giving Tuesday is tomorrow and The How Kids Learn Foundation is inviting you to participate. Whether you can give $5 or $5000, your gift will get HKLF closer to their goal to continue their work in 2022! To learn more and donate, click here.

Civic Engagement and Activism in Afterschool Programs: Challenges and Tips

Source: 4-H

By Sam Piha

We are continuing to post a series of blogs to inform and encourage expanded learning programs to start today infusing civic engagement and activism in their afterschool program. NOTE: There are many program resources on the topic, some of which are detailed in our paper, Youth Civic Engagement and Activism in Expanded Learning Programs. You can view previous blogs from this series here. We also conducted a webinar on this topic which can be viewed here.

In this blog, we hear from afterschool program leaders on the challenges they face when offering civic engagement and activism activities and share some tips to consider. 

Challenges Encountered – School districts are conservative when it comes to "lobbying", so we have to educate the local education agencies on the difference between lobbying and civic engagement. And encourage them to think more broadly.

Tips - Look for programs and processes that work and make sure to do professional development with line staff who are the kid magnets. They need to re-learn civics too! Look for programs that already exist and join in before trying to start something on your own. - Brad Lupien, ARC Experience

Challenges Encountered - Among the challenges are ensuring our team internally replicates the equitable and just practices we want to see in our schools, ensuring as few barriers as possible to participation. Other challenges include managing our real-world activities when our members are expected to be sitting in a classroom--and not navigating their communities--for most of the typical workday. And yet another challenge, (among many) is that while our work is highly collaborative in nature, the culture of most schools that our students are exposed to are highly competitive in nature. And because we define leadership as the ability to bring others along with you, our leaders (who serve without formal titles) are often overlooked by their own schools as accomplished assets. - Rachel Belin, Kentucky Student Voice Team

Challenges Encountered - These students are busy and have their time scheduled out with extracurricular activities and work. We had to limit how long our meetings were. There was so much more we wanted to do with them in this first year and couldn't cover it all. We'll make meetings short and more frequent next year.

Tips - We had two remarkable college students involved in the design of the program, and they were the direct contacts for the teams to connect and progress in their projects. That was a huge factor in this program's success. The college students had been in afterschool programs just a year prior, and their fresh perspectives were really valuable. - Julie Groll, ASAP Connect

Challenges Encountered - Staffing this year was a MAJOR challenge, for both adults and teens; inconsistent number of children that come out to the playground and playstreets make it hard for the teens to stay motivated; the heat can also decrease motivation. Fundraising can be a challenge because many see this as an expensive program. The program itself doesn't cost a ton and many things can be donated or can get sponsorship (like their uniforms/t-shirts); what does cost the most is the salaries. This is a workforce development program, so we invest in people. We have low staff/youth ratios, we pay above minimum wage, aiming to get our TEENS to $15/hr. within the next 3-5 years. They are currently paid $9/hr. and adult staff starts at $15-20/hr.

Tips - Plan, plan, plan and then be prepared to throw all of those plans out the window. This project relies on many partners and large systems, the more of those you have to interact with the more you have to rely on them. So, deadlines often get pushed, information often comes late, and so we end up grinding the two weeks before the teens start for training because finally all of the information we’ve been waiting on since MAY, comes through. Once the teens start training and then are on the Play Streets, just lean into it and have fun! - Rebecca Fabiano, FAB Youth Philly

To help others interested in this initiative, they published Play Captain Initiative: Start- Up and How- To Guide.  

Challenges Encountered - Youth conflicts can arise when there are passionate differences in opinions. It takes time to be thoughtful in setting up difficult conversations or lesson plans and activities. Many of the topics we cover center around identity and in recent years, we have seen responses to differences in our government and media to escalate into anger and violence. We have to help guide youth to see different ways to engage with someone they feel is acting in attack or dismissive.

Tips - Setting up a foundation of safety and support can provide intentional mechanisms for conflict resolution between youth. Provide as much space for youth to take on leadership roles and design programming. - Jenifer Hughes, Youth & Government, YMCA of San Francisco

Challenges Encountered - Black youth, particularly boys, are very underrepresented in our program and other programs like it. We need to figure out how to bring more young people to the table so that we are building leaders in every community.

Tips - Incorporating meaningful civic engagement opportunities into youth programming is so easy to do! The mechanisms for young people to engage with their elected leaders are the same for adults. Have them create a presentation for their community board, testify at a public hearing, call or write to their elected leaders, create a petition...these are such great projects for young people to do together and you can do so much related skill building as you go through the projects: public speaking, debate, consensus building, media literacy, etc. - Laura Jankstrom, YouthAction NYC

Challenges Encountered - Our expertise is in youth development and science education. Participants would benefit from more collaboration with experts in government and community organizing.

Tips - Youth seem to thrive when there is a clear purpose and overall framework in which they can make choices about what they are most excited to do and how they wish to do it. They are very creative -- give them the space and support to achieve their goals. - Laura Herszenhorn, California Academy of Sciences

We are hosting a webinar/ Speaker’s Forum on Wednesday, November 17, 2021 from 10:00am- 12:00pm (PST) entitled, Afterschool as a Teacher Pathway. The purpose of this webinar is to inform and encourage OST leaders on how best to develop/join and promote an afterschool to teacher pathway. It is our intention to capture and share valuable and intriguing ideas from educational and OST leaders. To learn more and register, click the banner below.

We have also released a new briefing paper on this topic, which can be viewed and downloaded here.

Throughout the month of November, we'll be promoting The How Kids Learn Foundation Giving Tuesday fundraiser. Why donate to The How Kids Learn Foundation? Because, since their launch, they’ve contributed so much to the afterschool field, including over 38 Speaker’s Forums; 82 educational videos, attracting 33,400+ views; 38 briefing papers and over 480 blog posts attracting 716,000+ views. Help HKLF continue their work in 2022. To learn more and donate, click here.