All Together Now

Many school-age children participate in special interest programs like Tae Kwon Do, swimming, and other seasonal sports. Some children participate in music, language, or enhanced academic programs like Kumon. Programs like Lego robotics, dance, singing, cooking, art, reading, and science clubs are very popular.

Participation in special interest programs enhances the learning potential of the child. Often special interest programs create a life-long enjoyment of an activity. In school-age care, we create unique offerings within our programs. We call them clubs.

Children choose to participate in clubs if they are interested in a specific subject and want to know more. Clubs in school-age care follow similar themes or topics as fee-based programs. Clubs in school-age take the interests of the children and expand on the depth of the subject. Clubs help children gain more insight on a topic of interest. 

The club format in school-age care features a small group size for each activity and gives children the opportunity to explore a subject in a quiet, supportive environment. Small group work encourages a deep dive into the topic at hand. This type of learning creates confidence and purpose for the learner. It fuels the future expansion of learning by taking the fear out of not knowing.

Clubs offer specialized instruction on a topic and offer children an opportunity to use and learn about special tools and materials. Learning with new tools gives children the skills to be more creative in future work. 

Clubs are great for children with different learning styles since clubs focus on a specific topic of interest. Clubs appeal to different learning styles and preferred methods of work. With club offerings, there are many ways for children to take part and make all children feel welcome and challenged.

Clubs offer children with similar interests the opportunity to connect over common ground. Children in school-age programs who never play together can use a club as a connection point. In a club, children learn more about a topic they enjoy with someone they do not know. Being in the club encourages young children to work together and learn about each other. In a club, children share a common interest, build empathy and community.

These are a few of the benefits of clubs in school-age care. In our program, new clubs happen every three months, last eight weeks, and meet once or twice a week, depending on the club. They are an excellent supplement to a traditional school-age program. If you have not tried clubs in your program, give it a try and watch the children grow along the way.

What types of extracurricular programs do you offer for school-age children in your area?

Does your program offer a club format after school?