This article is reprinted from Texas Child Care, a quarterly newspaper published by the Texas Workforce Commission. Subscriptions may be placed by calling 512-441-6633, or writing Editor, Texas Child Care, P.O. Box 162881, Austin, Texas 78716-2881.

By Christy Engle Cochran

Does your after-school child care program have more than 20 children enrolled?  Do you feel stressed knowing you'll have to deal with the running, wrestling, and arguing? Are you unsure of what to do next. Have you ever wanted to just throw up your arms and say, "I quit?"

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, here are some ideas that can help you and your after-school program survive.

Clues to Classroom Behaviors
After-school child care providers frequently face behavioral issues. These result from children's attitudes about being in care, their own attitude about the work they do, and a lack of program organization and focus. While some behaviors will be unique to a particular child or program, most are common to school-age classrooms.

Step back and look at your classroom as if you are observing it for the first time. Take notes of what you see, what you like, and what you dislike. Especially pay attention to the behaviors of the children and where and why those behaviors take place.

During the school year, children come into your care after putting in eight hours of forced group time at school. They usually have a preconceived and often negative attitude toward after-school care. While many of their peers are going home or to a friend's house, these children are coming to a child care facility that primarily serves children birth through 5 years of age. In this challenging transition, children can feel welcomed, cared for, and respected only in the program is designed for them and is not a barely modified version of preschool care.

Most teachers in school-age groups have more than 20 children in their care. These children can range in age from 5 to 12 years (kindergarten to sixth grade). Often, teachers are part-time college students available for only one or two semesters. This makes staff turnover even higher than in preschool programs.

However, you can still have an effective program if you have administrative support and a well-planned curriculum. Well-planned means the curriculum is appropriate to the children's developmental levels and responsive to their needs and interests. In addition, teachers - whether they work for one semester or several years - need to have training in that curriculum.

Because of short-term staffing, some school-age programs show little evidence of physical organization. Learning center blur into one another. They have no defined boundaries. As a result, children fight over equipment, supplies, and toys. They argue about who is allowed or not allowed in a particular area. They run or display other inappropriate indoor behaviors. The overall atmosphere is chaotic. It does not support the intellectual, social, emotional, or physical needs of children or teachers.

Changing the after-school environment can have a significant impact on children's behavior. More importantly, arranging the classroom carefully and respectfully helps lessen the negative attitudes of children who regard after-school care as "babyish." It also gives temporary, under-trained staff a framework for more effective care.

Assess the space arrangement
Furniture arrangement may provide a key to solving many problems. Begin by looking for traffic paths. Long, unobstructed walkways that run from one side of the room to the other encourage running. Large open spaces invite children to jump, wrestle, and engage in other physical activities.

Use classroom furniture to break up running spaces and open areas. Bookshelves do not have to rest against the wall. Bring the shelves out to the middle of the room and design an appealing learning center. Bean bags, rugs, tables, and other pieces of furniture can also define centers.

Does the classroom have learning centers? School age children are not too old to enjoy well-developed and well-equipped centers. Designate areas of your room with appropriate furniture, equipment and signs for specific activities and constructive play. Programs located in elementary schools can identify certain areas of the cafeteria or gymnasium for specific learning centers. Mark areas with tape that you can put down and remove each day.

Keep loud centers like carpentry and construction at the back of the room and near each other - the noise level will be tolerable when you first enter the room. Create nooks and crannies that invite quiet, solitary play. Children need an opportunity to spend some time by themselves - or to have a quiet chat with a best friend - and appreciate some privacy after a long day in a large group.

When you plan centers, consider individual needs. Some children may want to do homework, or settle down - and tune out - with a good book. Provide comfortable, well-lit furnishings for these activities. Others will need to use some physical energy in an indoor game of hopscotch or four-square.

If you are unsure how learning centers work, visit early childhood classrooms that use centers. Talk to colleagues and ask for ideas and suggestions. Resources, such as the Diane Trister Dodge's Creative Curriculum, are wonderful for setting up learning centers in the classroom.

Offset the formal setting of school with a comfortable, cozy, informal after-school program. Children need an environment that allows them to wind down from school and enjoy the rest of their day. All children thrive in a well-managed and appealing classroom. Assessing your after-school space is critical to having quality care.

Suggested learning centers and materials
These are suggested learning areas and basic materials and supplies for each area. Remember to have enough in each area, but not too much to overwhelm the children. Rotate toys and materials every one to two weeks to provide fresh choices. Pay attention to what the children enjoy playing with and how they are playing. Incorporate their ideas into the learning centers.

Art

Blocks

Home living/dramatic play

Language arts

Manipulatives and puzzles

Music

Science

Sensory

Woodworking

Making changes work
Curriculum planning helps provide the structure children needs. A well-organized plan of action will help define expectations for the children, providers, and parents. Choose curriculum topics that will interest the children. Be flexible so that they can spend more (or fewer) days on a topic.

Learn the various roles of caregivers. Social caregivers interact with children and show an interest in all the things they do. More passive caregivers are likely to work in the background, setting up centers and bringing out new materials in response to the needs they have observed. Some caregivers may need to serve as tutors to help the children with their homework. Quality programs need a little of each role.

Develop the skills necessary to effectively manage learning centers. One technique is to offer more activities than there are children. Large programs may need more interest centers in order to offer children activity choices. When children are free to choose an activity, they are more likely to behave in an appropriate, responsible manner.

Another technique is to limit the number of children is each area of the classroom. Center limits will vary according to the activity. More children can build with blocks than work at a computer, for example. Make a label for each center that indicates the number of children appropriate to that area. In the block center, for example, the label would state the center name and four dots or stickers that represent the number of children the center will hold. Give each child a clothespin with his or her name written on it. Show the children how to clip the clothespin on to the chosen center label. Once all marks are covered, that center is closed to any more children, until a space opens up.

Encourage children to take ownership of the classroom. Invite them to help arrange the centers. They can label shelves with pictures and words, for example. Let them display their work on the walls or in the hallways. Help children create a classroom newsletter. They can interview people within the program, comment on social happenings, create interest articles, write book and movie reviews, and provide a question-and-answer- column. Sharing the newsletter with parents helps cement an important home-child-teacher loop.

Having the children participate in arranging centers give them a sense of ownership and responsibility. As the children start putting in hard work to create a welcoming classroom, their behaviors will reflect the respect and support they feel.

To build a program that is attentive to children's needs, watch for behavioral clues, assess each situation, and devise and implement a plan of action. The classroom environment is the framework for successful interactions among children and between teachers and children. When you create a responsive and personal environment, the after-school program can flourish.

References
Bender, Judith. Half a Childhood: Time for School-Age Child Care. Nashville: School-Age Notes, 1984.

Cole, Joanna. Anna Banana: 101 Jump-Rope Rhymes. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1991.

Cole, Joanna and Stephanie Calmenson. Miss Mary Mack and Other Children's Street Rhymes. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1991.

Dodge, Diane Trister. Creative Curriculum. Washington, D.C.: Teaching Strategies, 1991.

Gryski, Camilla. Hands On, Thumbs Up: Secret Handshakes, Fingerprints, Sign Languages, and More Handy Ways to Have Fun with Hands. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1990.

Gryski, Camilla. Super String Games. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1987.

Haas, Carolyn. My Own Fun: Creative Learning Activities for School, Ages 7-12. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 1987.

Haas-Foletta, Karen. School-Age Ideas and Activities for After School Programs. Nashville: School-Age Notes, 1990.

Jones, Elizabeth and John Nimmo. Emergent Curriculum. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1994.

Koralek, Derry; Roberta Newman; and Laura Colker. Caring for Children in School-Age Programs, Vols. 1 and 2. Nashville: School-Age Notes, 1994.

Lewis, Barbara A. The Kids Guide to Service Projects: Over 500 Service Ideas for Young People Who Want to Make a Difference. Minneapolis: Free Spirit Press, 1995.

Lewis, Barbara A. The Kids Guide to Social Action: How to Solve the Social Problems You Choose - And Turn Creative Thinking into Positive Action. Minneapolis: Free Spirit Press, 1991.

Activities for School-Age Child Care. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1977.

Orlick, Terry. The Second Cooperative Sports and Games Book. New York: Pantheon, 1982.

School-Age Notes. Newsletter available from School-Age Notes, PO Box 40205, Nashville, TN 37204.

Vecchione, Glen. The World's Best Street and Yard Games. New York: Sterling Publishing, 1989.

About the author
Christy Engles Cochran teaches third grade at Hill Elementary School in Austin, Texas. For three years she was site manager at Connections Resource Center, and prior to that worked with toddlers and school-agers in a child development center.