SPECIAL FOCUSThe Best Teen Rec ProgramsIPRA's Teen Committee shares insights and best bets for teen programming INTRODUCTION BY LORENE MARCINEK Each day in Illinois more than 180 youths wake up in correctional facilities. Many of these youths faced the toughest of choices: guns, gangs or teams. Unfortunately, the lack of positive recreational opportunities made guns and gangs more accessible. Consider these facts: The need for teen programming is evident from statistics like these. This age group needs a sense of junior adulthood as they are looking to identify with their peer group. At this age their values are tested daily. The benefits that recreation can provide can only improve their well-being and, as a result, your community. Through organized, supervised and positive recreational opportunities, teens will experience living, learning, leading a full and productive life. They will explore avenues for purpose, pleasure, health and well-being. Other benefits to teens include personal development, self-esteem and self-reliance, creativity and adaptability, problem solving and decision making. The Teen Committee of the Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA) offers in this article several "BEST" ideas for teen programs that work. T.P.H.- "The Party's Here" From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. a wide variety of activities are available, including shooting hoops, dancing to a professional deejay, pool tables, pingpong tables and board games. A concession area serves soft drinks, popcorn and candy. For those who want to just kick back and relax, an aerobics studio doubles as an audio/visual room where movies or sporting events are shown on a big screen TV.
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