Professional Development
Grow as a youth worker through free professional development. Sprockets offers workshops for Saint Paul youth workers throughout the year on a wide variety of youth work topics like program planning, youth engagement, quality practices, and more.
September
Activator Kick Off - 👉 REGISTER HERE
📆 Friday, September 26th , 10am-12:00 📍Location TBD- coming soon
It’s time to launch the 2025–26 M3 Continuous Program Improvement (CPI) cycle! Sprockets is joining Ignite Afterschool to for an East Metro M3/Activator Kickoff to launch the planning phase of the cycle and set the stage for meaningful engagement with data for improvement.
Whether you’re new to CPI or a seasoned veteran, this kickoff will create space to get inspired, get organized, and walk away with clear next steps for a successful cycle.
Who should attend? The quality lead/point person for the Activator Cycle and we encourage you to include other team members who will be supporting or participating in the cycle to join as well. This is a great way to get input and everyone onboarded for the CPI cycle this year!
At the kick off, Activator Registration information will be available. Each year you must register, which helps Sprockets staff know who to include in the supports throughout the year including scheduling an external observations, registering for your huddle, and other supports to stay on track throughout the year.
What is the Activator Cycle? So glad you asked! Watch this overview or read more here.
October
A Guided Tour of U of M Youth Development Curriculum Library - 👉 Register HERE
📆Wednesday, October 1st 11:00am-12:00 📍Online
A Guided Tour of the Youth Development Curriculum Library - offering of the University of Minnesota Extension
Description: Discover a dynamic tool for youth workers and educators! In this interactive session, participants will dive into the Youth Development Curriculum Library, an ever-expanding resource designed to support meaningful and engaging learning experiences for young people. You'll try out several of our favorite activities firsthand and explore how to search for and implement a wide range of educational content. Whether you're planning after-school programs, day camps, independent youth learning or 4-H club meetings, this webinar will equip you with fresh ideas to inspire and engage youth.
Facilitators: Jessica Russo and Jenny Cable.
SEL PQA Self- Assessment Training - 👉 Register HERE
📆Thursday, October 2nd & Friday Oct 3rd (both days required) 9:00am-12:00 📍North End Community Center
This training is geared towards those within your organization who are interested in having a deeper understanding of the SEL PQA tool and how it is used as an observation tool for continuous improvement.
The Social Emotional Learning Program Quality Assessment (SEL PQA) is a framework that articulates and measures staff practices that have been identified by research on positive youth development, social and emotional learning, and the science of learning and development, among others. In this workshop participants will learn the structure of the PQA, understand the components of measurable SEL quality practices, and how to use and score the instrument as well as develop observation and note-taking skills that generates anecdotal evidence for implementing and scoring the tool.
Facilitator: The Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality
Ask - Listen - Encourage - 👉 Register HERE
📆Friday, October 17th - *note, this is MEA - there is no school this day
9:30am-12:00 đź“ŤFrogtown Community Center
Do you communicate with others in a way that makes them feel supported and heard? This interactive workshop introduces various communication techniques that help you build more supportive, youth-centered (or staff centered) relationships. Participants will learn how to ask more effective questions, to listen actively , and offer youth encouragement rather than praise.
Participants will:
- Gain experience utilizing the characteristics of effective questions
- Explore the concept of active listening
- Understand the characteristics of positive responses to youth/colleagues and their work
Facilitator: Jocelyn Wiedow, Sprockets
Audience: This training is great for direct service youth workers, staff leads, and supervisors!
Structure and Clear Limits -👉Register HERE
📆Tuesday, October 28th 9:30am-12:00 📍North End Community Center
How do you prevent chaos in a youth environment without stifling youth’s positive energy? Youth need structure and clear limits to feel safe. This interactive workshop helps participants analyze the level of structure in their programs and practice identifying and maintaining clear limits.
Participants will:
- Understand how structure and clear limits meet the developmental needs of youth
- Explore ways to improve their program’s structure
- Establish limits for their programs
Many young people face a lot of uncertainty and inconsistency in their lives, which can limit their capacity or even willingness to take on new challenges and problem solve. The strategies in this workshop are designed to support you in creating a consistent, predictable environment where youth feel like they can trust the space, trust you, and relax enough to be open to engaging with your program. Feelings of emotional and physical safety (Safe Environment) are the foundation to working up the Pyramid of Program Quality and being able to achieve higher levels of engagement.
Facilitator: Jocelyn Wiedow, Sprockets
Audience: This workshop is great for direct service staff or supervisors bringing back content for direct service staff
November
Introduction to the Active-Participatory Approach -👉 Register HERE
📆Thursday, November 20th 9:30am-12:00 📍Frogtown Community Center
The Active-Participatory Approach is a set of best practice methods and strategies with a consistent focus on empowering young people to become active, engaged participants in shaping and leading their learning experiences. Youth programs can be optimized for youth needs, motivation, and engagement. The Active-Participatory Approach to youth work was designed to address these goals. This youth-centered approach is the foundation for the Youth Program Quality Pyramid.
- Participants will be able to identify the four guiding principles of the Approach.
- Participants will be able to recognize best practice behaviors.
- Participants will be able to incorporate aspects of the Approach into their planning.
Facilitator: Jocelyn Wiedow, Sprockets
Audience: This workshop is great for direct service staff or supervisors bringing back content for direct service staff
Youth Mental Health First Aid -👉 Registration Here
📆Tuesday, Nov 25th 9am-1 & Wednesday, Nov 26th 9am-12 (both days required)📍Frogtown Community Center
In registering, you are committing to attend the full 2 day training. Approximately thirty minutes of online pre-work and post training surveys are required to complete the Youth Mental Health First Aid certification.
Youth Mental Health First Aid is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent (age 12-18) who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in crisis. Youth Mental Health First Aid is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people. The course introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders (including AD/HD), and eating disorders.
Facilitator: Jocelyn Wiedow, Sprockets