Before and After School Programs

Albany Children's Center serves almost 400 children in our before and after school care programs. We provide quality school-age care in a safe, fun, nurturing, and educational environment. Our programs strive to promote, support and enhance all areas of a child's development. All of our programs have wonderful staff who have either CCD (California Child Development) permits, or early childhood educations units. The teacher to child ratio is 1 teacher for every 14 students. We also provide healthy, hearty snacks in the morning and afternoon care. If you are interested in our programs please download an application from our website or stop by the ACC office at 720 Jackson Street to pick up an application.

 

Our Tupelo program is located at Marin Elementary School serving just over 100 children from transitional kindergarten to the fifth grade. We are open from 7:30-9:30 am for before school care, and from 1-6 pm for after school care. Tupelo has a Spanish enrichment component as well.  Every child who attends is exposed to Spanish as part of the program. The Spanish enrichment program is conducted by a native Spanish speaking teacher, and is taught by utilizing, music, dance, stories, games and movement in a stimulating learning environment. The Mandarin Language after school programs are located at Cornell Elementary School and Ocean View Elementary School.   Each site serves 28 children Kindergarten age - 3rd grade, from the hours of 1-6 pm. This program helps students learn how to speak, listen, read and write Mandarin language, and learn about Chinese culture. We use immersion language teaching--using the target language for all activities---to give students more opportunities to practice listening and speaking. Students also learn how to read the simple characters representing everyday concepts, including time, weather, the body and social conventions. Writing is introduced slowly, beginning with each student's Chinese name---some have one from family, and the rest receive one in class, and proceeding to common words, one stroke at a time, so that they realize that writing Chinese is like drawing a picture. Some pictures have few details, while others have more. Repetition is key to helping students remember the words they have learned. Songs, rhymes, poems and stories give students fun opportunities for repetition to support their retention of learned words and culture. Students also learn Chinese culture through Chinese folk dances and dragon and lion dances. As part of their learning experience, our students participate in community activities, such as the Solano Stroll parade and Chinese New Year festivities. At public events and at the Albany Senior Center, they sing Chinese songs, recite poems, and perform dances. Cedars provides a friendly, safe and flexible atmosphere by modeling values and skills every child needs in order to facilitate the development of productive, happy, safe and caring individuals with a sense of belong.The children are immersed in read alouds, story stretching, art, cooking, science, math and cultural awareness. Cedars is busy with students playing, working and making their own choices as they move about the afternoon. Maples is a super fun program exploring and working on projects all year long. Mixed with snack, outside time, music and a bit of French language, Maple's focus is all about "We are the World". The children explore earth mobiles, build bird nests, create Asian brush painting, study places such as, Mexico, Australia, Africa, the Gulf Coast and more. They study the heart, body, make crystal, sun dials, have band practice, build Lego towns and it goes on and on. Join the fun at Maples and your child will spend the year in an exciting after school environment.

 

Ocean View Mandarin Language Program It is a language immersion program involves teaching the children listening, speaking , reading and writing Mandarin. The OV Mandarin Language program also has many activities to support the student to develop Chinese art and culture. The students learn poems, songs, dance and relate every holiday with Chinese art work. The program includes performances in the Solano Stroll, the City of Albany and OV Elementary school events. If you would like to visit one of our after school programs, please call Albany Children's Center 559-6590 or come to 720 Jackson Street to plan a visit.