Ignite Summer Toolkit: VISION

Reflect

Start with this list of guided visioning questions to get your creativity flowing.

Be sure to get input from young people, families, community partners and other stakeholders — you might just be surprised by the big ideas that emerge when many minds come together! 

• What are the goals and values of your summer program? Who are you hoping to serve? 
• What are you hearing from young people, families and communities about what they would like to see? How are young people included in your visioning?
• How can you shape your summer programming to be experiential, inspirational, and enticing? What hands-on experiences can you create? How will you make the programming relevant to young people’s lives? What about fun?
• How will you design programming that happens outside your building? Learning happens everywhere — so while field trips are one way to go beyond your four walls, it could also mean learning in a nearby park or other outdoor settings. Where are all the “everywheres” that you can use? 
• What personal passions, talents, and interests does your staff have, and how can those be incorporated into your program? What about young people? What about community partners?
• What does success look like, and how will you measure it?

Tools

Now that you have some exciting big-picture ideas guiding your vision, let’s go a little deeper. This Visioning Tool is pre-populated with core values that research shows are key to high-quality, effective programs. There’s room to add your own ideas too!