Tips For Selecting The Right After-School Program For Your Child
Finding the right after-school program can be challenging. You want to make sure that the needs of your child are being met and that your child will benefit from the time spent in the program. However, you may not be sure exactly what it is that makes a good after-school program. Here are some tips that will help you to identify whether an after-school program may be right for your child.
Student-Staff Ratio
The ratio of students to staff is an important consideration. If it is more than fifteen students to one staff member, then you should look elsewhere. It will be difficult for one adult to give the proper attention to your child and make sure they are well taken care of if there are more than fifteen children in the group. Always look for a program with a ratio of fifteen or less students to one staff member.
Staff Member Education
Ideally, staff members should have some educational background in child development and learning. Some staff members in after school programs do not have this background and it can make it more difficult for the program to be beneficial to your child. Always ask about the educational background of the staff members before enrolling your child.
Social Activities
While an after-school program should be geared towards academics, you also want to make sure that your child gets a good balance of social activities and academics. Your child would have been doing academics all day in regular school, so you want to make sure that their after-school program allows them to unwind and have fun.
Age Range
Ask about the age range of the students who are in the group in which your child will be placed. The age range of the students is an important consideration, since this will affect the kind of social activities that your child is exposed to. Age range may also be a factor in how comfortable your child feels in the group.
Conflicts
Conflicts are inevitable when kids are placed in groups. This is why it is important that you find out about the strategies that are employed to deal with these conflicts. The right type of strategies will help to teach your child how to manage disagreements while the wrong ones are likely to teach them the opposite.
As a parent you want what is best for your child. This means that you will have to be strategic about choosing which programs you enroll your child in. Once you know what you are looking for it will be easier to find the right program for your child. For more information, contact a company like Paulding Preschool.