Successful after-school programs can be creative, smart, interactive and spontaneous to the parents / children’s wishes, desires, wants and needs, providing effective leadership to the group.

What marks a successful after-school program? What are the things that you should look for when enrolling your child into one such program? Other than the distinct advantage of learning something new, successful programs incorporate many things that help the development of the child.

Development of social skills is one of the more important objectives of a good after school program. In a recent survey, parents indicated that while they do want their children to respect others, they also wanted them to imbibe skills like getting along with other children and getting used to children outside the immediate circle of friends. Many children find it difficult to make new friends and get along with people outside their group.

Good after school programs place particular emphasis on security and safety.

They keep children out of trouble and keep them safe. A good after-school program should be fun, especially when the children are young. If the activity is fun, you will not have to worry about keeping him interested or motivated. To be effective, programs should be organized and structured. They must also suit the age of the child. The child must be aware of the purpose of the program and must be convinced that they are attending the plans to accomplish something.

The Learning environment

There is often a trap in words ‘after school activities’. One may easily believe that since these activities are after school, they are not of much importance. But, one couldn’t be more wrong. Research suggests that children pick up some of their most important skills from after school programs. That is why children who do not participate in any extra curricular activities are generally slow and less vibrant.

The learning environment that one fosters in after-school activities must be as disciplined and as functional as that found in the school. This is especially true of educational after-school programs. This is the best place to teach the child essential skills like time-management and goal setting. Time-management is a vital skill, but it is not achieved easily.

Children need to feel the discipline that is required in order to finish a task and the happiness of completing the allotted work in a specific time frame.

Children look for different things in an after the class program. The learning environment should be attractive, colorful and informative. Use charts, pictures, posters, and drawings to liven up a class. Additional resources (resources that are not readily available in the school) will make the classes interesting. For instance, when teaching a biology lesson, allow the child to see through a microscope or see slides of bacteria. This will add to his knowledge and also make him more enthusiastic about his after-school program.

Discipline is a must in after-school activities. In fun or sport-based activities, it is easy for children to step out of line and wreck havoc.

While children should be allowed to have fun, they should be curtailed from unacceptable behavior. The best way to enforce discipline is to lay down the rules at the very beginning. Let the children know what is unacceptable, right at the beginning.

Rewards are an essential part of any learning process. The award can be a simple pat on the back or a token of appreciation. Motivate your children to aspire for higher things by rewarding their achievements. Holding competitions or sports activities where the children can show their proficiency is a reward in itself.

Children can get bored quickly, especially in the case of an educational program. The main thrust of an academic program is to repeat what has been taught in class and to allow the child to learn it quickly. It is difficult to pique the child’s interest a second time, especially when the child is already tired of one dose of the same lesson. It is best to thwart boredom by using creative techniques like an impromptu extempore on any topic, a quiz program or a slideshow.

After school activities are becoming more popular by the day. Parents want their kids to learn more. Children too have an insatiable quest for knowledge. In an after-school program, it is possible to pay individual attention and quench this thirst using various effective techniques.

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