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The importance of youth leadership programming in elementary schools Childhood is spent brimming with fascinations of the future – ideas of what infinite potential can amount to, ambitions of fulfilling some innate passion, and the mystery of what the years ahead hold. Some will take on leadership roles, becoming agents in their community. How can…

Play is a behavior that is natural and has existed for thousands of years and across species. It combines a set of made-up rules or norms and a willingness to explore. Researchers, scientists, and doctors have studied the effects of play on kids–and adults–and understand that this natural behavior has tremendous benefits. As the American…

It’s the holiday season! Schools and Playworks are counting down the days until winter break, but first we’re focusing on managing disappointment and teaching positive body language.  We all know that it can be incredibly easy to get swept up in the negative emotions a disappointment brings because our expectations were not met. For kids,…

The entire Todd Elementary community – teachers, lunch monitors and students – are working towards building a better recess…the school recently hired Playworks, an organization creates a better recess experience by helping navigate conflict resolution, building students’ leadership skills and, ultimately, enhancing students’ academic success.

“You can’t do SEL, trauma, or equity work without each other,” Jennette Claassen, Head of Evaluation, Playworks. As Playworks continued to progress on our equity journey, we explored a critical question: what are the intersections between play, social and emotional learning, physical activity, and trauma? A working group focused on this question decided, among other…

Play brings out the best in every kid. Over the course of 25 years since Jill Vialet founded Playworks, she and her colleagues, as well as researchers and play experts, have demonstrated precisely how and why play works to help kids learn and grow in the most positive and healthy ways. Jill gathered stories from people…

When the Buffalo Sabres Foundation was looking for ways to virtually engage their young fans after their Kids Club programming was canceled due to COVID, they turned to Playworks. Building off of the Sabres’ interest in introducing ice hockey to more girls, Playworks created the Girls Community Leadership Program. Dontae Privette, Playworks Community Engagement and…

As more and more schools transition back to in-person learning, we know educators are looking for games that are physically-distant and don’t require equipment. The need for play is more important than ever due to the isolation that our kids have endured during COVID-19. Play encourages creativity, flexibility, teamwork, and other critical social skills. We’ve…

One year ago… All of our partner schools closed their buildings and our work serving kids in schools risked coming to a halt. We knew our mission had to continue. We remained committed to providing opportunities for joy and connection through play for kids in a COVID safe way, regardless if their school was virtual,…

“Schools are going weeks without hearing from kids. Calling it a tragedy doesn’t do it justice. Even if kids are safe, they’re still lost kids because they aren’t connected,” Tyler Davis, Playworks Site Coordinator in Buffalo, NY, explains about kids in the pandemic who haven’t been attending school virtually. At the end of the pandemic,…