Afterschool Programs FAQs

Afterschool Programs FAQs

Afterschool FAQ's for Schools
Want to set-up an Imagine Me program in your school, but don't know where to start? Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about setting up an Imagine Me program at your school.
Remember, if you don't see your question here, don't be shy- contact us and we will answer your question directly! Ask a new question jill@imagineme.org

How are Imagine Me afterschool programs funded?
Parents usually pay for their children to attend Imagine Me programs, either to an “umbrella” afterschool program such as a PTA run afterschool program, or directly to Imagine Me. PTA, YMCA or other afterschool programs hire Imagine Me to provide unique afterschool classes. Parents would register their child in the PTA or YMCA program as usual, signing up for classes provided by Imagine Me. At many schools, we divide the activities into a semester of 15 class sessions with a charge of $115 for each class. The cost includes instruction and all materials.

Can the school/afterschool program pay for the program instead of parents? Yes. Some schools fund the program with grants or donations.
What is the schedule for classes?
We run two semesters of classes in the school year, one in the fall and one in the spring. Some schools request that we do classes every day during inter-sessions. We are happy to fit the program to the needs of the school or afterschool program.

What does the school need to provide? The physical space to accommodate the program (e.g. classroom, library, cafeteria). Additional storage area for costumes for the film classes is preferred, but not required.
How long is each class? Each class is usually 60 minutes, though the time can be lengthened or shortened to fit the needs of the school. Film classes are usually 1 hour and 30 minutes, to allow time for costume change.
How many students can attend a class? The maximum enrollment depends upon the afterschool class selected and the size of the classroom. For physical classes such as Theatrical Combat and Stretch Your Imagination, we structure the class size for the children's safety. For media classes such as Lights, Mics, Action! and I Make iMovies class size is structured so that each student is given an opportunity to use the equipment. Hence, for the safety of and best experience for the children there are some classes that have a maximum enrollment cut-off. Maximum Enrollment cut-offs for classes are: Theatrical Combat, grades 3-5 and 4-6= 16 students; Theatrical Combat, grades 7-9 = 20 students; Lights, Mics, Action!, grades 3-5 = 20 students; I Make iMovies, grades 3-5 (10 week program) = 10 students; I Make iMovies, grades 3-5 (15 week program) = 15 students. For a class of 20 students we usually have two instructors.
Is there a minimum enrollment to start the program? We do not have a minimum enrollment for schools in Manhattan and Brooklyn; currently the minimum enrollment for other boroughs is 10. We will offer the program to see the response and run the first session even with only a few students. For the safety and best experience for the children there are some classes that have a maximum enrollment cut-off. Please see above question about number of students in class.
What grades attend the program? Classes are open to grades K through 9. However, we group students by grade, such as 3-5 or 4-6 or 7-9.
How are parents notified about the program? Imagine Me will provide the school with flyers for each student to take home to their parents. The flyers explain the programs. Please tell us how many flyers you need and how to group them for easy distribution, such as by class.
What is provided by the Imagine Me afterschool program? Imagine Me provides for every class:
Qualified and trained teachers with years of experience in their field
All materials and tools for arts & crafts activities
For media classes, all camera and shooting equipment is provided and included in the program fee
Class DVDs at the end of the session are also included free of charge for each member of the class
The school does not need to provide anything other than the classroom, and the classroom's supplies are never used, such as scissors, paper, tape, markers and so on.
Are students from other schools allowed to register? This decision is up to the school or afterschool program. You may also choose to share the program with another school. We are happy to run a joint program with another school, however Imagine Me does not transport students from one site to another.
What if we do not have spare classrooms? We are aware that classroom space is tight at many schools and expect to use a classroom used for other classes during the day. For our activities, since we bring all our own tools and materials, we do not use those of other teachers. Our policy is to leave the classroom clean and arranged in the same order we find it.
What if my school requires a different set-up than those you have mentioned? Theater and Film is all about problem solving! We are happy to work with each school individually to customize the program so that it meets the needs of the individual school and its students.

Making Scabs as part of
“I Make iMovies”