"Our Place" Afterschool (K-5)

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“Our Place” is an afterschool program for children in grades K through 5 to play, learn, do homework, have quiet time, explore new interests, and build social skills and lasting friendships. Supervised by our experienced staff, the program emphasizes creative, recreational, and learning opportunities. We take special efforts to build relationships with parents, families and schools to ensure each student is supported and thriving in the after school program.

Our students join us after school from elementary schools in Newton, Waltham, and surrounding communities. Because the age range represents a broad spectrum of interests and abilities, Our Place runs two classrooms, dedicated to the needs of Juniors (Kindergarten and First Graders) and Seniors (Second through Fifth Graders). Each classroom participates in age appropriate activities, games and reading times. In addition to their classrooms, Our Place students take advantage of NCSC’s full-sized gym, auditorium, and large outdoor playground with climbing structure, basketball court, playing field, and spray pool.

The hours at Our Place correspond with the local school schedules, and our calendar supports families during school vacation breaks. Our Place opens daily to accommodate Newton Public Schools' half-day kindergarten as well as Newton and Waltham early release days. We are open throughout the school year including full-day programs during the December, February and April school vacation weeks. On these longer days we may take a field trip or have a theme day. Our Place closes daily at 6:00pm and is typically closed on holidays.

In addition to our daily activities, we offer special programming such as weekly yoga, clubs, and Second Step, a violence prevention curriculum through which children role play and do problem-solving work on a variety of scenarios to build strategies for conflict resolution. We also have a team in the Newton After School Association basketball league, a cooperative program in which 3rd through 5th graders play with teams from other Newton after school programs in an effort to make friends all over the city.

Families are a critical part of our program. Without their support and input we could not make the home/school/after school connections that are so essential to each child’s success. Our Parent Advisory Council (PAC) meets monthly to share parent feedback with NCSC and to plan special events. We have an open door policy at “Our Place” and do our best to make all families feel welcome to stay and play, share concerns with or ask questions of our teachers and support staff, and provide us with information about home life that may help us better support children during after school hours. Our monthly newsletter is another way that NCSC keeps parents up-to-date on activities, special events, or ways that we can all work together to make after school, and the lives of NCSC children and families, even richer.

“Our Place” staff members are experienced teachers, committed to meeting the social, emotional, and cognitive needs of each child. Our team-teaching model allows them to pool their knowledge, address a diverse range of learning styles, and build creative curriculum that reflects the interests of the children.

Our program is licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care.