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Ideas, how-tos and news from Belonging Games: plug-and-play enrichment, funding, staffing, and what to do when the day changes.
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8 articles
Funding & programs21st CCLC enrichment: what the program funds, and what no-prep options exist
What the federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers program funds (academic enrichment plus a broad array of activities, including cultural and STEM programs), what it requires, and the no-prep enrichment options that fit.
· 8 min readRead
Staff & daily operationsAfter-school enrichment for substitute and new staff
Why a good activity falls apart in a substitute's hands, how to tell a training problem from a design problem, and what new or covering after-school staff need to run enrichment well on short notice.
· 8 min readRead
Funding & programsELO-P enrichment: what the program requires, and what no-prep options exist
What California's ELO-P requires of TK-6 after-school programs (nine-hour days, 30 intersession days, staff ratios, enrichment not instruction) and the no-prep enrichment options that fit those rules.
· 8 min readRead
Activity ideasNo-prep enrichment ideas for after-school staff
Twelve no-prep enrichment ideas for elementary after-school programs, sorted by what the room has: nothing, paper and pencils, or a projector. Each passes the five-minute readiness test.
· 7 min readRead
Funding & programsWhat after-school enrichment costs: vendor sessions, curriculum licenses, and a ready layer compared
Published prices for the three ways after-school programs pay for enrichment: outside-instructor vendors per child, curriculum licenses per school, and a ready layer per site. With worked examples.
· 6 min readRead
Staff & daily operationsWhat to do when the after-school plan falls through
A staff call-out, rain, a cancelled club, homework finishing early. What to do in the next ten minutes, why it keeps happening, and how a second layer of enrichment keeps those hours meaningful.
· 7 min readRead
Plug-and-play basicsWhat is plug-and-play enrichment for after-school programs?
Plug-and-play enrichment is enrichment your own staff can run with no planning, no prep, and no outside instructor. A clear definition, what it is not, and a five-minute test for any resource.
· 6 min readRead
Plug-and-play basicsYour enrichment vendors cover the hours you book. Belonging Games covers the hours you can't.
Enrichment vendors like Mad Science, Bricks 4 Kidz, LIFT Enrichment, and Play-Well bring an instructor for a scheduled block. Belonging Games is the plug-and-play layer your own staff run for every other hour. Strong programs use both.
· 4 min readRead
Make every after-school day a little more interesting.
Give your educators something wonderful to do with children, without adding more work to their day.