By Alia Riley | Orange County/ Special Projects Manager
As we conclude our spring afterschool season for 2025, we will be pausing our Earth Keepers project to explore other in-school initiatives for the foreseeable future. In line with our programming philosophy, I would like to take this opportunity to reflect on the evolution of our afterschool program over the years.
We began our journey in three local middle schools, engaging students through games that incorporated core routines such as "owl eyes," "deer ears," and "fox walking." With each visit, we got to know the students better, understand their preferences, and learn how we could tailor the program to fit each school's unique culture. One school leaned towards hands-on activities and focused on building shelters, while another thrived on high-energy games and competition. The third school enjoyed the crafts and activities we provided.
As our program grew, we received interest from a local elementary school, allowing us to expand our reach to a younger audience. The number of participants at this school was so large that we decided to split them into two groups, ensuring that each student could engage meaningfully with the activities we offered. These groups participated enthusiastically in our environmental education activities.
At the end of last summer, we welcomed two new elementary schools to our roster. Once again, we faced large groups of children and applied the same approach we used with our first elementary school, dividing them into smaller groups to maximize engagement and learning opportunities for every student.
Having grown up in the school system where we primarily run our afterschool program and benefited from the afterschool programs available to me, I have witnessed firsthand the impact of afterschool activities on students. Getting them outside helped them relax from their busy lives, which often involve staring at screens all day. The students frequently expressed that they appreciated having other ways to learn beyond watching things online or sitting through presentations. They were able to enjoy outdoor spaces that some of them didn't even know existed at each school.
We are incredibly grateful for your support of our afterschool program and all that it has grown to be. We hope to return to the Earth Keepers project in the future to create more lifelong connections to nature. In the meantime, we will keep you updated on all our new projects!
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