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!
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5 Ways to Use BOOST Cafe for Professional Development
We thought it was a good time to re-share about BOOST Cafe and how you can use it to BOOST your professional development! Since its launch, we have added some incredible new resources! Check out the FREE online learning opportunities Need resources to reconnect with yourself, look no further than the Virtual Calming Room Find FREE e-BOOST downloads to use with your staff, youth, and communities Make someone’s day and send them a BOOST E-Card Want to explore BOOST Cafe further, then fill ou...Read More
Evergreen Learning Principles for Afterschool Programs
The Learning in Afterschool & Summer (LIAS) project was designed to unify the field of afterschool and focus the movement on promoting young people’s learning. If afterschool programs are to achieve their full potential, they must be known as important places of learning that excite young people in the building of new skills, the discovery of new interests, and opportunities to achieve a sense of mastery. “We spend so much time focused on ‘achievement’ and so little time fo...Read More
Looking forward to the end of 2020, preparing for what comes next
Personally, I feel drained by this year’s unpredictability and chaos. I have struggled to balance being present, preparing for what happens next, and not getting lost in too many “what ifs.” Professionally, it’s not much different. With so many urgent daily needs to take care of, it can be hard to make space to think about what will be needed in 2021 and beyond. So recently I did an experiment: I scheduled 1 hour in my day to pause and reflect on the needs of students and families, as well as th...Read More
In this Time of Crisis, Afterschool Gives Me Hope
California, and the nation as a whole, are in the midst of multiple and intersecting crises—the public health crisis of COVID-19, the resulting economic crisis, and a long-standing crisis of injustice and systemic oppression of Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC). When I think of the children and communities who are suffering the most as a result of these crises, I get consumed with questions. What will happen to kids this summer? When will they be able to come back to school? How wil...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
All The Single Moms
What did I have for breakfast today? I think I finished the kids’ Honey Nut Cheerios and must have downed some coffee. I can’t recall though, because I am losing my mind. My wife has been out of town on a work trip for two weeks and I am trying to hold down the fort as a single dad. I am running a zone defense and I am privileged enough to have the support of a part-time nanny… and still, I am getting crushed. This experience reminds me, once again, how much I appreciate all the Single Mom...Read More
Generosity In Afterschool
In August of this year, the staff I am a part of had three days of professional development and planning for the upcoming school year. During this time together, we participated in an activity called My One Word. Each individual picked one word that would help guide his or her personal and professional life for the 2019-2020 school year. The word I chose for this year is “Intentional.” Great word and a great idea, right? Well, I am now only two months into being intentional about all I do and I ...Read More
A Holistic Approach To Helping Traumatized Kids, Adults, and Communities
I’m a voracious consumer of news. Each morning or lunch break, I set aside time to read headlines, scan news tickers, and flag the day’s trending developments on social media. Later in the day, I pick a few headlines or bookmarked videos, and dig into the details. When I have time, I read across news sources – traditional pieces, independent sources, and opinion bloggers – to provide more nuance to my understanding and sort out the general zeitgeist on the news of the day. Honestly, I think the ...Read More
Litmus Test Your Program’s Magic
The best organizations keep a constant eye on program improvement. Walt Disney once said, ”The real trouble with the world is that too many people grow up.” I believe that is also the trouble with a lot of well-intended organizations with incredible mission statements and passionate staff who work with children on a day-to-day basis, but get caught up in that controversial catch-phrase commonly known as, “adulting.” I’ve been guilty of it. We all get busy. Papers need to be filed, grants need to...Read More
You Shouldn’t Play With Your Food, But You Should Play With Your Data!
I’ve worked with many expanded learning programs in many settings over the years, making me one of the luckier researchers out there. Too often, though, I see program staff dedicating a lot of time and effort to collecting data, and almost none to learning from it. What a bummer. One reason why data goes in, but doesn’t come back out, is because teams have too few experiences with exploratory, low stakes, playful explorations of their data. Instead, data is used in a last-minute rush to get the ...Read More