Afterschool/Out-of-School

Libraries and museums help our communities support children's learning and development.

MacArthur Foundation logoPartnership: Learning Labs
In support of President Obama's "Educate to Innovate" call to action, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services are working together to create 30 new youth learning labs in libraries and museums across the country.

Partnership: National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards
Formerly Coming Up Taller, these awards recognize outstanding community arts and humanities programs that celebrate the creativity of America’s young people by providing them with learning opportunities and chances to contribute to their communities.

Search the Awarded Grants database for grants to afterschool/out-of-school programs (issue areas have only been assigned to grants awarded since FY 2009)

Afterschool/out-of-school content on the IMLS Web site:
IMLS and the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Convene Experts

December 7, 2012 03:44 PM
IMLS and the Campaign held a meeting to begin developing a groundbreaking policy report on the role of museums and libraries in early learning. The publication is planned for April 2013. Read More

 
Call for Applications: 2013 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards

November 28, 2012 07:57 AM
Applications are now being accepted for the 2013 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards. The deadline is February 4, 2013. Read More

 
New Grants Help Museums and Libraries Connect Youth with Friends, Learning, and Mentors to Link their Passions to Future Success

November 8, 2012 07:57 AM
Learning Labs Foster Creativity and Collaboration through Creation in STEM and Beyond. Read More

 
Expanded Learning
Blog Post: Out-of-School Takes Center Stage

February 13, 2013 07:42 AM
New resource highlights the positive outcomes of learning after school and during the summer. Read More

 
photo of a boy using tools at Maker Faire
Blog Post: Makers on the Move in Libraries and Museums

December 20, 2012 03:08 PM
Maker spaces are part of a growing movement of hands-on, mentor-led environments that encourage entrepreneurship and unleash the inner inventor in all of us, particularly children. Read More

 
logo afterschool alliance
Blog Post: Libraries and Museums as Afterschool Allies

October 18, 2012 12:10 PM
Public libraries are undergoing a 21st century makeover, evolving into destinations for hands-on, collaborative and informal learning. With their museum and community partners they are taking a more active role in supporting children's learning and development in the hours after school. Read More

 
Students from the Borough of Manhattan Community College CLIP program at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan
October 2012: Where to Learn English? A Museum Of Course


Art museums can be excellent English literacy classrooms. An innovative program that partners university and community college ESL programs with New York City art museums is finding that works of art generate excellent discussions for students of English. Read More

 
Children participating in a Learn and Play program learn their ABC’s.
September 2009: Bringing Books and Literacy to the People


Sometimes the parents and children who would most benefit from library services are the ones who haven’t established the habit of visiting libraries. That’s what the Henderson District Public Libraries in Henderson, Nevada, discovered when planning a comprehensive early literacy program involving the whole community. The solution? Bring books and classes to the people. Read More

 
Children participate in PlayWorks™ at the Children's Museum of Manhattan
January 2009: PlayWorks™ Provides Whole-family Learning In a Child-friendly Environment


Children feed alphabet letters to a talking baby dragon, drive a New York City fire truck, paint on a six-foot art wall, and crawl through a challenge course in PlayWorks™ at the Children's Museum of Manhattan (CMOM) in New York. Read More

 
cover of Museums and Libraries Engaging America's Youth
Museums and Libraries Engaging America’s Youth: Youth Practitioner's Guide


Created for museum and library practitioners who are building, or wish to build, strong programs to reach and engage youth, this guide contains a variety of resources and references to critical works that have been gathered from the fields of youth and community development, education, and informal learning. Read More

 
cpver of Talking Points: Makerspaces
Talking Points: Museums, Libraries, and Makerspaces


Quick summary of makerspaces -- hands-on, mentor-led learning environments to make and remake the physical and digital worlds -- in museums and libraries. Read More