Continuing Education and Outreach

Introduction to the School-Age Care Profession is available on demand through University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. This on-demand class means that you can register at any time and begin your work immediately. 

This course provides entry-level knowledge and skills for individuals as they begin to or intend to care for school-age children in group or family child care settings. This course will provide a foundation for the importance of Out-of-School time programs and explore the philosophy and goals for high quality programs. It examines and identifies the rules and regulations governing group and family child care for school-age children and the responsibilities of the providers. 

This course will fulfill the first introductory non-credit course requirements for a school-age group leader (teacher) as specified in DCF Chapter 251 for group child care in Wisconsin's Administrative Code as it applies to school-age care. This course is part of an alternative pathway to becoming a group leader.

This course explores our individual understanding of behavior guidance and how our experiences and philosophy influence how we guide the behavior of children.  The importance of relationship building with children as an essential component to behavior guidance will be explored.  This course will also share multiple strategies for dealing with challenging situations and the many techniques we have available to help children gain the skills to regulate and monitor their own behavior.

The training provides 15 hours of continuing education and is a Tier 3 training opportunity and supports the YoungStar Curriculum and Learning Environment criteria.

School-age Curricular Framework defines and explores curriculum within the context of after school programs and helps staff develop the resources necessary to create intentional learning experiences and activities to support both academic and social-emotional learning of school age children.  Participants will gain an understanding of key elements and developmental concepts that go into creating a framework for curriculum and develop strategies for activity and lesson planning.  Developmentally appropriate practice will be explored as well as the creation of desired outcomes and goals and the impact of climate and physical environment that fosters learning.

The training provides 15 hours of continuing education and is a Tier 3 training opportunity and supports the YoungStar Curriculum and Learning Environment criteria.

Live sessions Mondays and Thursdays, October 12, 16, 19, 23, 26​, 2023. 

Registration closes October 4, 2023. 

Course opens for online work October 6, 2023. 

Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST​​

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Winter 2023 Session:

Live Sessions Mondays and Thursdays, December 7, 11, 14, 18, 21​, 2023. 

Registration closes November 29, 2023.

Course opens for online work December 1, 2023.

Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST
OR
6:30-8 p.m. CST

10:30 a.m.-Noon CST​​

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Winter 2024 Session:

Live Sessions Mondays and Thursdays, February 8, 12, 15, 19, 22, 2024.

Registration closes January 31, 2024. 

Course opens for online work February 2, 2024. 

Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST

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Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST

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Duration of Course: 

• 5 live synchronous sessions total - 90 minutes each.
  
• Independent work between each of the live sessions.
• Independent work is equal to 7.5 hours. 
  

Registration fee: $25 – free with membership to Wisconsin Afterschool Network​​​​

Trauma is one of the key leverage points that can underlie serious behavioral health problems and contribute to problematic behaviors, life circumstances, and community consequences for many children. Early identification of trauma resulting from Adverse Childhood Experiences is critically important. School‐age afterschool programs, equipped with the knowledge of how to be trauma informed and responsive can play a vital role in not only identifying a need for trauma related intervention and also provide engaging experiences that build positive adaptive skills and social and emotional skills for kids who at the end of their school day may have exhausted their self‐regulation capacity.

Participants will understand the wide spectrum of adverse childhood experiences and the impact these have on the development and behavior of children in afterschool care as well as understand brain development in early childhood through adolescence and the impact of trauma.  Strategies and resources available to afterschool providers will be explored that can be immediately and effectively implemented within the context of the afterschool program.  How to create an afterschool environment and begin to examine individual capacity that builds supportive relationships with children and youth in order for them to acquire self‐regulation and sensory processing skills to manage their life situations will also be covered.

The training provides 15 hours of continuing education and is a Tier 3 training opportunity and supports the YoungStar Curriculum and Learning Environment criteria.

Live Sessions Fridays, September 29 and October 6, 2023.

Registration closes September 20, 2023.

Course opens for online work​​ September 22. 

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Live Sessions Fridays, March 15 and 22, 2024.​​

Time of Course:

9-1 p.m. CST

Duration of Course: 

• 2 live synchronous sessions total - 4 hours each.
• Independent work between each of the live sessions. 
  
• Independent work is equal to 7 hours.
  

Registration fee: $25

This course is designed to help after school programs create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all children and their families. The course will explore our own biases and how they impact our interactions with children and their families and understand inequities from a systemic perspective. This course will open a dialogue and help us gain a growth mindset toward our work on inclusivity.

The training provides 12 hours of continuing education and is a Tier 3 training opportunity and supports the YoungStar Curriculum and Learning Environment criteria.

Live Sessions Fridays October 13, 20, 27, and November 3, 2023. ​

Registration closes October 4, 2023. 

Course opens for online work October 6, 2023. 

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Course opens for online work February 9, 2024.

Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST

Duration of Course: 

• 4 live synchronous sessions total - 90 minutes each.
  
• Independent work between each of the live sessions.
• Independent work is equal to 6 hours. 

Positive Youth Development for Youth Work Professionals examines the foundations of Social Emotional Learning (SEL), the benefits of this specific skill development for youth and adults, and how to incorporate this learning into Out-of-School Time (OST) programs.

The 12-hour training is designed for independent learning, collaborative discussions, and live online sessions that provide participants with foundational information and best practices for implementing SEL into any OST setting.  This training was developed by the Wisconsin Afterschool Network and is delivered by local trainers with experience and knowledge in school-age informal environments.

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this course participants will be able to:

• Communicate the concept and importance of Social Emotional Learning to their staff, participants, and/or stakeholders.
• Implement SEL tools within out of school time settings (1:1, small group, large group).
• Infuse SEL tools into pre-service and in-service staff training.
• Revise current program to embed SEL to maximize relationship and social emotional skill building, which in turn will minimize areas of conflict or chaos.

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Spring 2024 Session:
Live Sessions Fridays, April  5, 12, 19, 26, 2024.

Registration closes March 27, 2024.

Course opens for online work March, 29, 2024.

Time of Course:
10:30 a.m.-Noon CST

Duration of Course:

• 4 live synchronous sessions total - 90 minutes each
  
• Independent work between each of the live sessions
  
• Independent work is equal to 6 hours
  

Registration Fee $25 

This course is designed to provide 12 hours of training experience to help program staff understand the importance and benefits of focusing on child outcomes, how to identify and develop relevant outcomes, how to translate outcomes into effective program activities and document and evaluate the attainment of outcomes that support the positive development of each child.  

The training provides 12 hours of continuing education and is a Tier 3 training opportunity and supports the YoungStar Curriculum and Learning Environment criteria.

Registration fee: $25

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