The Center for Early Adolescence at the University of North Carolina and the Search Institute have found that early adolescence is a time of rapid change in youth development and developmental needs. For many children, the characteristic needs of early adolescence begin to emerge as early as age nine, when children are still in elementary school and attending traditional school-age care programs. School-age care professionals who understand these emerging needs are better equipped to create successful program experiences with older children in their programs. In this course, we will examine programming approaches that address the needs of older youth.
