Professional Development
NAA publishes fresh, new content every week covering a wide variety of topics related to the field of aftershool. In addition, NAA offers a variety of opportunities for virtual professional development (PD) through meaningful content, conversations and connections. Click here to see full descriptions of virtual PD offerings.
Spatial Thinking: Essential for STEM Career Success
Tuesday, 13 June 2017 00:00Spatial thinking, or reasoning, is the capacity to mentally or physically understand the location and movement of objects and ourselves in space. It is not a single ability or process, but a number of concepts, tools and processes that work together.
Stop the Summer Slide: Tips to Share with Families
Tuesday, 13 June 2017 00:00Children can lose one to two months of math and reading skills during summer break. Although summer programs help prevent learning loss—also known as the summer slide—families play a key role in continuing their children's learning and combating this loss.
Professionalizing the Workforce in Out-of-School Time and School-Age Child Care
Tuesday, 13 June 2017 00:00On March 21, 2017, the National Center on Afterschool and Summer Enrichment (NCASE) hosted a webinar as part of NAA's Convention in Dallas.
The Arts and Summer Learning: A Transformative Combination
Tuesday, 30 May 2017 10:20The arts are powerful tools for learning in any setting, inside and outside the classroom. Yet when you bring the arts to kids outside of the demands of the school day, their imaginations light up. They use the arts as a creative gateway to success.
Afterschool Is Amazing. Own It.
Monday, 22 May 2017 00:00Last month, afterschool professionals across the nation celebrated Afterschool Professionals Appreciation Week, April 24 through April 28. During these few days, we encouraged celebration of those who deliver the incredibly important—yet often undervalued—task of providing direct service in out-of-school programs to youth every day.
Preventing Teen Suicide in Response to ‘13 Reasons Why’
Monday, 22 May 2017 00:00The latest Netflix hit, 13 Reasons Why is based on a novel of the same name by Jay Asher. It chronicles fictional teenager Hannah Baker's death by suicide. Before her death, Hannah records a series of 13 tapes, blaming people—and providing reasons—for her death.
Multisensory Learning in the Digital Age
Tuesday, 09 May 2017 09:00Have you ever danced to learn a new letter of the alphabet? Research shows that employing multiple senses may have significant benefits for learning new skills. Multisensory learning involves two or more senses within the same activity.
Heroes, Villains, Intrigue and Drama of the STEM World
Tuesday, 09 May 2017 08:55STEM is often thought of as quite dull. When asked about STEM, many people picture smart old white men, who wear white coats and work alone in sterile labs. These men explain things using long, complicated words and math symbols that might as well be hieroglyphics.
Help Young People Unleash Their Inner Rockstars!
Monday, 01 May 2017 00:00When I share about my experience growing up in New York (or New "Yawk" as I've been known to say) and attending public school, I'm always struck by how rich and layered my education was and how much afterschool hours shaped my life—profoundly.
Tips to Incorporate SEL in Afterschool Programs
Tuesday, 25 April 2017 05:59Afterschool programs across the nation are experiencing the many benefits of integrating social emotional learning (SEL) into their schedules—including improved communication, reduced bullying, and stronger peer relationships.
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