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 views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company. Enjoy the brain food.

The BOOST Breakfast Club Blog is Brain Food for In and Out-of-School Time Leaders!

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5 Move and Groove Breaks for the New Year

Are you ready to add some movement and joy to your trainings and meetings this year? If so, this short article is for you. As programming and conferences have shifted to virtual formats, many of us are spending a lot more time in front of our screens. In the digital world, it can be extra challenging to feel connected and engaged. So, how can we create impactful learning experiences while also working towards daily physical activity goals? Add a “move and groove” physical activity break to your ...Read More

Self-Care Ideas: Give 1/Get 8 Reboot!

Keeping children at the center of our work means taking care of ourselves. Last year I wrote an article for the BOOST Breakfast Club Blog called Self-Care Ideas: Give 1/Get 8. The idea was to crowdsource ideas from a few educator friends to learn more about the daily self-care practices that help them stay resilient. For this post, I’m excited to share a reboot of that article featuring 7 more friends and their answers to the questions in CASEL’s Give 1/Get 8 worksheet. I hope their ideas inspir...Read More

5 Stress Management Techniques for Educators

The impact of yoga and mindfulness for children has become a topic of research and discussion. The findings in many studies are that yoga supports children with focus, concentration, self-regulation, and coping with stress. Children and adolescents are faced with more stressors than ever before such as the pressures of standardized tests, social relationships and peer pressures, less time for physical activity, more time in front of technology devices (which can agitate the nervous system), and ...Read More

Coping When COVID-19 Comes Home

In February, I started following the news coverage of the wide-spreading coronavirus. Blown away by images of people in China, wearing surgical masks, I did not think this could happen to us, here, in America. I was in denial. And I let denial shield me from my fear of this fatal virus traveling to the US and impacting our lives. As much as I wanted to live in denial, deep in my subconscious, I knew it was only a matter of time before the universe said, “Tag, you’re it.” Now th...Read More

Encourage Staff Well-Being: 3 Things to Try This Week

I recently spoke at the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) Conference alongside partners from the National Summer Learning Association, Afterschool Alliance, and Grow Appalachia. A common theme of our 3 workshops was the interconnectedness of physical health and social-emotional health to promote overall well-being. While at the NRPA Conference, we released an exciting new brief, Afterschool: Fostering Protective Factors that Can Last a Lifetime. The resource emphasizes the importan...Read More

The Science and Art of Helping Kids Love Physical Activity

Creating a physical activity program for grade schoolers that engages all children involved is both a science and an art.  The science of child development, motivational psychology, and human behavior help us create an enriching program. The art of creating a fun, play-like, inclusive environment gets all kids excited to participate. Using imaginative, play-based activities to introduce critical developmental skills is a perfect culmination of the art and science behind getting kids to enjoy bec...Read More

9 Necessary Tips For Managing Stress In An Uncertain World

Seventeen years ago, at the age of 22 years, I walked out of a store in Philadelphia with a small black rectangular electronic device with a built-in antenna and 12 numerical buttons that gave me immediate access to the world at my fingertips. I remember calling my parents in Cleveland as I walked down Walnut street, proudly announcing my first step into the world of accessibility thanks to technology. I remember the sheer excitement I felt, holding a piece of the world in my hand, the incredibl...Read More

STEM and Wellness: Colliding Galaxies

My fellow BOOST Breakfast Club blogger, Erika Petrelli of The Leadership Program recently wrote an article that explored the “beauty of galaxies colliding.” My inner Galileo loves the thought of swirling stars and as partnership director for a national children’s health nonprofit, social justice movements working together to accelerate and grow is even more thrilling. For galaxies to collide and movements to join forces, there has to be space. A recent Harvard Business Review article, The Benefi...Read More

Taking Stock of and Improving Your Program’s Food

Having made it through the hectic beginning of the new school year, now is a great time to take a fresh look at the food served in your afterschool program. Food is an important part of any afterschool program, helping to draw in children and to ensure that they are not hungry and can fully benefit from the activities being offered. Is your program providing fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats and low fat milk? For the millions of children who live in homes struggling to put food on ...Read More

Summer Nutrition Programs: Ending Childhood Hunger

Ending childhood hunger, especially during the summer, has been the defining focus of my work for the past few years. At the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), I’ve worked with my team to chart participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs. These programs—the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP)—are designed to replace the school breakfasts and lunches on which low-income children and their families rely during the school year, keeping hunge...Read More

Food as a Foundation for Global Understanding

Asia Society and BOOST Collaborative are partnering to create a series of blogs on global learning in out-of-school time.  This blog entry was orginally published on EdWeek’s Global Learning Blog.  This entry is written by Heather Loewecke, Senior Program Manager, Afterschool and Youth Leadership Initiatives, Asia Society. In this entry she outlines some ideas for incorporating food and cooking into classrooms and afterschool programs. Visit Asia Society’s website for the full list o...Read More

Leveraging Wellness to Help Children Think Global and Act Local

Although the facts are alarming, conveying the importance of wellness to children can be challenging. Childhood obesity has almost tripled in children and adolescents in the past 30 years and today approximately one out of three children and adolescents in the United States is overweight or obese. Even more alarming, there are significant racial and ethnic disparities in obesity prevalence among U.S. children and adolescents. Research shows a strong link between a young person’s practice o...Read More

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