Today was "Park Day." We started off by purchasing snacks at Gelsons for them to take to a local park. After a short stop in the office to pick up supplies (Frisbee, horseshoes, badminton rackets, soccer ball) we took a 10 minute walk to Libbitt Park, just north of Ventura Blvd. Except for 1-2 kids, all of them engaged in a variety of physical play activities, which they mostly structured themselves. I worked with them on a little bit of soccer (my years of soccer coaching paid off) and on how to throw Frisbees (it's all in the wrist action, you know!).
Lunch occurred at California Pizza Kitchen and went extremely smoothly. Just to make you aware, whenever a child needs to use the restroom (that seems to happen a lot), I go in and make certain the environment is safe. Depending, I either wait if other adults are present, or wait outside if your child is the only one there. The counselors do the same for the girls in the group.
At this point, we're looking for quick decision-making when ordering, compromising, and social interaction. Most of the kids had "kid's meals" and I supplemented by ordering a couple of extra pizzas and a full salad, which a couple of kids earn Hero Tickets for trying.
We came back after lunch and conducted our first "blue ticket" raffle. Everyone wins in this one, however there are limitations on the number of certain prizes (e.g., Slinkys) so those who win earlier have more choices. The process of "winning" is an exercise in itself. The kids receive color-coded strips with all of the tickets sorted in numerical order. This makes it much easier than poking through a pile of tickets to see if they won. We call out the last 3 digits of the number, and paying attention certainly matters. We give extra attention to those kids who might have any learning challenges to help guide them through what to do. Once they win, they either go into the other room where a counselor is seated with prizes on the desk. Or, if another child is already in there, they wait in the magazine room until it is their turn. Interestingly, if a child becomes too absorbed in their magazine, they might miss their turn as another child goes in. We allow this to occur, then remind them to pay attention to when it is their turn.
Once in the room, they can ask questions about the different prizes (robot spiders, slinkys, gift cards for $10 to different stores, etc) and can choose 2 small prizes or 1 bigger one. Acknowledging the counselor's "Congratulations!" is important. We're not so concerned with what they say, just that it be context-relevant and that they show some body orientation toward the counselor as they respond.
The LUNCH Points program is now up and running. Consult the web site, http://www.lunchgroups.com, or email me if you have any questions.
Bruce
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