Computers have become an important part of our lives in the present time. Right from our home, school or workplace, they play a critical role in helping us perform all our tasks easily and quickly. Thus, it is very important that kids must be made aware of its basic functionality and how to use it in a productive way.They should be exposed to this technology at an early age so that they are fully prepared to cope with the digital world.

Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas offers various computer skills programs for the kids of different age groups. With an aim of improving their educational as well as practical knowledge, the club arranges classes for the children to know about the working of computer and its components. The programs offered at the club include:

• Skill Tech: This program involves teaching basic computer skills to the children. It aims at increasing their efficiency in creating spreadsheets, word processing as well as a lot of other constructive software. The club organizes various practical and interactive classes for the kids to learn this new skill in a fun manner. The ‘Skill Tech’ program is sponsored by the Microsoft Corporation and developed under the Club Tech initiative by BGCA.
• Skill Tech II: This program is intended to impart practical and advanced computer skills to the kids aged 6 to 18 years. The instructors use different course related interactive, animated tutorials and group activities to impart the skills to the club members. They are also made familiar with the computer hardware, software, networking components and technology related career opportunities. This program is also developed through Club Tech initiative of BGCA and funded by Microsoft Corporation.

Given here are some of the benefits of enrolling your child in the computer skills program at Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas:

• Boosts academic growth: A good knowledge of computers opens many career opportunities for the kids.
• Promotes creative expression: Various designing, music, animation and other software’s can help the children to bring out their creativity.
• Provides better learning opportunities: Computers provide for a wonderful source of learning for the kids. 
• Develops motor skills: Certain computer activities also help the kids to develop their motor skills. They can also improve their hand eye coordination by playing certain games that involve the use of both mouse and keyboard.

For more details about our computer skills program, you can call at (254) 699 – 5808.

Childhood is an appropriate time to try new tasks and discover a child’s talent. As a parent one must encourage the kid to be creative and help them recognize their potential in any field. Photography is an interesting hobby that appeals to many kids. Due to the easy availability of cameras and smart phones with in-built cameras, picking up this skill has gotten much easier. Thus if you sense that your child has a natural bent towards photography you should motivate them to get better at it.

Some of the career opportunities, related to photography, that your kids could pursue are:

• Photojournalists: One of the most prominent career options in photography is photojournalism. The photojournalists have keen observation skills and gather news through their pictures. They can work for magazines, newspapers, and websites or as a freelancer. 
• Art photography: Art photographers sell their work to shops, museums and art studios. Their pictures are made into posters and prints. This type of photography requires still life photography skills that the photographer uses to click objects, buildings, food and artistic images. Such photographers can work for advertising and marketing companies, restaurants and food publications.
• Forensic photographer: Children can also develop their career in photography to be a forensic photographer. These photographers work for police to document evidences at the crime spot. This is also an interesting work profile related to photography.
• Event photography: This is a lucrative career option as the photographer documents special events such as fashion shows, parties, weddings and birthdays. This type of photography requires artistic skills and good management.
• Portrait photography: Another career option is portrait photography. The photographer works from a studio and click portraits of children, families, high school students and events.

Parents can encourage children to learn photography skills from the childhood days. They should motivate them to click pictures and teach them about the right techniques to click different types of pictures. Parents should get their child more involved in activities and competitions related to photography in their school or at city level. They can also take them to photography exhibitions to explore the work of other photographers and appreciate them. Another way to introduce photography into your child’s life, as a hobby is to make them join kids' club or classes so that they can hone their skills

We, at Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas organize ImageMakers National Photography Contest to encourage kids between 6-18 years to learn and practice photography. For more information, visit 304 W Ave B, Killeen, TX - 76541 or call (254) 699-5808.

Physical activity is extremely important for kids of all ages. It helps them stay healthy and provides for the overall development of their social and emotional well-being. Swimming is one the best form of exercise as it works on multiple joints of the body without putting any excess stress or pressure on them. It is advisable to indulge kids in this fun activity at an early age.

Benefits of swimming classes for kids:

• Improves Physical Health: Swimming is a tremendous cardiovascular exercise that promotes the proper functioning of lungs and heart. It also helps to improve muscle strength and suppleness, improves body posture and balance, as well as boosts stamina.
• Improves Body Strength: In contrast to the exercises targeting a specific set of muscles, swimming helps to work on the entire body at the same time. It helps to stretch and strengthen the biceps, triceps, arms, legs abdominal and the hamstring muscles.
• Improves Social Skills: Participating in swimming leagues will provide your kid an opportunity to meet and socialize with children of his age group. Thus, he will be able to enhance his social skills and widen his knowledge base by interacting with them.
• Ensures Safety: Learning how to swim can help you make sure that your child is safe in and near water. This will also greatly reduce the risk of any danger in case your child accidently falls into an unguarded pool. Swimming will help the child to build strength and endurance, swim underwater and also develop lifesaving skills to be able to rescue others in danger.

Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas offers ‘Swim Team’ program for the kids aged 7 to 17 years. The registration for the league starts in early May every year. The swim meets are held in June and the members are made to compete against the youth of same age and gender. The parents will be responsible for getting the child to and from the swim meets and practice sessions. They must bring along $55 as league fees per child and a copy of the kid’s birth certificate at the time of registration.

To enroll your child in the swim team of Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas, you can call at (254) 699 – 5808 or visit 304 W Ave B, Killeen, TX – 76541.

Kids are always curious to learn new and interesting things. They have a lot of energy that can be used in a number of constructive activities. Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas organizes various fun-filled and exciting programs for the kids in Texas. The activities offered at the club are suitable for children of all age groups and are intended to explore, nurture and develop the underlying talents within them. The after school programs for kids are educational and entertaining at the same time.

Given below are some of the after-school activities that the parents can consider for their children:

• Music: The summer music camp organized by the club aims at providing a platform to the kids aged 13-18 years to discover various forms of poetry and music. Right from learning to play different musical instruments, writing music and lyrics, the kids are mentored by renowned poets and artists. Open MIC nights, rusting tent camping and canoe tips are also organized.
• Fine Arts Programs: This is one of the most loved after school programs for kids. It is a fun activity that encourages artistic expression among them. Children aged between 6-18 years can enroll themselves in creative activities like painting, drawing, mixed media, collage, printmaking and sculpture making.
• Drama: Theater or drama is an after school activity that interests a majority of children. The activities also cater to children who like to be behind the cameras as they can pick up skills like production, direction and scripting.
• Sports: Participating in sports is a very healthy physical activity. It helps to keep the children fit and healthy while, at the same time, encourages teamwork and sportsman spirit in them. The club offers various sports league such as tackle football, basketball, swimming and cheerleading for kids of different age groups.
• Health And Life Skills: These programs are intended to guide and prepare kids to face the challenges of life and make them physically, socially as well as emotionally strong. Right from teaching them oral hygiene, resistance skills and positive conduct, these activities help them develop into responsible citizens of the society.

For more information about the interesting after school activities offered at Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas, you can call us at (254) 699 – 5808.

Early childhood years are crucial as the brain develops quickly and children are more open to learning. They are more receptive and easily imitate everything that they experience. As children are interactive in nature and depending upon their speech abilities they try to express themselves in different ways such as gestures, sounds, words and sentences.

Children who have poor speech development usually suffer from delayed learning in life. Therefore, it is essential to develop their speech and language skills. Kids clubs play a crucial role in enhancing these skills, as children interact with many other children of different ages.  The instructors at the clubs have experience of dealing with children with varied speech development levels. The clubs offer an array of language-based activities that help the kids expand their vocabulary, improve speech and understand communication. Some of the activities organized at kids club include:

• Role-playing: It is an activity used to help children develop communication skills. During role-plays, the children are given imaginative situations where they get into character and act out a role. Role Play is a social activity that helps children develop communication skills as well as the knowledge of a topic. Role-play sparks brainstorming sessions and helps children see situations from different perspectives. Besides developing communication skills and language abilities, role-playing helps children explore, investigate and experiment. The instructors dramatize the situations and add costumes to make the activity more interesting and entertaining.
• Interactive and Loud Reading: Books are one of the best tools that kid’s club use to improve language skills of the children. The instructors read the stories to the children on regular basis to introduce new vocabulary. Asking questions while reading and encouraging the kids to ask questions also helps. The instructors encourage children to provide a climax to the story and read aloud, as it builds fluency and confidence.
• Ask Questions: Certain games that involve questioning help children acquire good communication skills. By showing an object and asking related questions, such as what that object is, what it does, etc., can encourage the children to talk and express themselves. The questions prompt the children to talk, participate and put forward their opinions.

We, at Boys & Girls Clubs Of Central Texas organize various actvities to develop speech and language skills in kids. All our programs aim at making the kids confident about their language skills. For more information, call us at (254) 699 - 5808 or visit 304 W Ave B, Killeen, TX - 76541.

Schools introduce arts from the basic classes to enhance the skills of kids who learn a number of life skills from different arts such as drawing, painting, theater, and music. It is found that arts activities lead to building of kids’ brains. When a kid is involved in an arts activity, the right brain stimulates, which is used in intuition, emotional perception, and creativity. Here are some of the skills that kids learn from arts.

Confidence

With stage exposure, the kids not only develop their presentation skills, but also gain confidence. Theater is an activity, which helps kids grow confident and take command of the stage. While training, the kids do mistakes and learn from them, thus, it helps them learn new things out of their comfort zone. They learn to interact with the audience and control them.

Creativity

Arts help children explore their creativity and thus, think out of box. When they paint their imagination or dance, they see life from different angles and think differently, which makes them stand out. They may compose a new poem, write a story, compose a song, and indulge in various other activities that show their creative side. This creativity becomes one of their biggest assets in future.

Problem Solving Skills

Most of the arts activities help kids become problem solvers, as they are constantly exposed to problems. They work through challenges and test possibilities. They make assessments and try to solve the problems by using different techniques. This practice, for sure, enhances the kids’ ability to reason and helps them succeed in life. They learn that there can be many solutions to a problem.

Communication Skills

By painting, drawing, or doing other arts activities, children learn to communicate visually. They use art to express their emotions and feelings when they cannot actually communicate in words. They paint their experiences in colors and share it with the help of other forms of art. Art is much powerful than verbal language and communicates feelings more expressively.

Ability To Focus

Arts work helps in developing one of the major skills that is ability to focus. Arts require focus and concentration and thus, the kids who indulge in art are more focused on different aspects of their work. This applies to other aspects of life.

Collaboration

When kids practice arts, they collaborate with each other and thus, learn to work together, make adjustments with others, and share the responsibility to achieve common goals. They learn that their contribution is valuable for being successful. Contributing in their own way, they achieve satisfaction and confidence. When they understand that their actions affect the performance of the entire team, they learn to be accountable.

Besides these skills, the kids develop many other skills such as fine motor skills, social and emotional skills, etc.

Incorporating exercises in your child’s daily routine plays a crucial role in promoting their fitness and good health. In this age of video games and computers, children must get involved in some sort of sports to have their share of physical activity. Participating in youth football helps in the physical wellbeing of your child and helps develop healthy social and moral habits.

Here are some of the reasons why parents should encourage their child to participate in youth football:

• Teamwork: Being a part of youth football team will help your child learn the importance of teamwork in winning a game. Playing as a whole unit, the child learns to be responsible and how the negligence of one player can be disastrous for the entire team.
• Exercise: Youth football demands a lot of physical input on the part of the players. It is recommended that children must do at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day. The jumping, running and throwing involved in the game can help your kid achieve this target. Boost your child to give his maximum effort for the contribution he makes towards getting a win for the team. This will not only make him shine in the sport but also develop his moral character.
• Friendship: Enrolling in youth football provides an opportunity to meet and greet new people. Taking part in practice sessions with the teammates, playing, winning and losing helps to develop a strong bond between them. Having a common positive interest fosters a healthy relationship among the team members.
• Character: Football provides an opportunity to experience many important times that are a part of life. Succeeding through sheer determination and hard work, handling defeat with dignity and improving at a skill lay the foundation for the development of a strong character.
• Time Management: Adding football schedule in the child’s daily schedule will encourage them to effectively manage time and priorities. They will learn how to maintain a balance between two or more important things at a time.

Youth football is a great way to unlock your child’s physical capacities as well as refine his social skills. It can help your child become a better person, athlete and teammate.

Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas organize Youth Tackle Football League for the kids of different age groups. For more details about the programs offered, you can call at (254) 699 – 5808 or visit at 304 W Ave B, Killeen, TX – 76541.

Math is one of the most challenging subjects in school and as a parent, it is your responsibility to ensure that your child becomes competent in math, which is required to opt the career oriented, advanced high school courses. Whether your child is 8 or 18, it is essential that he or she should have good mathematical skills, as it helps the child explore better future opportunities in school and select suitable career.

Here are some tips that can help your child master math skills.

• Make their mathematical concepts clear: Ensure your children understand the basic mathematical concepts and their fundamentals are clear. The children should not consider math as a boring subject and you should make it interesting and fun for them.
• Make them learn and practice the basic facts: To help your children master math skills, it is crucial that you make your children understand the facts and practice them. Help them solve the mathematical problems and learn the basic facts.
• Help your children when they need help: Math is a subject that requires consistent practice along with deep understanding. If the teacher of your child is not able to explain the concept, then you must help the child or hire a tutor to help him. Sit with the child and motivate him to solve the problem.
• Motivate the child to do more than assigned: Usually children do as much work as assigned and avoid doing regular practice. Motivate your children to do extra practice to hone their math skills. By doing related problems, they can strengthen their skills and gain more confidence.
• Make sure your child does the math homework: The purpose of assigning homework is to reinforce the skills that children learn in their class. Teach them to refer to their textbook or reference books to solve the math problems.
• Encourage the child to play mathematical games: The best way to learn a new concept is through games. Motivate them to solve puzzles and play mathematical games that exercise their brain.
• Help them do mental math: Mental math is an interesting way to do calculations. Teach them to do calculations in their mind without using pen and paper while discouraging the use of calculators. Ask them to solve the problems in their mind and this will help them make mental math a part of their routine life.

These tips will help you inculcate strong math skills in your child.

We at Boys and Girls Clubs Of Central Texas organize ‘Power Hour’ for kids between 6-16 years of age. This program aims at providing them tutoring classes. For more details, visit us at 304 W Ave B, TX- 76541 or call at (254) 699-5808.

Developing a strong character and leadership qualities is a crucial part of the overall growth of young children. Various programs are organized at Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas to instill and encourage these important assets in children up to the age of 18 years. These programs also help to develop leadership skills in children by providing them ample opportunities for decision making, planning, volunteering, crisis management etc.

Some of the character and leadership programs offered by Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas are:

• Youth of the Year: This is a primary youth recognition program for all the members of the club. It is aimed at promoting academic performance, life goals, moral character, ability to speak in public, poise, and service to family, community and the club. The program is implemented year round to foster personal growth, character as well as leadership qualities. Regional clubs select ‘Youths of the month’ and a ‘Youth of the Year’ from the members aged 14- 18 years who represent their respective clubs in the state level competition.
• Torch Clubs: This is a small leadership club for children aged 11-13 years. Torch Clubs are basically aimed at driving children to the right path when they are at a critical developmental stage, i.e. adolescence. The members of this club are motivated to work in groups to perform activities in different areas including social recreation, health and fitness, education and service to community and the club. Children who give an outstanding performance in all the four areas round the year are presented with ‘Staples National Torch Club Awards’.
• Keystone Clubs: These are active leadership clubs for teens aged 14-18 years. The kids club organizes various activities in different areas including character and leadership development, unity, social recreation, service to community and club, education and career assessment. The members of the club are also nominated to direct committees that organize local and national Keystone seminars every year. 
• Goals for Growth: Through this program, kids aged 8-12 years are encouraged to set and achieve life goals, identify their strengths, and enhance self-esteem by reinforcing their progress. The members are made to set goals in six areas including service to others, school improvement, career awareness, club involvement, personal improvement, skills and hobbies.

For more details about the character and leadership programs offered by Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas, you can call at (254) 699-5808.

Art activities are essential for the overall growth of a child. Like other recreational activities, children should be encouraged to develop an interest in art. Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas organize various art activities for kids of different age groups. As a part of their arts program, the club offers various activities that are aimed at helping the kids discover their creative side.

Some of the art activities organized by Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas include:

• National Fine Arts Exhibit Program: This program enrolls kids of 6-18 years of age. The program intends to boost the artistic side of the children by way of collage, painting, drawing, mixed media, printmaking, sculptures etc. Each year, a panel of judges selects the most unique piece of art which is displayed at all events of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) for the subsequent year.
• ImageMakers National Photography Contest: This program is specifically aimed at the photography enthusiasts between the age of 6 and 18 years. In this, the kids are made familiar with different techniques of photography, including digital, black and white, color and alternative process. The members are encouraged to freely showcase their skills and interests. Also, there are various regional level contests held to recognize and commend their creativity.
• Digital Arts Suite and Festivals: With a view to develop career options for the kids, Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas also teach digital arts to the kids. This includes Design Tech (graphic designing), Web Tech (website designing), Music Tech and Photo Tech (photo designing). The kids are also made familiar with editing and filming movies, writing screenplays etc.
• Summer Music Camp: Kids aged 13-18 years can enroll themselves in this program to learn various musical instruments, writing music and scripting lyrics by professional mentors. The music camp is organized in collaboration with Texas Folk Music Foundation (TFMF).
• Drama Matters: This program, organized in partnership with TNT DramaMatters Afterschool, is aimed at increasing the awareness of kids about the benefits of drama and theater.

All the programs offered by Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas focus on complete physical, social, emotional as well as psychological development of the kids. For more information about their programs or to enroll your child with the club, feel free to call at (254) 699 – 5808.