Sitting here in my cubicle in Atlanta, I just had a flashback to programming at the Club on Valentine's Day. SO MUCH INSANITY AND SUGAR AND ENERGY AND AHHHHHHHH Holidays are always a fun time at the Club because youth are so excited about their amazing days at school and eager to keep having fun.... Continue Reading →
Welcome to 2019! Here on the ClubX Blog we LOVE holidays and awareness weeks and months. They are an easy way to ignite ideas for activities and special events, and help to keep things fresh. Special holidays are also good opportunities to highlight wonderful differences and bring diversity into programming. January is Braille Literacy Month,... Continue Reading →
2018! WHAT A YEAR! It has been a GREAT year for Boys & Girls Clubs across the Movement, and it has been an INCREDIBLE year for the ClubX Blog! This is our first full calendar year, and I've been so excited for all the support. So how did the year end up looking? I MADE... Continue Reading →
The end of the year is upon us, which is absolute insanity. I mean, this has been both the fastest year ever and the longest year ever, RIGHT? December at the Boys & Girls Club can be an intense month, with holiday events and gift-making for volunteers and donors and for many sites, full-day hours... Continue Reading →
We here on the Youth Development team at BGCA are SO EXCITED to be rolling out the brand new Program Basics suite! If you haven't heard, Program Basics is a collection of resources to support youth development professionals, program directors, and site directors in planning and delivering high-quality programming in their Clubs. We've partnered with... Continue Reading →
November is CHOCK-FULL of awareness campaigns, but one of them is of particular note for Boys & Girls Club staff. National Runaway Prevention Month is a good time (though it shouldn't be the only time!) to stop and learn about the issue of youth who run away from home, and how Clubs can play an... Continue Reading →
One of the most popular ClubX Blog posts is this one about a creative icebreaker challenge. Since I'm ALL ABOUT delivering what the people want, I went on the hunt for another great opening activity that would work in Boys & Girls Clubs. And GOOD NEWS! I found one! This engineering challenge called Can You Save... Continue Reading →
I recently came across this article about the fact that in just about every developed country, girls are reading more than boys. Some key points: Boys dedicate less than than girls to processing words, are more prone to skipping passages or entire sections, and frequently choose books beneath their reading levels. Girls are more likely to... Continue Reading →
November 13 is World Kindness Day! Kindness is one of the character traits that we all hope to cultivate in the youth we serve. But how do we teach kindness? Today on the ClubX Blog we've got a roundup of some of the best ideas for activity plans from around the web. This video is... Continue Reading →
We mark a lot of different occasions here at Boys & Girls Clubs of America, but in this humble blog's opinion, one stands above the rest- Native Heritage Month! Every November, BGCA's Native Services team puts together some amazing resources. It's a time of year to reflect on what indigenous heritage means and to share... Continue Reading →
Today I'm excited to be sharing one of my FAVORITE online resources that I used both as a middle school history teacher and in the Education room with my tweens and teens at the Club- iCivics. Since there is a ton of media coverage right now on civic engagement with the election right around the... Continue Reading →
We are all about the random fun celebrations here on the ClubX Blog, so when I saw National Color Day on the list, I couldn't resist. I reached out to Rebecca Brown, Director of Arts Programs here at BGCA, and we made a list of some of our favorite colorful activities that you can use... Continue Reading →
At Boys & Girls Clubs, one of our greatest strengths is being able to expose our members to all kinds of opportunities through creative programming. I had the opportunity to visit the Music Clubhouse at the A. Worley Brown Boys & Girls Club, part of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. (My first... Continue Reading →
When I shared the first two posts in our recent Party Ideas series (Easy Party Food Ideas That AREN’T Pizza and Activity Ideas for Parties INSTEAD of Food) with a group of Club professionals, they DELIVERED with even more great ideas! Even better, a lot of these ideas are on the healthier side of the food spectrum.... Continue Reading →
At my Club and in my former life as a classroom teacher, I was always looking for fun themes to help spark my creative flow. Once I had a theme in mind, I worked to adapt games or activities we were already going to do, or had done before, to the theme to keep things... Continue Reading →
We recently featured a post with easy party food ideas that AREN'T pizza, and it was a hit! Today the ClubX Blog is bringing you part two, which will give lots of activity ideas for parties or celebrations INSTEAD of food. As a reminder, these ideas aren't necessarily for big blow-out events. (You can get... Continue Reading →
WE MADE IT THROUGH ANOTHER SUMMERRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!! We did it, and our members had a great time. Now we are all back into the rhythm of the school year, which gives us time to breathe and to put all the extra energy we have into planning Club programming! (And also maybe our families and self care... Continue Reading →
Today's Club Story comes from Ericha Clary, Unit Director at Boys & Girls Clubs of the Colorado River's newest unit, Fort Mohave. Keen readers of the ClubX Blog will recognize that organization, as they've been featured on the blog TWICE already! (Here and here!) Before the start of summer 2018 here at our local Club... Continue Reading →
"To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens." In the United States, one of the best ways that we can be citizens is by exercising our right to vote. Unfortunately, younger adults, including Millennials and post-Millennials, are the least likely of all... Continue Reading →
One of the Five Key Elements for Positive Youth Development is recognition. We know that when staff acknowledge young people's innate strengths and talents, members feel validated and recognized. We can positively reinforce member's efforts and persistence through authentic gestures and words of praise, and celebrate their progress and successes. We can recognize youth for a... Continue Reading →
Bulletin 3 in the Promising Practices for Managing Club Staff bulletin series is finally here! If you haven't taken a look at these bulletins yet, you are in for A TREAT. They highlight Club promising staff management practices that help build a high-quality Club Experience, and are based on extensive research and so. many. phone... Continue Reading →
One of the greatest strengths of Boys & Girls Club staff is our creativity with unconventional and affordable materials. I know at my Club I was always thinking about how I could do the most with the least. As we are now in the downward slope of summer, stores will begin to clear out their... Continue Reading →
This past Spring, I facilitated BGCA's Club Director's Academy in San Antonio. It was a BLAST! (If you haven't been to a CDA yet, what are you doing with your life? Learn more on BGCA.net.) We cover so much great stuff in this three-day training, but there is one particular reflection activity I knew I... Continue Reading →
YAY SUMMER!!!!!!!!! Summer at the Club is one of the busiest and BEST times of year. The extra time means we can get really creative with programming and activities. It also means a PACKED daily schedule with no down time. Here on the ClubX Blog we understand that this season is a crazy (good!) one,... Continue Reading →
One of the categories we ask youth about on the NYOI is whether or not they feel a sense of belonging at their Club. When young people feel that they belong, they know that they are welcome, and they feel that they fit in and are accepted. There are many ways to encourage a sense... Continue Reading →
Something that comes up over and over is making sure that our Club spaces are clean, fresh, and beautifully designed. I know in my Club, we were required to change out our bulletin board displays and other decor several times a year. But I've found that public spaces, like hallways, offices, and bathrooms tend to... Continue Reading →
BREAKING NEWS!! The BGCA Youth Development team now has a Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/BGCAYouthDevelopment/ We will use this page to post all new Club Experience Blog posts, plus lots more from the Youth Development team at BGCA. That will include new resources and tools on BGCA.net, links to training opportunities, and exclusive giveaways! Why Facebook? We... Continue Reading →
We've brought back one of our OG programs- The Ultimate Journey! Read on to learn more and get a FREE sample download! One of BGCA's most valuable services to the Movement is the creation of programs and toolkits for Clubs to use throughout the year. We've got programs for academic success, athletics, health, arts, and... Continue Reading →
It is that time of year when we are planning parties and celebrations and end of the school year FUN (and real talk there may be some trying to hang on until summer starts happening too)! That makes it the perfect time to try out a new game that is SURE to be a hit... Continue Reading →
I've featured one of my favorite sites, Teaching Tolerance, on the ClubX Blog before. They are a project of The Southern Poverty Law Center, and they design training and resources for classroom educators. A lot of their stuff is easily and directly applicable to the Club context, including a great webinar they did last month.... Continue Reading →
Today's guest post comes from BGCA's Lauren Barineau, Senior Director of Youth Development, Health & Wellness. She is an expert in making sure our members are as healthy as they can be! Is Your Club HEPA-Tastic?? In recent years, more attention is being paid to healthy eating and physical activity among youth. At Boys &... Continue Reading →
I'm always looking for new activities and games to play with youth, and especially for ones that will make them stretch their logical thinking muscles and expose them to new ideas or cultures. Today's find from Multicultural Kids Blogs does ALL of those! Pong Hau K'i is a simple board game from China, and can... Continue Reading →
Most of our meetings here at BGCA start with icebreaker or community building activities, because we are YOUTH! DEVELOPMENT! PROFESSIONALS! 🙂 Last week, my colleague Danielle Narcisse started a design meeting off with this really fun way to get our creativity flowing. This activity is called The 30 Circles Challenge, and it is an icebreaker... Continue Reading →
A couple of weeks ago, I asked around to find out what Clubs did to celebrate the release of Black Panther. The answer is A LOT! I am thrilled to share my conversation with Lauren Avey, Unit Director from the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County about how her Club integrated meaningful programming with... Continue Reading →
Sláinte! St. Patrick's Day is just 'round the bend! We look for every opportunity to have fun while also learning at the Boys & Girls Club, so this festive holiday is the perfect time to plan some themed activities. Read on to find some great ideas to use throughout the Club. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/668854982132577802/ At this link,... Continue Reading →
Not long before I made the move from a local Club to BGCA, I started playing a game with my middle grades members that they LOVED. I adapted it from something I heard on a podcast and called it Dumb Debates. It is hilarious and ridiculous, but sneaks in the important skills of logical thinking,... Continue Reading →
Are you looking for an excuse to have FUN? Here's a list of 105 oddball holidays that you can incorporate into fun moments at your Club. Some of them are IDEAL for the Club space, such as March 15th's Absolutely Incredible Kid Day April 20th's Lookalike Day- dress like a friend September 19th's International Talk... Continue Reading →
When you get so many youth (and staff!) in one Club for several hours a day, there are going to be a lot of emotions that happen. And it is not always easy to navigate! Particularly when those emotions show up physically as tears. Unfortunately, we don't always have the best response to youth who... Continue Reading →
Last month, BGCA debuted the Promising Practices for Managing Club Staff bulletin series right here on the Club Experience Blog! Be sure and go back and read that first post, not just to get the hiring and onboarding bulletin, but also to find out a bit more about the development of the series. Today I... Continue Reading →
UPDATE to this post! Check out this Club Story to find out how one Club used Black Panther in their programming. I know I am in the MAJORITY here when I say that I am SO PUMPED FOR BLACK PANTHER!!!!!!!! It is going to be incredible. INCREDIBLE! I've already got my ticket. So I had... Continue Reading →
Ted Talks are short speeches given on various topics, and many of them are really great jumping off points for discussions with youth. We will share some of our favorites here on the Club Experience Blog. Today, I bring you one of the most popular Ted Talks, "How do you define yourself" by Lizzie Velasquez.... Continue Reading →
This game comes from the files of our very own Alise Dixon! It kicks the classic Club game of billiards up a notch and works in self-reflection on character traits. Good Character Pool Ages: 10-15 Equipment Needed: Pool table, ball, cues, 6 slips of paper, tape Group Size: 2 at a time As in standard... Continue Reading →
Today's Club Member Story comes from a young man who truly understands the power of the Club Experience, because he lived it. Read on to see how the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County inspired Christopher to fulfill his potential. When I was a kid, I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome,... Continue Reading →
The Annie E. Casey Foundation is an amazing nonprofit that is focused on creating research-backed resources to aid those who work with children at risk of poor educational, economic, social and health outcomes. One of their major projects is the Kids Count Data Center, which is a great tool to use if you need national... Continue Reading →
With the launch of Great Futures 2025 this year, BGCA is laser-focused on improving the Club Experience for our members. To support Clubs in doing this work, we have been working on a TON of resources, including the YD Toolbox app, trainings like the Club Directors Academy and Youth Development Institutes, and this blog. We've... Continue Reading →
Did you know that the YD Toolbox app has a BUILT IN COMMUNITY???? You can get to the YDT Community online or through the Social button on the home page of the YD Toolbox app, which looks like this: There are two separate forums right now, one for Supervisors and one for Youth Development Professionals, although... Continue Reading →
Looking for some new art for your program areas? One of my favorite websites, A Mighty Girl, has free printable posters celebrating pioneering women in Science. They are absolutely beautiful, and include NASA astronaut Mae Jemison, keynote speaker at BGCA's 2017 National Conference! A Mighty Girl not only links to the posters, but gives a... Continue Reading →
A new year is upon us! Time to start fresh and do all the things we know we should do. Like drink so much water, start running marathons, and eat broccoli at every meal. LOL SURE. One simple way we can hit the reset button is by refreshing our program spaces at the Club! This... Continue Reading →
2017 has been both the fastest and the SLOWEST year of all time. But it has been a GREAT year for Boys & Girls Clubs! In 2017 the Movement has grown and strengthened, and incredible things are happening in Clubs across the country. And this little 'ol blog began! The Club Experience Blog has been... Continue Reading →
Like everyone else right now, we at the Club Experience Blog (well, let's be honest this is 100% certified nerd Sarah speaking) have STAR WARS FEVER! https://giphy.com/gifs/cheezburger-dancing-star-wars-jd6TVgsph6w7e It is always fun when we can bring the things our members are loving in pop culture into our programming in creative ways, which is why I was... Continue Reading →
