After School Program in St. Joseph MO

After-school activity

An after-school activity is any organized program that youth can participate in outside of the traditional school day. Some programs are run by a primary or secondary school, while others are run by externally funded non-profit or commercial organizations. After-school youth programs can occur inside a school building or elsewhere in the community, for instance at a community center, church, library, or park. After-school activities are a cornerstone of concerted cultivation, which is a style of parenting that emphasizes children gaining leadership experience and social skills through participating in organized activities.[1] Such children are believed by proponents to be more successful in later life, while others consider too many activities to indicate overparenting.[2] Research has shown that structured after-school programs can lead to better test scores, improved homework completion, higher grades, and even improved psychosocial development among students.[3] Additionally, certain activities or programs have made strides in closing the achievement gap, or the gap in academic performance between white students and students of color as measured by standardized tests.[4][5] Though the existence of after-school activities is relatively universal, different countries implement after-school activities differently, causing after-school activities to vary on a global scale.