Social Justice and Education

Every society grapples with the challenge of educating its citizenry… Some determine that any information that isn’t strictly controlled by the state is too great a threat. But even the governments of open societies such as ours (or such as ours aspires to be) have ongoing, heated debates over what should be taught to children.

Among the afterschool staff there is discussion about how we as an organization should respond to the recent racially-motivated murders in Buffalo. On the one hand, school in general and afterschool in particular are safe spaces where children can be children and where their learning to sing or draw or juggle is the most important thing in the world for a few moments a day. We are committed to that child-centered-ness.

But that commitment isn’t incompatible with adults being aware and speaking out about the social ills we witness. In fact, it may be essential to it. Education, as the project of cultivating a sense of agency in children, can be a powerful response to injustice and tragedy as we prepare children to navigate and re-create their world. Children choosing classes, cultivating interests, charting their own paths are all training in what philosopher Maxine Greene referred to as social imagination…the capacity to invent visions of what should be and what might be…to imagine a lovelier world.

Stephan Russo, former director of Goddard Riverside here in the neighborhood, wrote a piece this week for the West Side Spirit recounting a recent Civil Rights pilgrimage he made. It’s a good reminder for the adults of why education is so important, what is at stake and what we are working toward as educate our kids.

https://www.westsidespirit.com/news/reflections-on-the-civil-rights-trail-DA2075050

Spring Break and Summer Camps!

Spring Break: There will be no afterschool for Arts and Athletics next Thursday or Friday. Spring Recess for the New York City Department of Education schools will run from Friday, April 15th through the following Friday, April 22nd. School resumes on Monday, April 25th.

Arts and Athletics will conduct an outdoor adventure camp from Monday, April 18th through Friday, April 22nd. Half-day (9am to 1pm or 1pm to 5pm) and full-day (9am to 5pm) options are available.

For more information click here or call Ryan Zavala at 917-975-8811 to reserve a spot.

Summer: Arts and Athletics will also conduct our very popular summer camps this summer, from Tuesday, July 5th to Friday, August 19th. In addition to outdoor adventures in Central Park offered all summer, we will also feature STEM and Robotics Camp, Basketball Camp, Track and Field (Athletics Development) Camp, and Performing Arts Camp in which children will create and perform a new show each week!

The Perfect Afterschool Class

I’ve used the phrase “the perfect afterschool class” over years to refer to offerings that challenge students to use and develop skills they learned during the school day, but do so without piling on more work. When they take a cooking class, for example, they read recipes, engage in procedural thinking, work out fractions in scaling the amounts of various ingredients up or down, and gauge how adventurous they feel about tasting a new food for the first time. In each of these ways, they are applying things they know in a real-world situation.

But in cooking class, they shouldn’t feel they are being tested or graded or judged. They should just feel smart and competent and emboldened and like they understand a little better why the adults include stuff like fractions in their daytime studies.

In reality there isn’t any such thing as a perfect afterschool class and even the simplest offerings can be great in their own way. Kickball doesn’t utilize a lot of academic skill, but taking part, being present with classmates, cheering them on, taking turns…those are important skills to develop as well.

And sometimes what is most valuable is the children basking in the feeling (whether they recognize this or not) that they are doing something that they want to do. They are spending time with friends and teachers who have all each independently chosen to be there. It’s easy to forget how programmed children’s lives can be. (Maybe because we as adults have accepted that as our lot!) Choosing and deciding are skills, too, and they are developed with practice.

So perhaps the perfect afterschool class is any one of a dozen that children can choose from. Maybe children choosing a class is what makes it perfect.

On-Site Afterschool: Winter 2021-22 is Here!!!

First day of Winter Cycle is this Monday, December 13, 2021!!!

Fall Cycle was a huge success and we have been able to gradually increase the number classes offered. We’re not back to pre-pandemic levels yet, but we’re getting there! The children seem very excited to see their friends and take part in their favorite activities.

Please remind your children that school rules about distancing and mask-wearing should be observed during afterschool as well. (Just trying to keep everyone safe!)

And, for parents, thank you for your patience with the first day of pick-up. The new routine of walking the children out to parents takes a little longer, but, again, safety is our top priority.

Winter Cycle of afterschool will go from Monday, December 13th to Friday, March 18th. As we ramp up, we are re-connecting with our teachers in various subject areas and fine-tuning the schedule. More than more years, this year’s schedule is a work-in-progress and we will continue adding classes and making adjustments through the start of the school year. If there’s a class that you would be interested in but you don’t see it on the schedule, please let us know. It might be that we were planning to bring it back or that we just needed a nudge from an enthusiastic family! (We love your input!!!)

Even as we resume many of our old stand-by classes (like chess and multi-sports and science) we plan to continue with the programs we developed during the last year and a half. In particular, our outdoor adventure classes in Central Park have been a big hit and are here to stay. Also, where there is interest, we will continue to our online instruction in art, chess, and instrumental music.

Welcome back everyone! If you have questions, please send an email to info@artsandathletics.org.

The NYC DoE calendar for next school year has just been publish, so we will begin to set up registration next fall afterschool as well. Here’s the link to the school calendar for 2021-22.

Making Online Learning Work for You

The necessity of work in front of a computer screen has certainly taken its toll this year. And we’ve learned that not every subject can be taught effectively over the internet. Nevertheless, Arts and Athletics and other educators have identified a number of classes that work well online and we’ve developed ways to make the most of these resources.

Coding is a natural and we’re exciting that Ms. Sora is offering a couple section of coding using a couple of different platforms, Kodable and Code Monkey. (You can learn more about our technology offerings here.

Outdoors/Indoors–Central to our afterschool programming these last months has been our outdoor adventure program, where children exercise and explore and learning about nature. We currently offer sections in English, Spanish, and French, and we’ve discovered that for children still learning the languages (i.e. they don’t speak French at home with their parents) we are able to augment the outdoor experience with an online class in which reinforces vocabulary and phrases and concepts that were covered in our outdoor class. And we are offering this language support for children who are signed up for outdoor adventures and no additional cost!

Other classes that work well online are chess, musical theater, and writing. The ideal afterschool class is one that uses a child’s academic skills without seeming to pile on more work. When a student can experience the sense of agency that comes with using the skills they’ve learned in school, that reinforces the benefits of their classroom experience, and promotes a love of learning.

We hope that we’ll soon be able to resume classes in our schools, but we will continue to look for ways to use online learning to support our offerings and create a better learning experience.

Important Dates: Afterschool 2023-24

Three cycles (Fall, Winter, Spring) & Summer Camp!

Fall: Monday, 9/11/23 – Friday, 12/8/23
Winter: Monday, 12/11/23 – Friday, 3/15/24
Spring: Monday, 3/18/24 – Friday, 6/14/24

Yom Kippur: Monday, 9/25/23
Italian Heritage/Indigenous Peoples Day: Monday, 10/9/23
Election Day: Tuesday, 11/7/23
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday November 12, 2023
No Afterschool: Wednesday, 11/22/23
Thanksgiving: Thursday, 11/23/23 & Friday, 11/24/23 schools closed.
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday December 10, 2023
Winter Break: Monday, 12/25/23 – Monday, 1/1/24
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday January 7, 2024
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Monday, 1/15/24
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday February 11, 2024
Mid-Winter Recess: Monday, 2/19/24 – Friday, 2/23/24
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday March 17, 2024
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday April 7, 2024
Easter Weekend: Friday, 03/29/24 – Monday 04/1/24
Eid al-Fitr: Wednesday, 4/10/24
Spring Break: Monday, 4/22/24 – Tuesday, 4/30/24
PS 9 Chess Tournament: Sunday May 12, 2024
Memorial Day: Monday, 5/27/24
Anniversary Day: Thursday, 6/6/24
Clerical Day: Friday, 6/7/24
PS 9 Chess Tournament:: Sunday June 9, 2024

Arts and Athletics follows the New York City Public School’s calendar and does not offer regular afterschool programming on days when schools are closed. In some cases when schools are not in session, Arts and Athletics offers day camps to help meet the childcare needs of our families.

Stay tuned for announcements regarding 2024 Summer camp.


Latest Photos & Videos

Summer at PS9

Every week the children produce a new show. Watch the performances from each week of camp – and more!

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did you know?

Spring Break: There will be no afterschool for Arts and Athletics next Thursday or Friday. Spring Recess for the New York City Department of Education schools will run from Friday, April 15th through the following Friday, April 22nd. School resumes on Monday, April 25th. Arts and Athletics will conduct an outdoor adventure camp from Monday, …

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