June 2, 2022

Y4Y now offers 22 online professional development (PD) courses and 11 microlearning Click & Go’s. Chances are, not even your masterful program director has had the opportunity to engage with all of them! But that doesn’t mean you have to leave any juicy knowledge on the table. You can divide and conquer! Follow these simple steps for breaking up Y4Y PD among your overachieving staff and getting together poolside or picnic style to share your wisdom with the class!

Step 1: Reconnaissance

Head to the Y4Y Learn page and the Click & Go page and check out all the choices. How many colleagues will participate? How many hours is each person willing and able to put into independent learning? How much time is in your program budget for PD hours for staff? Keep in mind that Click & Go’s are the shortest Y4Y learning opportunities, and some Y4Y courses are short “companions” to longer courses. Below is a cheat sheet on time investment. Those learning opportunities that are most relevant to frontline staff are in bold. So, who’ll choose which course or Click & Go?

Click & Go’s: About 1 Hour Each

Building a Positive Organizational Culture and Climate

Building Financial Literacy

Creating an Intentionally Designed Program

Developing a Needs Assessment

Developing and Implementing a Safety Plan

Digital Literacy

Health and Wellness: Partnering With the School Day

Implementing Your Program With Fidelity

Recruiting and Retaining High School Students

Structuring Successful Homework Help and Tutoring Sessions

Trauma-Informed Care

Companion Courses: 4-5 Hours Each

Citizen Science

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Human Resources

Stages of Child and Adolescent Development

Strategic Partnerships

Companion Courses: 6-8 Hours Each

Civic Learning and Engagement

Fiscal Management

Including Students With Disabilities

Student Voice and Choice

Full Courses: 7-10 Hours Each

Career Pathways for Students

Continuous Education Through 21^st CCLC Activities

Family Engagement

Financial Literacy

Introduction to 21^st CCLC

Literacy

Managing Your 21^st CCLC Program

Project-Based Learning

Social and Emotional Learning

STEAM

Summer Learning

Supporting English Learners

The Virtual Edge

Step 2: Plotting and Planning

Figure out a timeline and a “culminating PD event” that you can all get excited about. Give everyone plenty of time to finish their course or Click & Go, but not so much time that the comings and goings of their favorite reality TV diva push the learning out of precious brain space. The pool or picnic are just two ideas for ways to share what you learn. You also have virtual options, walking meetings, or backyard barbeques as possibilities.

Step 3: The Dreaded Homework

It’s human nature to dread the homework, but Y4Y has already figured that out and made courses interactive, colorful, and fun, so the dread is dead! To make everyone’s learning useful for others, have each person answer the following questions as they go. That way, they’ll be ready for the group share-out when it’s party time.

1. Summarize the Y4Y course or Click & Go in three sentences.
2. List three “who knew?!” moments — things that were brand-new to you!
3. List three “you better already know this!” moments — knowledge so foundational that a 21^st CCLC professional is in trouble without it!
4. Name three ways you plan to apply the knowledge you’ve gained.
5. Take a peek at the tools and trainings with your chosen course or Click & Go, and call out the ones you’d like to use in your program. Be sure to tell everyone why.
6. Give everyone an honest critique of the course or Click & Go — what you loved, what you didn’t, and what anyone who’s thinking of taking it themselves needs to know.

Be sure each person reads the questions in advance and has this homework in front of them as they go through the course or Click & Go so they can be thinking about their answers in real time.

Step 4: Print That Certificate, Baby!

Each course has two or three sections, and you can get a Y4Y certificate of completion for each section you finish, so don’t miss the opportunity to show the boss your hard work. Your state might even count it toward continuing education units! (Check with your program director or state coordinator.) Reminder: There are no Y4Y certificates for Click & Go’s. Wait! Should this be Step 1?

Step 4: It’s Nice to Share

At your scheduled event, take turns reporting on your learning. Be ready to answer questions, even silly ones like, “Would you date the avatar that hosted your course?” Have handouts of your responses, or make a plan to post on a shared webpage like SharePoint. And back to those overachievers: Decide which course you’ll take next! The world of Y4Y is your oyster, and you, friend, are a 21^st CCLC Magellan – have fun exploring!