Blog

November 17, 2022

Inviting key stakeholders to your 21^st CCLC program team helps you include diverse people and perspectives as you make important decisions about how to serve children and families. There’s another benefit as well: Having a strong team of advisors reduces stress at work by providing access to fresh ideas, expertise, and resources so you can reach your goals. Not sure how to build a strong team? Y4Y’s new Quality Program Quickstarter (QPQ) module, Building a Program Team, covers the basics, like identifying and recruiting the right team members, managing communications, and working together effectively. When people with a purpose unite to make a difference, energy goes up, stress levels go down, and the future looks brighter than ever!

Superheroes, Assemble!

This brand-new QPQ explains that having the right program team can help ensure that your program’s values are realized. It’s important to decide what focus or initiatives will be at the forefront of your program and what school-day staff (and other partners) can help. For example, if your program wants to improve family engagement, it makes sense to include one or two family members as well as community members who understand families’ needs and interests. The best way to master something is to practice it, so this QPQ has plenty of opportunities to practice various scenarios, double-check your knowledge, and test your understanding. There are ideas in this QPQ for various initiatives and stakeholders who can support each one, so take your pick!

The Perfect Match

Once you identify your program team, the next step is to assign roles to make your team as effective as possible. Think about it: You carefully selected a team of experts and advisors to make your program plans happen. The last thing you want to do is leave ’em hanging. They know their stuff, so take advantage of this by assigning roles that honor their experience and expertise and engage them in the decision-making process. (By the way, this is a good approach to use with your program staff as well!)

The Buy-In

It can be difficult to attract stakeholders, especially school-day leaders, who already have multiple commitments. However, there are ways to communicate to school-day leaders that you value their time and expertise, and that you believe their participation is integral to the success of your program — and students. The Building a Program Team QPQ will give you the skills to efficiently communicate your needs to your potential partners.

Once you have your team, keeping them effectively engaged will require some planning. You’ll get an in-depth look at how to prepare and host meetings, maintain ongoing interaction, and develop task timelines to minimize chaos and maximize productivity. Additionally, there are a variety of ways to communicate with your team, such as one-on-one meetings, emails, phone calls, and group meetings. The best communications plan is the one that fits your team.

Reaping the Rewards

With the right team, you can take your program to new heights. If you assemble a team of superheroes and tap into their specialized powers, you and your students will reap the rewards: more energy and ideas, culturally sensitive practices, an enriched learning environment, and less stress. Bonus: Your students will surely take notice, too!

November 17, 2022

“October” and “scary” go hand-in-hand, whether you’re talking about Halloween or horror movies. One thing that doesn’t have to be scary, though? Encouraging your students to create a mental health tool kit! This tool kit can equip your students with ways to manage stress and anxiety while also reminding them of daily habits that are essential to mental as well as physical health and well-being.

It’s the Journey, Not the Destination

Mental health among children and young adults is a growing concern for parents, and it has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in five adolescents ages 12-17 have experienced a major depressive episode, and seven in 10 parents agree that the pandemic has taken a toll on their child’s mental health. It’s important to teach your students that attaining and maintaining good mental health is an ongoing process. It’s seldom a smooth road; it’s more akin to a journey with a few stop signs, roadblocks, and detours. The good news is that with the right map, the road is drivable, and the journey is achievable! What would this “map” look like in real life? Let’s explore.

Getting Introspective

Start with these guiding questions to help students focus on their thoughts and feelings:

• Think of a time when you felt stressed or anxious.
• How did your body respond to this feeling? Maybe your heart rate increased, your mouth or throat became dry, or your hands felt clammy.
• Have you noticed certain events that cause you to feel this way? Perhaps it’s presenting to the class, meeting strangers, or taking an exam.

Once your students can pinpoint their feelings, symptoms, and potential triggers, it’s easier for them to handpick tools that can deescalate the situation. There are a multitude of ways to de-stress, and it can look different for everyone! Have your students try the following strategies:

• Breathe in, breathe out: Place one hand on your belly and one hand on your chest. Take a deep breath in for four counts. Then exhale slowly through the nose for four counts. Pay attention only to the rise and fall of your belly and chest.
• Music therapy: If you’re able to, listen to a song that makes you feel calm or happy. Many music streaming services have playlists specifically designed to curb anxiety.
• Muscle relaxation: Stress and anxiety often cause pain and tension in certain muscles, so tensing and releasing those muscles can provide relief. Try squeezing the muscles in your face, shoulders, hands, legs, and toes for 10 seconds at a time and then releasing, making sure to breathe through it. The goal is to pay extra attention to how loose your muscles feel after the exercise.

Can your students think of other exercises or strategies to alleviate stress? Ask for ideas, and try them out as a group! Students can decide individually which ones belong in their personal tool kits.

Supplementation Minimizes Frustration

Along with healthy exercises that can decrease feelings of stress and anxiety, arm your students with strategies they can use in their everyday lives to keep stress at bay. Engage students in an open conversation about things they already do to lessen stress, and also discuss activities and behaviors that might not be helpful. Here are some topics you may cover:

• Physical activity is a proven stress reliever. Need some ideas for incorporating it into your program? Y4Y’s Health and Wellness Click & Go can get the ball rolling — literally and figuratively!
• Do your students’ parents or guardians limit screentime (maybe to the student’s dismay)? Research shows that this can actually fight off anxiety symptoms over time, making it a perfect tool for students to include in their mental health tool kits. Express to your students that, while they may not love time away from their devices, it’s important to let their minds focus on other stimulating activities.
• Something as simple as combing your hair and brushing your teeth can be supplements in a mental health tool kit. Keeping up with your personal hygiene is a little reminder that you deserve attention and care!

I’ve Got the Power!

Let your students know that having a mental health tool kit packed with handpicked strategies that work for them is a powerful thing. It gives them the confidence and  know-how to regulate their own feelings and emotions. Model key strategies for your students. The next time you or your staff are feeling overwhelmed, doing something as simple as a breathing exercise can show your students that destressing doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s something that we can all benefit from, so why not start young?

November 17, 2022

The Little Laptop That Barely Could

Imagine a broken laptop. Maybe the charge doesn’t last very long. The screen is slowly dimming over time, and it glitches now and then. Sure, it might (barely) work, but if the laptop continues to be used in this condition, it will eventually stop working. What the laptop needs is a good repair. But a one-time fix will be temporary without proper care and maintenance from that point forward.

We humans aren’t machines, but we do have something in common with that little laptop: We may be able to operate if we’re tired or stressed, but it’s only a matter of time before we’re in desperate need of repair. The way to avoid this situation is to implement and maintain a healthy self-care routine.

Self-care is often confused with self-indulgence, but the truth is that taking care of yourself enables you to present the best version of yourself as you go about doing your work in the world. That’s why Y4Y’s newest Click & Go, Self-Care Matters, has tools and tips to help everyone in your program improve their well-being, work together harmoniously, and effectively serve youth.

War and (Hopefully) Peace

We get it — when your to-do list rivals a Tolstoy novel, self-care might be the last thing on your mind. But take heart: Self-care doesn’t demand hours of your time. There are strategies you can fit into your daily routine, like putting your phone in “do not disturb” mode after work hours or breathing deeply any time you feel yourself becoming frustrated or anxious. The Self-Care Matters Click & Go offers many suggestions. It also illustrates how to create an out-of-school time environment that prioritizes mindfulness for staff as well as students.

A Tale of Three Coworkers

The Click & Go includes four mini-podcasts that follow three coworkers as they embark on their journey to self-care. The podcast miniseries maps out a game plan for how to incorporate self-care into your program in ways that are both realistic and effective. The first podcast introduces the coworkers as feeling stressed and burned out — emotions that may seem familiar to you and your colleagues. At first, the three coworkers believe “self-care” is too frivolous and unattainable to integrate in their schedules, but they soon find how necessary it is. The miniseries is chock-full of practical tips and tricks. Experiment to find what works for you.

A Tool Kit Fit for Zen Royalty

What’s better than learning a few self-care tricks? Having an entire tool kit to share with your staff! The Self-Care Matters Click & Go has 10 customizable tools to help you and your staff with issues like learning healthy coping mechanisms, balancing self-care with care for others, developing healthy boundaries, and coming to terms with obstacles you simply cannot control. A staff that has the know-how to cope with stress and anxiety is one that can better support one another, stay on the job, and serve students and families. There’s a hidden bonus, too: As you and your colleagues practice, model, and teach self-care, your students become more likely to develop healthy habits of their own. Self-care isn’t selfish.

September 23, 2022

Y4Y is excited to introduce a new online professional development option for 21^st CCLCs. A Quality Program Quickstarter, or QPQ, is a self-paced learning module you can complete in about an hour. Each one highlights an essential practice for high-quality programs and includes a bundle of practical tools to take away and use. You can complete one module or all of them, in any order — and you can earn a certificate of completion for each one!

Keep reading to learn about four QPQ modules that are available right now. Find one that sparks your interest, sign into the Y4Y portal at y4y.ed.gov, and get professional development that fits your needs and your schedule. Here’s your menu of QPQ choices:

Building a Program Team

This module helps you consider who all your stakeholders are, how they’ll be represented on your team, and the different roles each can serve. Y4Y knows that sometimes this “jumping-off point” in 21^st CCLC programming can feel like arm-twisting, so Kathleen and her buddy, Michael, offer tips on identifying and recruiting the right people for an effective program team.

• Tip: Create a communications plan that includes meaningful orientation and regular, planned meetings in a setting that’s conducive to getting work done together. Transparency, a shared calendar, and attention to social components are smart strategies.
• Top reason to complete this module: By helping you keep team engagement top-of-mind, the hour or so you spend in Building a Program Team will help you assemble a diverse chorus of voices that will make your program sing.

Developing a Needs Assessment

This module walks you through the steps for conducting a comprehensive needs assessment that draws on a wealth of data. You’ll consider the purpose and benefits of conducting a needs assessment, strategies for an effective process, timing, and what types of data to include.

• Tip: An effective needs assessment offers valid evidence to help you identify pressing needs. That way, you can focus on what matters most. But don’t stop there! Go beyond identifying weaknesses to identify strengths as well, like highly engaged partners and families. This helps you use asset-based thinking (rather than deficit thinking) as your problem-solving lens.
• Top reason to complete this module: You’ll know how to develop a comprehensive needs assessment tailored to your program. Your findings will help you and your program team set priorities and determine next steps.

Community Asset Mapping

Are you looking for an effective way to identify, assess, and mobilize community resources to meet student needs and reach program goals? Community asset mapping may be the answer. This module guides you through the process and helps you uncover “hidden treasure” in your program’s own backyard.

• Tip: Use your program team to help you map potential assets like local businesses and nonprofits, experts, and school and family partners. Then use your needs assessment results, program goals, and other criteria (like cost and ease of use) to zero in on assets that are a good fit and can add value.
• Top reason to complete this module: You’ll learn an effective process for mapping available assets so that you don’t overlook hidden treasures like local expertise and nonprofit programs. You’ll also get tools and ideas to help you secure, engage, and respect program partners to ensure a sustainable program.

Intentional Activity Design

You can use the intentional activity design process to align your program’s activities with student needs and interests, program goals, and school-day learning.

• Tip: Use a variety of learning and engagement strategies like student choice, meaningful projects, experiential learning, field trips, social interactions, individual and group components, and makerspaces to design activities that delight students and help them discover new interests, skills, and strengths.
• Top reason to complete this module: You’ll be inspired to take a fresh look at your current approach to planning and designing program activities. Chances are, a few tweaks can yield big payoffs for you and your students.

Certificates? Yes, please!

As with Y4Y’s courses, completion of each QPQ module comes with the opportunity to download and print a certificate to demonstrate your professional growth and development. Of course, the results in your 21^st CCLC program will be an even greater demonstration of all you’ve gained!

September 23, 2022

There are some helpful takeaways from a report from the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) on 10 years of systemic social and emotional learning implementation in urban settings. Keep reading to learn about these findings and Y4Y resources that can help guide social and emotional learning in your supportive 21^st CCLC program now and in future program years. 

Prioritizing social-emotional learning (SEL) is key to building a joyful, resilient program environment. That’s because SEL skills help us identify and manage our emotions, express empathy, form meaningful relationships, and cope with stress. When we prioritize social-emotional well-being for both educators and students, we can foster a culture in which everyone is better equipped to reach their full potential. 

Building a Network of Support

As students return to school this fall, the social and emotional aspects are just as important as gathering school supplies, meeting the new teacher(s), and finding out what’s being offered for lunch. More than ever, SEL is a key ingredient in addressing the top concerns for schools and out-of-school time (OST) programs. That includes physical wellness, mental wellness, emotional well-being, and academic recovery. OST programs have a key role to play in this effort. As your program partners with schools and families, you can strengthen relationships and provide a network of support that includes trusted adults and enriching experiences.

These three Y4Y tools can help you shape the priorities of your group effort in implementing social-emotional programming:

• Introduction to Social and Emotional Learning
• Integrating Social and Emotional Learning
• Mapping Assets for Social and Emotional Learning

Providing Comprehensive Support for Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

The CASEL report mentioned above involved large, complex school systems in the country. Not only did these districts demonstrate it was possible to implement SEL systemically, but every district deepened and expanded SEL implementation from school to OST programs and families. CASEL identified four key elements that are necessary to comprehensively support quality SEL implementation throughout the system:

• Building foundational support and plan
• Strengthening adult SEL competencies and capacity
• Promoting SEL for students
• Reflecting on data for continuous improvement

The researchers examined how the districts they studied equipped themselves to sustain a commitment to SEL over the long term, even as the people and contexts within the district changed. CASEL identified six elements for sustaining SEL:

• Leaders model, cultivate, and elevate a shared vision for SEL.
• Core district priorities connect SEL to all departments and individuals, so everyone is invested.
• Schools have resources and pathways to guide SEL implementation, as well as room to innovate and customize SEL for their communities.
• SEL informs and shapes adult learning and staff culture and climate.
• Students, families, and communities are co-creators of the SEL vision, plans, and practices.
• External and internal communities of practice strengthen implementation.

These findings align with advice from Dr. Dave Pauneski, a senior behavioral scientist at Stanford University: “If we really want all students to leave school having developed certain academic, social, personal, and cultural capacities, we need to think really carefully about whether we as educators are creating the types of experiences that we know from research will help develop those capacities.”

Y4Y Resources Supporting SEL

These additional Y4Y resources can also support your efforts:

• Creating a Positive Learning Environment (Course)
• Drug and Alcohol Prevention Resources (Web page with links)
• Embedding Measurable Social and Emotional Learning in College and Career Readiness (Voices From the Field Interview/Podcast)
• Health and Wellness: Partnering With the School Day (Click & Go)
• Stages of Child and Adolescent Development (Course)
• Trauma-Informed Care (Click & Go)