It was a Friday, and though Draper Park Middle School had an early dismissal, sixth-grader Brynn Carmody opted to stay after school.

She was busy crafting monsters out of pom-poms she had made herself.

“It’s something I enjoy doing and I’m making a collection of them,” she said. “It’s better than sitting at home doing nothing.”

Brynn wasn’t alone. Around 100 students stayed after school that spring Friday, with some making pom-pom love bugs and other creations. It was one of the activities offered during Fun Fridays, a monthly after-school program.

Close by, sixth-graders Megan Phillips, Brielle Call and Isabella Makowsky were getting ready to cook crepes.

“We’ve done some really fun activities after school; baking after-school snacks is fun,” Megan said.

While Brielle enjoyed learning new recipes, like muddy buddies, a chocolate peanut butter Chex Mix, Isabella particularly liked the no-bake cookies they made during a previous Fun Friday.

“We get to eat the treat we create,” Isabella said.

Some students, such as sixth-grader Kolson Bitner, preferred more active options, such as soccer.

“This is a fun break from school,” he said.

The after-school program transitioned this year from Club Thursdays, which began in 2018. The goal of both programs is similar — to teach engaging activities that encourage collaboration and friendship-building across all grade levels.

“The School Community Council wrote and received a Trust LAND grant as a way for kids to find a connection to school,” said counselor Kathy Bitner, one of the Fun Friday organizers. “We want kids to see school as a happy, safe place, and we want them to enjoy learning.”

Bitner explained Fun Fridays typically includes a cooking activity, a sport and another activity, commonly a craft.

“We are trying to hit a lot of the electives that kids haven’t been able to get into, or they want more of. Foods is one of our most popular classes so we want to introduce kids to something they can do. We’ve done chocolate popcorn, quesadillas, ice cream, protein balls and even did a cookie bake-off. With the crafts, we’ve made snowflakes, ornaments, face painting, pom pom garlands and more. We’ve also done music, karaoke, painting, tie dye pillowcases and no-sew blankets,” she said.

Fun Fridays, which offers sports such as volleyball, soccer, prison dodgeball, basketball, cornhole, nine square and others, typically runs for one hour.

Students sign up in advance for their preferred activity, but Bitner mentioned they have enough supplies to let students switch activities if they finish one early.

“It’s a great way for kids to make friends and especially helpful for new students. They can pair up with other kids to have fun together,” Bitner said.

Next year, the student council will take a role in organizing Fun Fridays, giving students more leadership opportunities.

“They’re going to be leading it out and developing activities they want to do, which will give them more opportunities to learn leadership,” she said. “The goal will be a student-driven program and they’ll enjoy learning while also doing.” λ