As part of our Back To School Giving Campaign through Oct. 15, Civic Nebraska is highlighting our outside-of-school programs and sharing what they see. Earlier this month, Director of Development Sarah Walker and Grant Writer Alex Brechbill checked out Civic Nebraska’s Community Learning Center at Sherman Elementary School in Omaha.
We visited Sherman Elementary in Omaha on a recent Tuesday and were greeted by Miss Bri – that’s Brianna White, Civic Nebraska’s site director at Sherman – and Madi, Bri’s program assistant. Bri and Madi explained that the clubs and activities for the day were Tennis and Culinary Club, and the day’s snack was a breaded chicken sandwich with some yummy peaches for a side dish.
Madi and Alex went outside to the tennis courts to see the club leaders getting students ready. To warm up, they learned some “court rules.” To burn off some energy, kindergartners, fourth, and fifth graders played Chaos Tag and Freeze Tag. They were lively and had a great time learning about the sport!
Back in the gym, Culinary Club was in full swing. Miss Bri and Sarah made dips with the students. Sarah was the honorary taste-tester; although there may have been a bit too much salt (OK, a LOT of salt) in the dips, the students used their creativity to make tasty treats. Bryson made a dip for his dad, and he was excited about trying a few new things.
Miss Bri followed up the Culinary Club with an activity of gratitude. Students received a paper bag with three objects inside. One by one, students were asked to give them all away. The objects included a small bag of gummy bears or a mechanical pencil. Students were ecstatic to receive gifts from others, and while some wanted to keep what was in their bags, they soon learned the power of generosity. Both of us and Miss Bri also got a few gifts from students – an unexpected twist that put joy in students’ eyes.
At the end of the program, one student gave Miss Bri a note that read:
To Mis B
I love
you
you are
the best
It’s hard to argue with that: From top to bottom, the Sherman after-school program is an incredible experience. From the moment students walked into the gymnasium until they left for the evening, the youngsters showed why “CLC is the place to be.”
Learn more about our Sherman CLC here. To donate to our Back To School Giving Campaign through Oct. 15, click here.
