BGCA’s Susan Ciavolino is back with this timely post on helping youth see that elections aren’t just one day, and that there are always ways to affect change in their communities.
Wow, that was quite an election season! According to the American Psychological Association , 69% of adults say that this election is an important cause of stress in their lives. And those behind all the ads and Youtube videos know that messages filled with fear are more effective than those filled with reasoned arguments. Our children and teens have been watching the grown ups and having their own feelings about all this. How can you help your Club members process the events of the last few months? And come out on the other side determined to make a difference? Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Listen without imposing your own feelings.
Let youth lead the discussion. What are they feeling? What are their questions? Who else might they want or need to talk with about this? Validate their feelings, and when youth disagree, create space for them to listen to one another. Consider a Venn Diagram activity, where youth discover where their ideas overlap, and focus on the topics they agree on.
And before you enter the space with youth, be sure to take care of yourself. What do you need in order to feel safe yourself and support kids? You will likely still be working through your own thoughts and feelings, but keep it youth-centered at the Club.
Learn new things!
History helps. Remember, this isn’t the first time of political turmoil in American history. Channel the uncertainty into learning how government works. What are the checks and balances designed into the system? Guide your members to ask questions then seek out the answers. We LOVE iCivics for this, but also consider inviting members from local civic action groups or even local government to speak to youth directly, and how what these officials do at the city, county, and state level impacts them and their families.
Find places to affect change locally.
If youth have specific issues they are passionate about, find a way to plug into local community organizing around it. Check out the Youth Leadership Impact Toolkit on BGCA.net for a wide variety of resources designed to support Club and Youth Center youth on their journey to become strong leaders and increase civic engagement, including Teens Take the Lead: A Guide to Service-Learning. Support youth as they work to hold local government leaders accountable to govern justly, including writing letters to the editor or community leaders with targeted, actionable requests. Keep track of those efforts so youth can remember what they’ve done.
The young people in our Clubs will be the leaders of the future. Let’s guide them into developing the skills and knowledge they need to lead, beginning now.
Check out Programming for Civic Engagement, a collection of BGCA resources and curated content to help youth better understand civics and their own role in government. And new on BGCA.net is the Youth Leadership Impact Toolkit. It’s a guide through all BGCA’s resources to build leadership skills and help youth develop a sense of responsibility and agency in their communities.
What are your favorite civics activities? How do your youth and teens engage with the local community? Comment below, on the BGCA Youth Development Facebook page, or email ClubXBlog@bgca.org.
