Kicking Off Your Session
It is the time of year where everyone is planning their afterschool programming kick offs. Some people are fully prepared, others are less prepared and that's ok! We know afterschool spaces are constantly evolving and changing. If you are looking for some fun ideas, look no further!
So many programs kick off their programs with games, whether it’s every day or at the start of their term. There are a ton of different kinds of games. There are tons of listicles online “50 classroom games for kids!” “25 of the most fun classroom games!” but a lot of it is repetitive. There is an organization that we have worked with to find fun and engaging games for your students! !mpact Players has over 100 games and activities for you to use to engage with your students. Some of the games they have are very similar to classic theater games and improv games. Don’t be afraid to tap into those games to encourage the kids to be creative.
One Sentence Stories
Pick one person to start the story. They write one sentence and move onto the next person. They write one sentence so on and so forth until you have written a full story. It can be a scary story, a fun story, or even a story about the school itself. You can even have groups work together to see who can write the best story. Make it fun and engaging.
Stand Up If…
Give a series of instructions to the class that begins with either ‘Stand up if..’, or, ‘Sit down if…’. You could ask:
- Stand up if you had cereal for breakfast
- Sit down if you have blonde hair
- Stand up if you tied your shoes today
Students will stand or sit accordingly and you’ll learn something new about one another. The last person standing is the winner!
There are so many crafts and activities you can do with your students. So many are free or very inexpensive to do. You can find so many things online for free from sites like Teachers Pay Teachers On this site are fun creative ideas like monthly calendars for the students to color and fill in on their own. There are other crafty things that are easy to find all the supplies at the dollar store.
The Calming Jar
Items Required:
- Empty jars
- Glitters or other filling
- Hand soap
- Watercolors
You can create calming jars with your kids to relax them. Have students put water, glitters, diluted watercolors, and hand soap in an empty jar. Screw on the jar’s lid and give it to your child so they can shake the jar. This can have calming effects as well as give the students something to focus on when things are overwhelming.
Pebble Friends
Items Required:
- Pebbles or smooth stones
- Watercolors
- Paint markers (optional)
Grab some pebbles or small rocks, preferably smooth ones, and have the students paint the rocks. Let them express their own personality and creativity. This can be de-stressing and calming for most students.
The Magic Wand
All kids love a bit of Magic. You can find products like The Magic Wand Kit that we offer as an activity that fills the time of your session and can sometimes be used repeatedly or used as a reward or incentive for the session.
Fun and creative activities for your students don’t have to be hard. Building out a portfolio of activities to lean on when things happen or if you need something to fill in quickly can be one of the best things you can do for your programs. If you are looking for a good tool to help you write a lesson plan or come up with some fun activities, check this post about Chat GPT! Afterschool Program Tools
The Magician School is a National After School Program and Curriculum teaching students learning skills through magic tricks. The Magician School offers a multitude of programs catering to Elementary and Middle Schoolers. Learn More Below
