Torch Clubs
are chartered small-group leadership and service clubs for boys and girls ages 11-13. A Torch Club is a powerful vehicle through which Club staff can help meet the special character development needs of younger adolescents at a critical stage in their development. Torch Club members learn to elect officers and work together to implement activities in four areas: service to Club and community, education, health and fitness and social recreation. The Torch Club Awards are presented annually to Torch Clubs with outstanding programs and activities in the four areas. Each year, Torch Club members from all over the country take part in a service-learning experience through the National Torch Club Project.
Smart Kids: For 6-9 year olds, to provide a firm foundation for healthy choices about drugs and other risky behaviors, youth need to develop a sense of confidence in themselves and their ability to master their environment. Accepting themselves and recognizing their own value is an essential part of this process.
SMART Girls is a small-group health, fitness, prevention/education and self-esteem enhancement program designed to meet the developmental needs of girls in three age groups. Through dynamic sessions, highly participatory activities, field trips and mentoring opportunities with adult women, Club girls explore their own and societal attitudes and values as they build skills for eating right, staying physically fit, getting good health care and developing positive relationships with peers and adults.
Street Smart ; BGCA’s gang and violence prevention curriculum, Street SMART, offers expanded lessons in bullying prevention, as well as an emphasis on resiliency training to give Club members, ages 10-14, the skills they need to grow up confident, caring and responsible. The revised Street SMART guide, which can be downloaded in the Program Documents window to the right, was made possible through the generous support of the Office of Justice Programs.
SMART Leaders is a booster program for Stay SMART, a component of Boys & Girls Clubs of America's SMART Moves alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and teen pregnancy prevention program. SMART Leaders is designed to be offered to youth who complete Stay SMART. The Boys & Girls Clubs that pilot -tested SMART Moves expressed a need for a program that would keep their teens involved in SMART Moves after Stay SMART, reinforce skills and knowledge youth learned in Stay SMART, and prepare teens as leaders to help their peers resist using alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATODs), and postpone sexual activity.
Triple Play, BGCA’s first comprehensive health and wellness program, developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, strives to improve the overall health of Club members ages 6-18 by increasing their daily physical activity, teaching them good nutrition and helping them develop healthy relationships.
The Mind component encourages young people to eat smart through the Healthy Habits program, which covers the power of choice, calories, vitamins and minerals, the food pyramid and appropriate portion size. The Body component boosts Clubs’ traditional physical activities to a higher level by providing sports and fitness activities for all youth. Body programs include six Daily Fitness Challenges; teen Sports Clubs focused on leadership development, service and careers in athletics; and Triple Play Games Tournaments, inter-Club sectional tournaments that involve multiple team sports. The Soul component helps build positive relationships and cooperation among young people.
Triple Play Parents Game Plan
Because parents play such a critical role in the development of a child's physical and social well-being, BGCA and Coca-Cola produced a tool, Triple Play Parents Game Plan, that can be used at home – where healthy habits start, are modeled and reinforced. Now available in Spanish. Triple Play Parents Game Plan (Spanish Version).
Triple Play Evaluation Results
To learn more about how Triple Play improved members’ physical activity, food choices, peer relations and self-mastery, review this third-party evaluation data about BGCA's health and wellness program.
Passport to Manhood consists of 14 sessions, each of which concentrates on a specific aspect of manhood through highly interactive activities. Each Club participant receives his own “passport” to underscore the notion that he is on a personal journey of maturation and growth. Passport to Manhood represents a targeted effort to engage young men in discussions activities that reinforce positive behavior. Passport to Manhood is an excellent complement to SMART Girls.
LIT (Leaders In Training): In order to take part in LIT, members write an essay about why they want to take part. The staff determines whether the member is ready for responsibility and trust. If accepted, they are then given a variety of responsibilities and tasks appropriate for their age and provide assistance to the staff, anything from vacuuming to snack preparation to managing sports equipment. If they are not successful in their responsibilities, they lose their spot and are held accountable. The goal of LIT is to provide an impact in the areas of personal responsibility, interpersonal skills, academic success and community service.
Smart Kids: For 6-9 year olds, to provide a firm foundation for healthy choices about drugs and other risky behaviors, youth need to develop a sense of confidence in themselves and their ability to master their environment. Accepting themselves and recognizing their own value is an essential part of this process.
SMART Girls is a small-group health, fitness, prevention/education and self-esteem enhancement program designed to meet the developmental needs of girls in three age groups. Through dynamic sessions, highly participatory activities, field trips and mentoring opportunities with adult women, Club girls explore their own and societal attitudes and values as they build skills for eating right, staying physically fit, getting good health care and developing positive relationships with peers and adults.
Street Smart ; BGCA’s gang and violence prevention curriculum, Street SMART, offers expanded lessons in bullying prevention, as well as an emphasis on resiliency training to give Club members, ages 10-14, the skills they need to grow up confident, caring and responsible. The revised Street SMART guide, which can be downloaded in the Program Documents window to the right, was made possible through the generous support of the Office of Justice Programs.
SMART Leaders is a booster program for Stay SMART, a component of Boys & Girls Clubs of America's SMART Moves alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and teen pregnancy prevention program. SMART Leaders is designed to be offered to youth who complete Stay SMART. The Boys & Girls Clubs that pilot -tested SMART Moves expressed a need for a program that would keep their teens involved in SMART Moves after Stay SMART, reinforce skills and knowledge youth learned in Stay SMART, and prepare teens as leaders to help their peers resist using alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATODs), and postpone sexual activity.
Triple Play, BGCA’s first comprehensive health and wellness program, developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, strives to improve the overall health of Club members ages 6-18 by increasing their daily physical activity, teaching them good nutrition and helping them develop healthy relationships.
The Mind component encourages young people to eat smart through the Healthy Habits program, which covers the power of choice, calories, vitamins and minerals, the food pyramid and appropriate portion size. The Body component boosts Clubs’ traditional physical activities to a higher level by providing sports and fitness activities for all youth. Body programs include six Daily Fitness Challenges; teen Sports Clubs focused on leadership development, service and careers in athletics; and Triple Play Games Tournaments, inter-Club sectional tournaments that involve multiple team sports. The Soul component helps build positive relationships and cooperation among young people.
Triple Play Parents Game Plan
Because parents play such a critical role in the development of a child's physical and social well-being, BGCA and Coca-Cola produced a tool, Triple Play Parents Game Plan, that can be used at home – where healthy habits start, are modeled and reinforced. Now available in Spanish. Triple Play Parents Game Plan (Spanish Version).
Triple Play Evaluation Results
To learn more about how Triple Play improved members’ physical activity, food choices, peer relations and self-mastery, review this third-party evaluation data about BGCA's health and wellness program.
Passport to Manhood consists of 14 sessions, each of which concentrates on a specific aspect of manhood through highly interactive activities. Each Club participant receives his own “passport” to underscore the notion that he is on a personal journey of maturation and growth. Passport to Manhood represents a targeted effort to engage young men in discussions activities that reinforce positive behavior. Passport to Manhood is an excellent complement to SMART Girls.
LIT (Leaders In Training): In order to take part in LIT, members write an essay about why they want to take part. The staff determines whether the member is ready for responsibility and trust. If accepted, they are then given a variety of responsibilities and tasks appropriate for their age and provide assistance to the staff, anything from vacuuming to snack preparation to managing sports equipment. If they are not successful in their responsibilities, they lose their spot and are held accountable. The goal of LIT is to provide an impact in the areas of personal responsibility, interpersonal skills, academic success and community service.