All children need a safe place to be after school with caring, responsible adults and engaging activities that connect each child to his/her school, family and community. One method to provide this is through an after school program. After school programs are any organized program which invites youth to participat after the traditional school day. Some programs are run by a primary school and some by externally funded non-profit or commercial organizations, such as a YMCA, Boys and Girls Club or even a faith-based program organized by a church. These after-school youth programs can occur inside a school building or elsewhere in the community, for instance at a community center, library, or church. After school programs are for children that are school age mainly focusing on the range of five years old to early teenagers. These programs take place in the afternoons of school days, thereby helping parents with childcare before they finish work.
Several factors energized the after-school movement. Parents demanded help in caring for their children during the period between the end of school and the time when parents arrived home from work. These demands grew as increasing numbers of caregivers entered the workforce, and large numbers of youth were left without adult supervision during the after-school hours. According to Apsler (2009), an estimated eight million children that are between the ages of 5 and 14 were often unsupervised after school. Current estimates that over two-thirds of school-age children did not have parental supervision after school.
According to Apsler (2009), this type of care requested by many parents reflected growing emphasis on academic performance and accountability, due in part to the No Child Left B...
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...en get to choose how, when, in what and with whom to be engaged, they are far more likely to enjoy themselves and behave cooperatively.
Works Cited
Afterschool Alliance. Retrieved July14th, 2011. http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/aboutUs.cfm
Apsler, R. (2009). After-school programs for adolescents: a review of evaluation research. Adolescence, 44(173), 1-19. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Carter, C., Meckes, L., Pritchard, L., Swensen, S., Wittman, P., & Velde, B. (2004). The Friendship Club: an after-school program for children with Asperger syndrome. Family & Community Health, 27(2), 143-150. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Center for Diease Control and Prevention. Sriving To Reduce Youth Volicen Everywhere. Retrieved July14th, 2011. http://www.safeyouth.gov/Pages/StryveError.aspx?oldUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Esafeyouth%2Egov%2Fscripts%2Ffacts%2Fafterschool%2Easp
Many of Federal Way's alternative high schools or high school programs are actually schools within the Federal Way Public School System. The city also has private schools, special education schools and religious schools but they are not designated as alternative schools. Students in Federal Way have many options when it comes to education.
First, those who suffer from Asperger’s tend to lack the basic social skills required in everyday life, such as hugging, communicating, or expressing their feelings. For example, in “The Curious Incident” Christopher hits people who touch him in an unwelcome manner. So when his father became angry with him, and he latched onto Christopher’s arm: “I don’t like when people grab me. And I don’t like being surprised either. So I hit
In the 1940’s two doctors in different countries observed children displaying similar behaviors and deficits. One of the doctors was Viennese pediatrician Dr. Hans Asperger and the other was a child psychiatrist named Leo Kanner. Dr. Kanner was the first of the two doctors to report his observations. What he described were behaviors similar to those seen in children with what we call Autistic disorder. The behaviors affected the children’s communication, social interaction and interests. Dr. Asperger later published an article discussing what he dubbed “Autistische Psychpathen im Kindesalter” which translates to “Autistic Psychopathy”. Although some behaviors overlapped, there were differences leading to the belief that these doctors were documenting two different disorders. The two most prevalent were the differences in motor and language abilities (Miller, Ozonoff). Another was Asperger’s belief that his patients were of normal or above average intelligence. It was not until 1994 that Asperger Syndrome was entered into the Diagnostics and Statistics Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition (DSM IV), finally becoming an official diagnosis. At the time, Asperger Syndrome (AS) was labeled as a subcategory of autism along with autistic disorder, childhood disintegrative disorder and pervasive development disorder. Since then, the community of people with Asperger Syndrome has grown to love and better understand the disorder that they live with every day. Some of them have even affectionately named themselves “Aspies”.
...at comes naturally to most people: listening to others, looking them in the eye, and trying to understand another's point of view. Dr. Attwood believes, "Children with Asperger's Syndrome have the strong desire to have friends while recognizing their considerable difficulties with achieving and maintaining genuine friendships. Many experience ridicule, exclusion, teasing or bullying. Education programs can be used to assist them."
In the 1980s, child care was back on the national agenda due to the education reform movement (Tejada, 2010). Tejada further disclosed that several states even launched pre-kindergarten programs for disadvantaged children. Why the Need for Universal Preschool Two-thirds of 4-year-old children in the United States attend preschool, as well as 40% of 3-year-olds (Tejada, 2010). Half of those are enrolled in a public program, such as state prekindergarten (preK), Head Start, or special education, and the other half are in a private program (Adams, 2009). Despite such a large enrollment of children in these programs, there is still a handful of children who are missing out on obtaining a head start in obtaining a good quality education.... ...
Nelson, Judith. "Ensuring Quality Service-Learning Experiences for At-Risk Adolescents." Prevention Researcher. 18.1 (2011): 14-17. Print.
Retrieved April 20, 2003, from http://www.steoltingco.com/tests/catolog/TKFGRS.htm. Anderson, Jeanne. (2002). The 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the ' Selecting a Child Care Program. The electronic version of the.
Children who suffer from ASD usually have the appearance of normal development and then become withdrawn and regress from social interaction (Melinda Smith, 2013). The impaired social interaction of the disorder affects communication both verbally and non- verbally (Melinda Smith, 2013). Their communication with others and the world around them is also affected, as well as their thinking and behavior (Melinda Smith, 2013).
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, approximately 74% of mothers and nearly 90% of fathers of school-aged children are employed and working full-time or multiple jobs (Ryan, Huth & Soo, 2013). This translates that the opportunities for parental involvement in their child’s school is limited due to full-time work. The reason both parents work may be both are career minded or they work out of necessity. Nevertheless, the fact remains more parents are working during regular school hours and this has a direct effect on volunteering at school. Throughout school history, the presence of parents interacting with their son or daughter while in school has shown to increase the child’s self-image and performance (Molina, 2013). Implementing a well-structured parental involvement strategy along with creating opportunities for positive interaction can create strong relationships between schools, families and community.
Curfew advocates may argue that it is important to monitor your child and have them follow a strict schedule, but due to a teen’s rapidly changing day it is almost impossible to determine an accurate schedule that a teen can follow on a strict basis. Between athletics, homework, work, and the necessary social activities an average student participates in, causes there to be too little time in the day. According to the National Education Association, 12th grade students should spend about two hours of their night on homework every night. Student athletes spend about three hours a day between practice and working out (Thompson). Many students experience more than two hours of homework because they are taking more rigorous classes than other students. With some students having more than two hours of homework and at least three hours of athletics, not only is it strenuous on the student but it is also forcing them to do their homework later into the night. If a student lacks the necessary requirements to complete the assignment then they may need to stay out later than curfew would allow them. Although, school work is an acceptable reason if it is occurring too often then it could result in the parents’ misconception that the child is lying. Not only do curfews struggle to apply to teens, but they are also discriminating against teens.
Click, P. M., & Parker, J. (2002). Caring for School-Age Children (Third Edition). United States of America: Delmar.
Parent Involvement has been an issue in the United States since before the turn of the
Dryfoos, J. G. (1990). Adolescents at risk: Prevalence and prevention. New York: Oxford University Press.
Two-thirds of children who participate in extracurricular activities are expected to attain at least a bachelor’s degree, whereas only half of children that do not participate do (National Center for Education Statistics, 1995). Childhood is a very important time in our lives, a time when we develop many vital skills that follow us into adulthood. Some people laugh or scoff at us parents that keep our children to busy schedules. Those same people would also argue that our children should be allowed to have a childhood, to not be so tightly scheduled in their daily lives. Before jumping on that bandwagon, I would suggest doing a little research. Participating in after-school activities has shown to benefit children in many ways. Children should
Rizzolo, Allison. "PUBLICAGENDA.ORG - Survey: Sports, Arts, Clubs, Volunteering -- Out-of-School Activities Play Crucial, Positive Role for Kids." Survey: Sports, Arts, Clubs, Volunteering -- Out-of-School Activities Play Crucial, Positive Role for Kids. Public Agenda, 16 Nov. 2004. Web. 5 Mar. 2014