In addition to the myriad of activities for Club members in grades K-12 we provide in our Clubs@Home learning platform, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee’s academic staff is pleased to offer a variety of family engagement opportunities for our parents, guardians, and caregivers. In the resources section below, you’ll discover many wonderful activities you may enjoy with the Club member in your life.
These resources and activities are designed to support the emotional and mental well-being of Club members in areas such as self-care, coping with loss, and motivation & goal-setting. We hope you find these resources useful!
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Activities for Caregivers
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Building Resilience
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Looking to build your resilience? Rogers InHealth has the tool for you. Please take a moment for yourself to look at this series of videos about Compassion Resilience -- in other words, staying compassionate to yourself in order to be there for others. (And understanding what is in our control, and what is not!)
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That the world is under a lot of stress right now is an understatment. Every time you turn on the TV or check your phone there seems to be another reason for your stress level to increase. Please take caer of yourself, and check out this article fromthe Compassion Resilience Toolkit for tips on how to do so.
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The State of Wisconsin recognizes the need to support everyone's resilience as we travel through adversity together. Please check out their new website, Resilient Wisconsin, for tips for building resilience.
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To say that the world is under a lot of stress right now is an understatement. Every Time you turn on the TV or check your phone there seems to be another reason for your stress level to increase. Please take care of yourself, and check out this article from the Compassion Reslience toolkit for tips on how to do so.
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Unfortunately, many people are struggling to stay resilient right now, and issues of domestic unrest are on the rise. If you or someone you know needs tips for staying safe during the COVID shutdown, please consult the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
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Coping With Loss
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The National Helpline is a great resource to call to get referrals for help based on your situation involving grief or loss.
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Any kind of loss is never easy to deal with and everyone copes with loss differently. Check out this article that explains what grief is, how to recognize grief and how to get through harder times in a healthy manner.
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Disappointment is a genuine feeling among everyone during this pandemic. Many significant events like, weddings, funerals, vacations, and graduations have been put on hold or even cancelled. Despite the immense disappointment caregivers may be experiencing, it is very important to not lose sight of the disappointments our teens can be experiencing. Here is an article that provides useful strategies for assisting teenagers during this difficult time.
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Grief is a complex topic for adults, imagine how difficult it is for children. Children experience grief but many times parents do not know how to address this topic with children. Despite the difficulty, children should not have to grieve alone. It is essential that children have support from loving caregivers. This video provides tips on how to help your child process grief
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It is so difficult to know how to help a child deal with a death. While these practices can be applied to many areas of loss and grief, this article from Kids Health gives you 10 more ways to help a child dealing with the loss of a loved one.
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Social Distancing is especially hard on teens. Check out this article for 8 ways to help teens cope with the social distancing blues.
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This article is about recognizing grief in our children. Greif can look very different in children because they are facing completely different issues on a daily basis. This article will help you be able to recognize grief and gives you advice and a starting point for addressing grief based on different issues that may be impacting your children.
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This video about the grieving process is a great resource for one to look at when you are dealing with the loss of a loved one or another great loss. There is no correct way to deal with loss and this video will help you see that and help you see the many directions you can go when learning to cope with loss.
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Healthy Relationships
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How healthy are the relationships in your life? You may be asking yourself “why is this important?”. To answer that question, we encourage you to check out this article that gives you five benefits of a healthy relationship.
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Do you want to quick way to stay connected with loved ones without taking too much time from your self-care or your kids? "Just Checking In" gives ideas for a ten-minute, ten-question check-in.
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Do you wish you could help your children develop better relationships? This list from sheerbalance.com will provide you with 5 ways to encourage your kids to act in their friendships and relationships. We encourage you to practice these behaviors too to help your kids understand how to practice them as well.
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Try this Spaghetti and Marshmallow Game for Relationship Building with the kids you love!
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Try this Spiderweb Game with the kids you love!
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We hope you enjoy this video on games you can play with kids to help them regulate their emotions, and set them on the path to self-care!
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It is important to make sure that we surround ourselves with healthy relationships instead of toxic ones. This article helps you define and recognize healthy relationships. In healthy relationships we can set boundaries and our friends and family will respect them. Take a look at this article to see what is and isn’t a healthy relationship.
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While our day-to-day lives may be altered including annual routines with friends and family, we can still maintain healthy relationships during a pandemic. This article will help you be aware of ways to avoid falling into unhealthy habits and encourage healthy ones.
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Identifying Feelings
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Check out the following article for some simple ways for caregivers to help children identify their feelings.
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Gather up the paper plates and markers, families, and enjoy this activity about how to identify our feelings. (While you're at it, you might like to watch the movie Inside Out"!
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This resource from "KidsHelpLine"is about helping children express their emotions in healthy ways.
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This video puts you in the living room of a Child Psychologist. It's called: Children, Teens, and COVID-19: Identifying and Validating Feelings
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Motivation & Goal-Setting
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This Small Talk video will get your child thinking about their goals. Use it as a chance to start the conversation about goal setting with your kids. Perhaps take the time to write down some goals for yourself. Invite your child to do this with you so you can help each other monitor your progress. Have fun!
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Grab your kids and some building blocks, and see what you can create with a goal in mind.
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Practice goal-setting with your children by playing this activity, called "Three Stars and a Wish"
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Please see this video for top five reasons you should set goals. No matter how big or small, setting goals and writing them down makes us more likely to achieve them and this video will talk about the positive outcomes that come from goal setting.
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Setting goals helps youth and teens develop early on in their lives that can help them be more likely to achieve their goals in the future. Check out this link that will give you seven tips for teaching your kids goal setting and what to do if your kids fall short of your goals.
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This short article talks about what a SMART Goal is and provides examples of SMART Goals that you can use to create your own. SMART Goals will help you plan out and track the goals that you have set and the progress you have made towards completing them.
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Here are some tips about keeping children of any age motivated. After reading this article, try and use one tip a day while slowly adding more to try and keep your child focused on the importance of school. Changes to your child’s motivation cannot be seen overnight so it is important to remember the long-term effect these tips will have on your child.
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Here is a 4-minute video that you can watch as you start your day. Whether it be today or any other day you wake up and don’t feel the urge to get out of bed or be productive, I encourage you to watch this video in the morning (maybe as you drink your coffee to listen to it as you get dressed) for some extra motivation to help get you through the day.
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Please check out the following for some self-care inspiration around motivating yourself every day, even when it seems impossible!
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Check out these great activities to do as a family, around MOTIVATING your little ones!
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Motivation is the key to our success and living better day to day lives. here is an article that explains the importance of self-motivation. While our children may have us to help them stay motivated there may be times when we have to motivate ourselves. We hope you see this article as an opportunity to understand why we should keep self-motivating.
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Routines & Consistency
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Here is a great article about the Seven Habits of Happy Children. Hope you enjoy, and that it brings some more routines, consistency, and JOY to your life!
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We are all aware that adolescents are marked with a lot of changes and unpredicatbility. Some fo the changes teens go through are physical, emotional, and social. For this reason, it is extremely crucial that teens have some type of consistency and routine from the adults in their life. Check out this article that outlines the reasons why teens need consistency and routine.
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Hello Caregivers! During this pandemic, we are living in a world that is constantly changing so we may not feel like there is a large amount of consistency, so let's think about how we can help ourselves with that. When we are consistent, we behave in the same way on a day to day basis and have the same feelings towards things we experience regularly. Check out this article that addresses the uncertainty that comes along with a pandemic and why we should control what we can and how to deal with the lack of consistency that we are also experiencing!
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In this talk, Simon Sinek teaches the importance consistency plays in leadership and relationships. We can’t work really hard one time and hope to be the best, it is the accumulation of days and days of hard work that gives us the best results. Check out this video that applies the impact of consistency to both our relationship with our families and our ability to be a leader whether that be amongst our families, our friends, our jobs, or with our children.
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Today we have a video from Jennifer Katzenstein Ph.D, who is the director of psychology and neuropsychology at John Hopkins All Children's Hospital. In this video, she provides strategies for families to maintain structure at home as well as maintain self-care and mental health during Covid-19.
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When we practice consistency in positive ways, we develop routines and habits that will become easier to execute. We can use consistency to accomplish goals, change our daily routine, and better ourselves. Check out this article that highlights the importance of consistency and how it can translate to real world experiences.
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Self-Care
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Have you ever felt overwhelmed? Like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done? If so, this Ted Talk is for you: "Dear Overwhelmed Moms, Self-Care isn't Selfish."
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This article is about self-care, and shares a few ways we can practice it. While this concept may seem overwhelming, there are simple things we can add to our schedules in order to help us take more time for ourselves throughout the day.
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Have you ever felt overwhelmed? Like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done? If so, this Ted Talk is for you: "Dear Overwhelmed Moms, Self-Care isn't Selfish."
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Here is a self-care video just for you, for when you are managing the "new normal" of your own situation.
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In this Ted Talk, Portia Jackson-Preston shares her story she will challenge you to try to create a schedule of self-care in efforts to really commit to the practice. We encourage you to take this challenge and bring it into your home and families and encourage your young ones to also practice self-care and stress management techniques on a daily basis
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Many times, when you have children self-management or self-care, can be last on your list of priorities. It is important that parents take the time to care for themselves, in order to be their best selves for their children. Check out this article that provides useful tips for parents to practice self-care, especially during this unprecedented time.
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The following is an article from Perimeter HealthCare that describes the importance of self-care. Self-Care is about understanding yourself and the things you need to be your best self for those around you. The article also provides tips to improve your own wellbeing. Enjoy!
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This pandemic is stretching everyone to the limit! This article might help you set aside any guilt you may be feeling as a caregiver, and give yourself permission to be there for YOU!
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Today we have an article from Perimeter HealthCare that describes the importance of self-care. Self-Care is about understanding yourself and the things you need to be your best self for those around you. The article also provides tips to improve your own wellbeing. Enjoy!
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Self-Regulation
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Even when we're talking about our worries, we can still have some fun! Check out this activity to do with someone in your family, and hopefully figure out what pushes YOUR buttons, and how to deal!
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Check out this awesome article that provides stratgies to help children gain self-control.
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Self-Management is a skill that is difficult for many people to master, particularly children. This article discusses how caregivers can help their children understand and regulate their emotions in a productive manner.
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Teaching teens to resolve emotions in positive ways is such a big and important job. We hope this resource can help!
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We all know how difficult it is to be a child or teen. They are faced with many challenges and stressors. It is important to teach Them how to effectively manage their emotions during this crucial time. As well as, be sensitive to the array of emotions they can be experiencing. This article provides useful information on how to support kids and teens during this pandemic.
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Take a much-deserved brain break, and have some FUN engaging in meditation with your kids!
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Try this activity with young people in your home who need some calming down, or to some lessons in problem-solving. Enjoy!
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We hope you enjoy this video on games you can play with kids to help them regulate their emotions, and set them on the path to self-care!
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Stress Management
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How does COVID-19 anxiety impact children? Strategies for caregivers to manage hidden stress affecting kids during the shutdown, with age-specific tips -- a special report worth sharing!
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Being a caregiver is a lot to handle, even in the best of times. If you're feeling a little anxious, check out this resources about helping ourselves stay calm for the sake of the kids. Then, go have some fun with those kiddos!
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Check out this article and start to consider how you can add these stress mangagment tips and tricks into your daily practices
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Check out this video called “How to help your child manage stress.” It can be challenging to understand when our children are stressed and what we can do to alleviate that stress. This video provides helpful strategies on how to identify when your child is stressed and how you can help them.
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Here is a guided deep-breathing technique to help manage stress. Enjoy this practice on your own, or use it as a strategy for helping the kids in your house learn to calm and focus, as well. Enjoy!
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It is safe to say that we all are experiencing a little more stress than usual these days. The uncertainty that the coronavirus presents has everyone on their toes. Look at this video that describes how to handle stress and anxiety during this precarious time. Hopefully, you will find something that can help you manage stress.
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Stress management and self-care are two very important practices that can change our lives in big ways. These practices do not have to be very time consuming or expensive but our ability to incorporate them in our daily lives to whatever extent we can will be beneficial. Check out this article, that gives you general information about what causes stress, what stress looks like and how we can use self-care to respond to it.
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This quick video about coping with Covid-19. This video discusses creative ways to cope with social distancing and manage stress.
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We all know how difficult it is to be a teenager. Teenagers are faced with many challenges and stressors. It is important to teach teenagers how to effectively manage their emotions during this crucial time. As well as, be sensitive to the array of emotions teenagers can be experiencing. This article provides useful information on how to support teenagers during this pandemic.
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We are living now in a much more stressful time than anyone could have imagined. With the nervousness and lack of consistency due to the COVID-19 outbreak, stress levels may be at an all-time high. Check out this video from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on how to manage anxiety and stress that has surfaced as a result of the COIV-19 outbreak.
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Clubs@Home Activities (6-12)