School Age

Creative Explorers

What does a day of before or after care look like for your child?

About the School Age Program at Kiddie Academy

Children spend most of their time juggling assignments, friendships and extracurricular activities. They crave the freedom to discover things that interest them most, and Kiddie Academy® gives them the structure to build essential skills for their future.

Our Creative Explorers program lets school-agers pursue their passions. We help them explore what fascinates them through a variety of clubs that spark their imaginations. Our club format provides your child with exciting and challenging activities and projects to create, while continuing the learning begun in their schools.

Your local Kiddie Academy has information about everything from programs and curriculum to tuition, drop-off and pick-up times.

Find an Academy near you
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Life Essentials®

Preparing your child for success in school and life

Our Creative Explorers program is developed through our Life Essentials® curriculum to provide your school-age child with well-rounded learning experiences while receiving positive, nurturing care.

Science Club

Focus: Encouraging curiosity and investigation to find out how or why something happens.

Your child can pursue a passion for science by creating and participating in hands-on experiments in clubs devoted to Discovery, Environmental Science, Zoology and other subjects.

Activities

  • Using jars, gloves and shovels to take soil samples and comparing them.
  • Planning and creating a garden for the Academy.
  • Reading about then identifying the characteristics of insects using a magnifying glass and bug boxes.
  • Bird-watching with binoculars and a bird guide.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Use jars, gloves and shovels to take soil samples from your yard and compare them.
  • Plan and plant a family garden.
  • Read “The Insect Book” and identify the characteristics of insects using a magnifying glass and bug boxes.
  • Go bird-watching, using binoculars and a bird guide.

Technology Club

Focus: Building technology into the day as a natural extension of learning.

Children use tools such as interactive white boards, tablets and computers as they create projects in the Filmmakers Club, Photographers Club, Publisher’s Club and Web Designers Club.

Activities

  • Using templates to design a website.
  • Learning how to use a digital camera and then completing a scavenger hunt outside, taking pictures of each item needed to complete the checklist.
  • Using photos to create a PowerPoint presentation to share with the class.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Do a scavenger hunt with a digital camera, taking pictures of each item on the list.
  • Help your child create a PowerPoint presentation.

Engineering Club

Focus: Inspiring children to learn about how things work and are made.

The Engineering Club uses hands-on projects to develop problem-solving skills while introducing school-age children to different engineering disciplines (e.g., architecture, civil, mechanical, structural).

Activities

  • Using graph paper, pencils and measuring tools to design a blueprint of their dream home.
  • Using LEGO bricks to create a model of a structure that inspires them.
  • Learning about the Seven Wonders of the World and building a model of their favorite.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Use graph paper, pencils and measuring tools to help your child design a blueprint for their dream home.
  • Use LEGO blocks to help your child create a model of a structure that inspires them.
  • Learn about the Seven Wonders of the World and build a model of their favorite.

Literacy & Creative Arts Clubs

Focus: Improving reading and comprehension skills and expanding imaginations through a variety of coordinated learning experiences.

School-age students can join the Reading, Poetry or Writing clubs to delve into stories and participate in fun activities. They can also flex their creative arts skills by joining the 3-D Art, Painting or Music clubs.

Activities

  • Identifying components of different kinds of poems, like haikus, acrostics and limericks, then composing a poem of their own.
  • Reading books in the Book Club and participating in discussions about the characters and events in each book.
  • Learning what the “hook” of a book means and practicing writing hooks of their own.
  • Discussing how illustrations can help tell a story and practice drawing their own.
  • Studying different types of comedy, like improv and stand-up, and writing their own knock-knock jokes.
  • Learning about famous sculptors and making their own sculptures out of foil, play dough and pipe cleaners.
  • Learning to play songs like “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” on the xylophone.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Identify components of different kinds of poems, like haikus, acrostics and limericks, then compose a poem of their own.
  • Read books together, then discuss the actions of the characters in the stories.
  • Talk about their favorite stories then have them draw a picture to illustrate the story.
  • Work together to write knock-knock jokes.

Health & Fitness

Focus: Reinforcing healthy habits, including nutritious snacking and physical activity.

Before and/or after school, students can learn about nutrition and fitness, while enjoying healthy snacks and fun activities. The healthy choices children make now inform their healthy decisions later in life.

Activities

  • Refining gross motor skills by playing a friendly game of H-O-R-S-E on the basketball court.
  • Participating in various track and field events, like racing and softball shot put.
  • Learning how to dribble a soccer ball while running.
  • Identifying healthy foods and discussing why certain foods provide more nutrition.
  • Playing a game of limbo to practice flexibility.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Play a friendly game of H-O-R-S-E on the basketball court.
  • Help your child learn how to dribble a soccer ball.
  • Identify healthy foods and discuss why certain foods provide more nutrition.
  • Play a game of Limbo to practice flexibility.

Character EssentialsSM

Focus: Our Character EssentialsSM is integrated throughout the Creative Explorers curriculum, fostering cooperation among the school-age students.

The small-group environment allows teachers to help children understand our society so they can develop into adults who respect others and get involved in their communities.

Activities

  • Learning about dependability by participating in a group project in which everyone has specific tasks to complete.
  • Learning about respect by having family members talk to the class about traditions and celebrations, then compiling photos, recipes and other noteworthy information into a Cultures of our Classroom book.

Learn On®

Learning continues beyond the classroom. Here are some easy projects you can do to extend learning into your home.

  • Help your child learn about dependability by coming up with a family project in which everyone has a specific task to complete.
  • Have your child interview grandparents or other family members about traditions and celebrations they remember from growing up.

Want to explore more?

Learn how we help your child develop into a thoughtful, caring, and adaptable individuals using our learning approach that exceeds state standards

How Life Essentials is different

Questions? Answers.

Explore some of the most frequently asked questions from parents of school-age children.

Q. What if my child gets sick?
A. We’ll call you or a designated adult from your Emergency Information Form so that your child can be picked up as soon as possible from the Academy. While waiting to be picked up, your child will rest quietly, away from other children.
Q. What policies are Academies required to have in place to address safety?
A. Our facilities and outdoor play areas are required to have secure entries and exits that are maintained by an electronic entry system. Only individuals authorized by you are allowed to pick up your child from the Academy. All employees are required to have undergone background checks prior to employment.
Q. Do I need to pack an after-school snack?
A. No. Kiddie Academy’s family-style dining program is an integral part of our curriculum and learning. We provide an assortment of healthy, age-appropriate snacks for the children to eat after school. Menus will be posted so that you can see what is being served.
Q. What if my child has allergies?
A. Due to the high number of children with peanut allergies, we do not serve peanut products. If your child has a specific allergy, please list them on our dietary restriction letter so that we can make appropriate food substitutions.
Q. What are teacher qualifications?
A. All Kiddie Academy teachers must meet or exceed the state requirements for child care providers and are required to receive ongoing professional training annually. We also require background checks through local, county, state and/or federal agencies prior to employment.
Q. What is your discipline policy?
A. We do not use physical or verbal punishment under any circumstances. We use positive guidance and re-direction to acknowledge children’s feelings and emotions and provide them with social scripts, problem-solving techniques, self-calming activities and choices and activities geared toward their interests.
Q. What will my child be doing?
A. Our before-school students can use their time to play, read quietly, exercise or interact with friends. After school, students can participate in our club programs, where they can explore topics that interest them. Check with your Academy to find out which clubs they offer.
Q. Can I drop in to observe?
A. Yes. We endorse an open-door policy and encourage families to visit at any time.
Q. Do you have parent-teacher conferences?
A. Yes. We schedule family/teacher conferences each year to discuss your child’s progress, but you can request a conference with the Director at any time.
Q. Do you take the children outdoors?
A. Yes, weather permitting, we take children outside daily. Children should be dressed appropriately for playing on our playground or taking group walks.
Q. How do you use technology in learning?
A. Kiddie Academy teachers use technology as learning tools and a means of communication. We feel it’s important to teach children how to use devices they will encounter in school, so they are given opportunities to use them for educational play and research. The use of televisions or computers for passive viewing is not part of Kiddie Academy’s curriculum.

Ready to learn more?

Your local Kiddie Academy has information about everything from programs and curriculum to tuition, drop-off and pick-up times.

Find an Academy near you

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