Enrichment and extracurricular activities are critical to healthy child and adolescent development. Not only do they improve educational, employment, and civic engagement outcomes, they help young people heal and give them an opportunity to connect with their peers, supportive adults, and their communities. While federal and state law are clear that children and youth in foster care have a right to participate in age-appropriate activities that most youth do as a matter of course, youth with experience in foster care still face many barriers to participation.
Please join us to learn about how enrichment activities benefit young people and the families caring for them. The session will include an overview of the law and policy that supports participation in enrichment activities as well as the clinical perspective on how these activities promote opportunities for healing and are important to child and adolescent development. We will also hear from young people with experience in foster care about the impact of activities in their lives as well as their recommendations for the ways caregivers and supporters can facilitate access to enrichment opportunities for young people.
Finally, we will share tools that you can use to support advocacy in the case planning and court process and work through case examples to provide practical practice tips.
Objectives
Describe the importance of enrichment and extracurricular activities in healthy child and adolescent development.
Identify laws, policies, and funds that support youth participation in enrichment activities.
Apply at least two practical strategies for Supporting and facilitating youth participation in enrichment activities.
Content: 3 modules
Course Length: 2 hours
Level: Intermediate