Staff trainings offered through the Vermont Center for Afterschool Excellence fall into seven basic topic areas. In the area below, each topic area is described in brief and the associated workshops are listed by title. For a more detailed description of each training, please click on the topic area. In addition, a summary table identifies the Vermont Afterschool Professionals Core Competency areas addressed by each workshop.

Curriculum Development:
Our curriculum development workshops help staff bring math, literacy, science, and the arts more fully into their program offerings. Examples of curriculum-based trainings include:

• Outdoor Science
• Kids Love Bugs!
• Water Studies: Rivers and Streams
• That’s Science?
• Plant Party
• Exploring Nature: Trees
• That’s Math?
• Cooking with Books
• Theater Arts
• Weaving Reading into School Age Activities
• Power of Poetry
• Fun with Fluency
• Growing Reading: Literacy through a Garden

Afterschool Program Methods:
These workshops focus on creating a strong program structure, schedule, and theory of practice. Examples of Afterschool Program Methods trainings include:

• Child Centered Programming
• Teachable Moments: Using Reflection with Children
• Guiding your Group
• Best Practices in Programming
• Things that Stick Together
• Creating a “Tool Kit” of Ideas for School Age
• Fun and Learning at the Same Time

Families and Communities:
The workshops in this area focus on building strong relationships with families and community partners in order to better support children and youth in the program. Examples include:

• Building Relationships with Families
• Collaborating with Community Partners
• Building Successful Relationships through Effective Communication
• Effective Family Engagement
• Breaking Down Barriers: An In-Depth Discussion and Action Plan for Engagement

Safe and Supportive Program Environments:
Workshops focusing on helping staff to create safe and supportive program environments address both the physical safety of the children and youth as well as their emotional well-being. Workshops in this topic area include:

• Gender Equity
• Setting up Environments for School Agers
• Transitions from School to Afterschool and Summer Programs
• Listening so Youth will Talk
• Positive Reinforcement and Positive Language

Games and Activities:
This group of trainings includes a variety of workshops that teach staff members a wide range of games and activities that they can use throughout their programs as ice-breakers, rainy day activities, community builders, energizers, and attention grabbers. Examples include:

• Games and Activities that Teach
• First Week in Games
• Yo-yos, Diabolos and Juggling Sticks
• Stuntology
• Get Energized… Be Better than the Bunny

Program Administration:
This particular set of trainings are designed for program managers and administrators. They deal with topics such as staff supervision and support, determining professional development needs, and other related topics. Workshops that address program administration include:

• Supervision…. From Hiring to Firing
• Aligning Work Plans to the Afterschool Core Competencies

Child and Youth Development:
The workshops that address child and youth development are designed to give staff the information they need to understand the characteristics, abilities, and needs of different age groups. Examples of trainings that focus on child and youth development include:

• Social Development in School Age Children
• Working with Multi-Age Groups
• Engaging Older Children:  Working with Ages 9-12