In this Newsletter:
Michigan After-School Collaborative Summer Summit
May 21, 2010
Kellogg Center, East Lansing
The Michigan After-school Collaborative (MAC) Summer Summit is for Michigan’s out-of-school time
community including teachers, on-site staff, administrators, child care providers, and parents. The goal of the Summit is to provide participants with a format to discuss current information regarding research studies, collaborative planning, teaching strategies, ideas and techniques, and to affirm the importance of establishing a rich, supportive environment and high-quality services for school-age children and youth, and their families, during the summer months. The Summit emphasizes the importance of integrating services through collaboration among out-of-school time programs, public schools, community agencies and families.
This year's General Session, Escape Adulthood: Living and Working with Less Stress and More Fun features keynote speaker Jason Kotecki, Author, Cartoonist and “The Champion of Childhood.”
Register Today.
Lights On Afterschool
Mark your calendars for the 11th annual Lights On Afterschool on October 21, 2010.
Submit artwork for the 2010 Lights On Afterschool poster. The deadline to submit your entry is May 15, 2010. For more information read the list of submission guidelines.
New Resources
Toolkit Available on After-School Apprenticeships for Teens
The Collaborative for Building After-School Systems (CBASS) has just completed an online toolkit for the After-School Apprenticeship Program (ASAP). ASAP is a national adaptation of the successful Chicago teen apprenticeship program After School Matters, which was created to allow high school students to explore a variety of career opportunities through training and paid work placements, and to help them develop skills that translate to the workplace.
CBASS developed the toolkit, which was informed by the experiences of Boston, New York City, and Providence, to disseminate effective strategies and lessons learned to support the adaptation of apprenticeship programs for high school youth across the country. Please find it on the CBASS website.
Partnerships for Learning Publication
The new report from the Harvard Family Research Project entitled "Promising Practices in Integrating School and Out-of-School Time Program Supports" aims to help school and Out of School Time (OST) program leaders, decision-makers, and funders, to understand and implement effective OST-school partnerships for learning. The report describes the benefits of these partnerships and presents research, strategies and examples of the different principles of OST-school partnerships.
Incorporating Technology Into Out-Of-School Time Programs
Technology and technologically-based learning environments are extending student learning beyond the conventional classroom. A new Child Trends brief, Incorporating Technology Into Out-Of-School Time Programs, draws on results from research and from practitioners' insights to outline the benefits, challenges, and strategies associated with using technology in out-of-school time programs. Among the uses of technology found to be especially beneficial in out-of-school programs:
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Computer-based reading intervention programs have been used to successfully supplement children's in-class reading and build comprehension.
- Program participants can use computer-based programs to follow developments over time, whether it is how plants are growing or how a community service project is progressing.
- Video technology can involve program participants in the exploration of their world through filmmaking, digital artwork, and online instruction.
The brief also provides additional resources for programs interested in incorporating technology into their activities and profiles a technology-based out-of-school time program.