Four of BGCA's best resources to help your Club or Youth Center programming staff to be successful in 2022.
4 Resources to Set Your Club Up For Success in 2022
2021 Year in Review
2021 is done! See what topped the list of the top 5 posts of the year here on the ClubX Blog.
Get Lucky (And Build Math Skills) With Dice Games!
A roundup of games and high-yield activities using dice to use with youth.
Supporting Youth When School Shootings Are In the News
Resources to help guide youth through tough conversations about school shootings, featuring Be There and others from BGCA
Club Stories: What We Are Thankful For in 2021
Because it's always good to hear the good, I recently asked Boys & Girls Club staff across the country what they are thankful for this year.
Five Ideas For Thanksgiving That Aren’t Handprint Turkeys
Thanksgiving is upon us! Find a mix of fun activities for throughout the Clubhouse and for multiple age groups.
Catch A Vibe With Tie Dye Activities!
Tie dye is back in fashion and allows for lots of creativity as a fun arts project with youth. See some of our favorite ideas in this link roundup!
Social Media’s Impact on Young Women: Understanding the Headlines
News about the impact of social media, particularly Instagram, on the mental health of young people has recently made headlines. But what does it really mean, and how does it impact our work in afterschool?
5 Ways to Use Canva Afterschool
The online design tool Canva is useful for a TON of projects in your afterschool program. Learn five of our favorites in this post!
Everything You Need to Start a Book Club With Youth
Book clubs afterschool are a great way for youth to build relationships with others and practice skills like critical thinking and reading fluency. Learn how to get started plus get picks for Hispanic & Latino Heritage Month.
How Should You Respond to Youth Behavior?
The three categories of youth behavior and ways afterschool professionals should respond, featuring BGCA's Behavioral Support Toolkit.
18 More Holidays and Events With Fun Activity Ideas
Eighteen holidays or historical events in September and October to spark fun and creative activity ideas afterschool.
Four New Stats That Should Make Us Think
Four new stats from the 2021 KIDS COUNT Data Book that can inform our work in out-of-school time, plus tools for putting that data into action.
Five Issues Teens Care About in 2021
Five topics that today's teens told us they care about and why, plus how afterschool can cultivate youth voice.
How MyFuture Fits Into Your Program Plans
MyFuture is the THE destination for high-quality activities and digital engagement, but how does it fit into your Club's programming? Learn how to structure a session with a MyFuture activity in this new post.
21 Holidays and Events With Fun Activity Ideas for the Summer
Twenty-one holidays or historical events in June, July, and August to spark fun and creative activity ideas afterschool.
Supporting Youth When Police Violence Is In the News
The high-profile violence against Black Americans during interactions with police continue to occur. Get resources to support the youth in your care, featuring the Passport to Manhood and NEW Smart Girls Growing Up Black Discussion Guides.
Five Things to Know About Military-Connected Youth in Your Club
Five things to keep in mind about military-connected youth, and ideas to meet some of their unique needs
How Can I Be An Advocate For Youth?
Four ways you can get involved in BGCA's national efforts and be a strong advocate for youth.
17 MORE Holidays and Events With Fun Activity Ideas
Seventeen holidays or historical events in March, April, and May to spark fun and creative activity ideas
Ideas for Women’s History Month
Activity and décor ideas you can use around the Club for Women's History Month
“The Hill We Climb”: Youth Voice Shining Bright
Video and text of the poem performed by the National Youth Poet Laureate at the Presidential Inauguration
Ideas for Black History Month
Ideas you can use around the Club for Black History Month
Maintaining Resilience When Democracy is Tested
Resources to help guide youth through tough conversations about the events at the Capitol on January 6, 2021
13 Holidays and Events to Spark FUN Activity Ideas
Thirteen holidays or historical events in January and February to spark fun and creative activity ideas
2020 Year In Review
A countdown of the top 5 new posts in 2020 on the ClubX Blog from Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Teens, Emotional Health, and What We Can Do
The latest research on teens and how they are coping with COVID-19 plus the new BGCA resource SMART Moves: Emotional Wellness Teen Expansion Pack that can help.
4 Resources to Set Your Club Up for Success in 2021
Four of BGCA's best resources to help your Club or Youth Center programming staff to be successful in 2021.
Club Stories: What We Are Thankful For in 2020
What Boys & Girls Club staff across the country are grateful for during this challenging yet rewarding year.
Fun and Easy Ideas for Brain Breaks
With so many young people still having school online, some Boys & Girls Clubs and Youth Centers are transformed into Learning Support Centers during the school day. But even for those who are still doing more traditional programming or for when COVID is OVER (speak it into existence!), having some ideas quick at hand for... Continue Reading →
Activities to Inspire Gratitude
Heading into the holiday season, especially with everything that has happened in 2020, I think it is a good time to reflect on what we are grateful for. And what better way to do that than alongside the youth we serve? The Ancient Roman statesman Cicero is quoted as saying Gratitude is not only the... Continue Reading →
How to Stay Non-Partisan When Talking About Elections With Youth
Tips on how to talk about elections and politics with young people without crossing ethical or legal lines.
Helpful Tips for Learning Support Centers
BGCA’s Director of Academic Success Lesa Sexton has TONS of great tips from your colleagues on Learning Support Centers! So your Club or Youth Center is now a Learning Support Center and you feel like your job description just went from “Site Director” to "Principal"? Not exactly sure how to navigate this new environment and set of responsibilities? https://giphy.com/gifs/shocked-what-stunned-doJrCO8kCAgNy It sure... Continue Reading →
4 Ways to Support Youth Who Learn Differently
BGCA's Chrissy Chen and Kat Adams partnered up to write this post, filled with interesting info, fascinating examples, and practical ideas! Let's dive in! Treating different things the same can generate as much inequality as treating the same things differently.Kimbleré Crenshaw I was recently stopped in my tracks by this quote from civil rights activist Kimberlé Crenshaw.... Continue Reading →
Halloween 2020
Halloween is one of the best times of years to be in afterschool. When this whole pandemic began, I don’t think many of us expected we would still be dealing with it after this long. But? Here we are. And? WE REFUSE TO LET IT STEAL THE SPIRIT OF HALLOWEEN! https://giphy.com/gifs/halloween-psychedelic-spooky-mBH9e8yz4oNIIq6X3D It is unfortunately true... Continue Reading →
It’s Election Season! Ideas for Teens, Youth, and More
The 2020 Election is inescapable, which means that it is also looming large in the lives of youth. Elections are a great opportunity to introduce young people to one of the most important and powerful rights we have as Americans, the right to vote. https://giphy.com/gifs/GoVote-vota-go-vote-l0MYP0xoNtuPTilhe It can be hard to navigate these discussions when the... Continue Reading →
Racial Trauma, Healing, and Youth Advocacy
The high-profile violence against Black Americans during interactions with police continue to occur. When it occurs in our local communities, youth may be directly impacted. Increasingly, the trauma has expanded across the country with social media and news coverage. Either way, part of our role as supportive youth development professionals is to help youth to... Continue Reading →
6 Emotional Wellness Practices You Can Use With Youth
Today's post is adapted from the Program Basics for COVID-19 resource. Emotional Safety and Wellness are always important, but provide unique challenges during this time. Emotional wellness relates to youth's ability to identify, communicate, and self-regulate their emotions. If youth do not feel emotionally safe, then they simply do not feel safe at all. Prioritizing... Continue Reading →
Active Games for Social Distancing
If you are reading this in the future, it is now July 2020, and we have been in a global pandemic for what feels like 18 years now. It's exhausting. Hopefully from your view in the future you are like "Hang in there, it's almost over and then all this great stuff happens!" But for... Continue Reading →
Four Low-Prep Ways to Celebrate Juneteenth
One of the results of the recent protests over racial injustice is a growing awareness of Juneteenth. In case you aren't familiar with Juneteenth, it marks the anniversary of June 19, 1865, when the last group of enslaved Texans learned that they were free - two months after the end of the Civil War and... Continue Reading →
Addressing Current Events
It is a difficult time in America right now. Following the killings of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia, Breonna Taylor in Kentucky, and George Floyd in Minnesota, on top of the national stress we are all feeling from the COVID pandemic, protests and demonstrations are occurring across the nation and social media is awash in horror... Continue Reading →
5 Podcasts You Can Learn From
I LOVE PODCASTS. My obsessive adoration is genuinely a thing I'm known for. I have a queue I'll never get through. I routinely make personalized recommendation lists for my friends. Two years ago at a National staff conference I even did an Ignite talk about them wearing a shirt I own that says 100% PODCASTS.... Continue Reading →
7 Things to Consider About Teens and Virtual Club
This post is part of our special series on the Coronavirus outbreak. One of the most common questions being asked about virtual programming right now is “What do I do with teens?” And there isn’t a simple answer. Teen programming has always been opt-in for many of our members, but that is true now more than ever. As you make your program plans,... Continue Reading →
Take Four Calm Breaths
This post is part of our special series on the Coronavirus outbreak and contains a free activity download from our partners at the Michael Phelps Foundation. At Boys & Girls Clubs, we have a LOT of famous friends. I mean, we have DENZEL in our speed dial. Another one of our friends is the most successful... Continue Reading →
Letting the Light In
This post is part of our special series on the Coronavirus outbreak. So I've been kind of putting off writing this post, because I know it is an important topic, and my blog buddy Kate said it was a great idea and I absolutely should write it, but I also feel a bit vulnerable and overwhelmed... Continue Reading →
Social Connecting While Social Distancing
This post is part of our special series on the Coronavirus outbreak. This whole thing is W I L D, y'all. I mean really, whoever is currently losing at Jumanji out there needs to CUT. IT. OUT. But until that happens, we are all social distancing together. For introverts like me, this feels a little... Continue Reading →
“Won’t You Be My Neighbor” Discussion Guide
So I recently suggested that if you have some time, you should watch the Mister Rogers documentary "Won't You Be My Neighbor." And then I said "haha lol wouldn't it be funny if I made a discussion guide for it LOLZ." Well, TURNS OUT I SUDDENLY HAVE A LOT OF TIME TO FILL. So I... Continue Reading →
6 Things to Do While Shut Down for Coronavirus
This post is part of our special series on the Coronavirus outbreak. WELP. Two weeks ago when we posted our Preventing the Spread of Viruses blog, little did we know what situation we would find ourselves in today. Boys & Girls Clubs, schools, and other youth-serving organizations across the country are closed, and not only are... Continue Reading →
9 Low-Cost Ways to Recognize Youth
A couple of weeks ago we posted a list of free ways to recognize youth, but sometimes you have a little bit of budget and you want to do something more out of the ordinary. While physical gifts and treats should not be the only way we do recognition (they shouldn't even really be the... Continue Reading →
3 Games Teens Love
BGCA sunset the Year of the Teen Director’s App to consolidate practices, tips, and all other content in the YD Toolbox app and here on the Club Experience Blog. We will be featuring some of the articles that appeared in the app here (with updates!), as well as content just for staff who work with... Continue Reading →
