Breakfast Club Blog
The BOOST Breakfast Club Blog is a curated space where bloggers from around the world contribute content on a continual basis about a variety of topics relevant to in and out-of-school time. The BOOST Breakfast Club blog is at the heart of an ongoing dialogue where expanded learning and education professionals share their personal thoughts and stories from the in and out-of-school time field. They also tell us what they ate for breakfast!
The BOOST Breakfast Club Blog is Brain Food for In and Out-of-School Time Leaders!
Interested in becoming a blogger? Email [email protected]
Click here to Register for a free account or click here to Login to your existing account.
Building Strong Self-Esteem – Teaching Kids to be Their Own BFF
There’s nothing like best friends – They see the best in you, believe in you, and pick you up when you feel down. Wouldn’t it be great if your BFF was always with you? And wouldn’t it be great if our children’s BFF was always with them as well? Well that can happen, when you become your own BFF! Now this might sound a little silly but please hear me out. Teaching kids to become their own BFF is the secret behind strong self-esteem. The key is to teach them about the power of positive self-talk. ...Read More
Power of the Break – Reflections on the pandemic
Last winter I flew across the country to attend a health equity training with colleagues and, as I sometimes do when I travel, I carried a stone in my pocket that symbolizes for me balance, regulation, and interconnection – a reminder of seeking to join my head and heart space. The stone fit perfectly in the palm of my hand and felt smooth and solid there. After two full days of intense learning, reflecting, storytelling, and connecting, I debriefed and discussed with colleagues over dinne...Read More
Existential Crisis
“Feelings of loneliness and insignificance in the face of nature are common in existential crises.” This is the sentence I tracked when I Googled “My job is being disrupted.” I saw a picture of a man in a suit standing on a rock on the edge of an ocean. In this case, the ocean is not the force of nature that makes us feel insignificant. It’s each other. This virus that we may or may not be carrying inside us is a force of nature for which we have not prepared. People who work in the people busin...Read More
More Than Ever… Grace and Space
This post originally appeared on April 7, 2020 on the Wings & Whimsy Blog at The Leadership Program. Oh, it’s starting isn’t it? Our human need to examine and comment on how everyone else is “doing” this, and whether or not they are doing it “right.” This person is not worrying enough. This person is not experiencing it as deeply. This person is cleaning their closets… how dare they? This person is talking about transformation… what right do they have? This person doesn’t know anyone with th...Read More
Ubuntu: A person is a person through other people
There are many times in my life that I can think back to and attribute success solely to what I have done by myself, for myself, or for someone else, but accomplished just by me, alone. These are excellent moments for self-reflection and acknowledgment of individual accomplishment, and although individuals create many great things by themselves, we do not, for the most part, live as hermits, isolated from the rest of humanity. We live in families and in societies comprised of cities and towns, a...Read More
Going Inside: Lessons from Lockdown
This post originally appeared on LinkedIn on April 12, 2020. The past several weeks have unfolded like few of us could have imagined. While the COVID-19 pandemic is a collective global experience and stark reminder of our inextricable ties across humanity, I have also noticed us splintering into our own sources of stress and circumstance. The ways in which we come together and pull apart as a society is heightened now, leaving us much to learn and carry forth into the other side of this crisis. ...Read More
Supporting Young Creatives in a Time of Global Crisis
We have all shared this experience of navigating the impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Tough decisions were made to close schools and community facilities. Parents and educators are learning to operate in a new virtual space. Layoffs have been made. There is new federal and state legislation to help communities cope. Through this all, our communities have seen tremendous creation from young artists, theatre-makers, musicians, and dancers. Spoken word performances on social media and virtu...Read More
When OST Comes Home: What Happens, What Counts, and What Matters?
Both the evidence from the science of learning and common sense tell us that learning and development occur all the time. But typically, opportunities for learning and development are shared and spread over various spaces, places, and delivery modes in schools, community organizations, and families. But ten days ago, most of those places were abruptly shut down – schools were closed, OST programs shuttered, and parks were ordered emptied. Yet learning and development didn’t stop. Millions of fam...Read More
The Smartest Person in the Room
My candidate for President just suspended her campaign. I made my decision to vote for Senator Warren well before the first primary. She articulated her plans clearly and of all the candidates, her platform most closely aligned with my own political ideology. That’s how voters are supposed to make up their minds, right? In 2020, Democrats were offered a variety of options, but rather than making the right choice for themselves, voters appeared to be more afraid of making the wrong choice for Ame...Read More
In Praise of #Lovingdad
This blog was originally posted on the website Readsand.com and with permission from Breakfast Club Blogger, Marcus Struther. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ “I hope my son still kisses me when he’s 13!” These were the words said to me by a friend whose son was 2 at the time. I had just recently shared a story about my twin sons, who were about to turn 14 and currently being bullied at school because they kiss their dad. They we...Read More
What Is So Special About After School?
After 20+ years of working in after school, I have learned that there are many things that make after school special. Some might be apparent, but others might be less obvious. One go-to resource for me is information from the Afterschool Alliance, This is Afterschool, which reminds us of all of the benefits of after school. They sum it up in a few words. “Decades of research prove afterschool helps kids attend school more often, get better grades, and build foundational skills, like communicatio...Read More
Mindset: An After-School Legacy from Kobe Bryant
Kobe “Bean” Bryant was one of the youngest players to enter the National Basketball Association (NBA), at 18 years of age. He played 20 years for one of the greatest sports franchises in the history of professional sports, the Los Angeles Lakers. He was a five-time NBA World Champion, two-time Men’s Basketball Gold Medalist, twice the Most Valuable Player of the NBA Finals. He was voted the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2008. He became one of Nike’s greatest ambassadors, next only to...Read More