Berkeley Parents Network: Albany YMCA

Berkeley Parents Network

Albany YMCA

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Classes & Lessons > Albany YMCA

Kids Club After-school Programs
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Kids Club After-school Programs

Oct 2008

My child attends the Albany YMCA Kids Club in the morning. My child says the Director yells at them. I was wondering if any other child has brought this up to their parents? Or if anyone has any insight they'd like to share.

My child has attended the Albany Kids Club for many years (now in 4th year). In both his experience and from my personal observation, the YMCA staff are nurturning, kind, and responsible. The director of the morning program is a warm and gentle person. Like any adult responsible for taking care of children, she does sometimes have to redirect children's behavior. Your child may be having a hard time with a new person redirecting his/her behavior or that of others (especially if your child is very low-key him/herself and rarely needs redirection). Kids are sensitive and sometimes misinterpret and miscommunicate cues from others. But remember that there is quite a mix of children, some of whom really need a lot of guidance from adults regarding their interpersonal and behavioral skills.

By the way, if you have any concerns about the YMCA, the Site Coordinator will surely address them with you. a fellow mom

My son was in Kids' Club last year in kindergarten. He started very late in the year, so was feeling quite shy and anxious. The morning director, whom you were asking about, was very accommodating with any requests I had to help in my son's transition. I know that she would be willing to help your child feel more comfortable, if you have any input for her. The Program Director of Kids' Club is also very open to feedback, so if you just want someone to help sort out what's really going on, she's another great resource. I would also like to share that whenever we arrived at the Kids' Club Center (I arrived at varying times when they didn't necessarily expect to see parents) what I saw was appropriate behavior for staff who work with children. There were times that I heard the AM director raise her voice to be heard above the happy chatter of the children, but it was definitely not yelling. However, each child is an individual and responds differently to the octave or tone of others' voices. That is why I recommend that you discuss your concerns with the AM Director herself or with Alicia. Happy YMCA Mom

Jan 2008

Hi! My daughter will be starting Kindergarten in Albany in the Fall and I am looking for after school care 3 days a week. I'd love to hear recent experiences people have had with both the Y's Kid's club program, Albany Children's Center and the local on-site care at Marin. I'm looking for a program that is interesting and fun for the kids with plenty of supervision (especially if it's mixing 5th graders and Kindergartener's). Thanks so much! sl

Hi, I'm here to give you some feedback about the Albany YMCA program. I actually work for the Berkeley Y, so for me, choosing the Albany Y was a no-brainer. My children have been in the Albany YMCA Kids Club program from kindergarten up until now (middle school program for my oldest). The staff are well- trained, conscientious, and practice the YMCA character values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. Albany schools have such varied schedules that many times kindergartners aren't around the older kids that much. You mentioned concern about being around 5th graders, but the Y program is K-3 in the same building, 4-5th graders are at a different site altogether. The director, Alicia Butler, has always been very open to feedback. That was important because my two boys are not easy. One takes a long time to adjust to transitions, the other has ADHD. The two children are incredibly different and need to be handled quite differently. The staff were very accomodating and worked with me to find solutions when necessary. The Albany Y program also has quite flexible scheduling, and as a working mom that was very necessary. Good luck finding the right choice for you! Eden

March 2003

Re: Albany Middle School after school programs

As the director of the Albany YMCA Kids' Club program, I have some information about our own program to share. Most of the children in our after-school Kids' Club programs are K-5th grade, but there are two sites (one each in Berkeley & Albany) for ''older'' kids. The Marin School Kids' Club site is where the 4th-6th graders from Albany go. Typically, there are mostly 4th & 5th graders there, but it is open to 6th graders, too.

The daily program consists of homework time, outside sports/games, crafts, free play, and a healthy snack. Transportation from the middle school to the site is not provided as it is for the elementary kids (so the AMS kids usually walk or parents organize other transportation.) It's not a drop-in program, so enrollment is required and if a child does not show up -without parent notification- the staff call the parents and school in an attempt to track the child's whereabouts. For more info, call the YMCA at 525-1130 or visit the website at www.baymca.org.

I also know that AMS has been providing after-school classes, so you can call the school to ask about those. Good luck next year.

Paula Cooper

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