Parks & Recreation

Each day's session begins with homework help, followed by SPARK (Sports, Play and Active Recreation for Kids) an evidenced-based, outcome-oriented active recreation component of the Out-of School program. SPARK is dedicated to improving the quantity and quality of physical activity for children, focusing on activities that develop and improve motor skills, movement knowledge, and social and personal skills. With parental permission, Miami-Dade Parks will track key health indicators in children, such as blood pressure and Body Mass Index (BMI), assisting parents and children in making the correct decisions about their fitness and nutrition. Upon completion of the programs, participants will be able to know their fitness improvements which will be measured throughout the year. The Fit-to-Play Out-of-School Program also includes lifelong sports, team sports, nutrition education, wellness activities, enrichment activities, cultural arts, nature and science programming.

After three successful years of partnership with the University of Miami for the Fit-to-Play summer camp program, Miami-Dade Parks has also entered into a partnership for its Fit-to-Play Out-of-School program with the University's UHealth System. UHealth will provide oversight of the department's health, wellness and obesity prevention initiatives, including providing hundreds of children with health and wellness information, as well as stress management, safety, BMI (Body Mass Index) testing, nutrition, and more.

Miami-Dade Parks' Fit-to-Play Out-of-School program operates Monday through Friday, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., from August 22, 2011 through June 7, 2012 at several sites.  Transportation is available to pick up the children at certain nearby schools and transport them back to the program, for an additional charge, and at select park sites only. 

Miami-Dade Parks also offers a variety of other affordable Out-of-School programs at select park sites throughout the county that will keep kids active and learning during crucial out-of-school hours.

Miami-Dade Parks' Disability Services offers Out-of-School Programs for Children with Disabilities, ages 6-22, funded by The Children's Trust, at seven park sites -- Camp Matecumbe, Tamiami, Westwind Lakes, Greynolds, Coral Estates, and Goulds. The program includes cultural arts, literacy, fitness, nutrition, hygiene, snacks and field trips.

Children interested in the arts can attend the out-of-school programs at African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, where they can learn instrumental and vocal music, dance, theatre, and visual arts techniques; and at Raices Hispanic Cultural Arts Center, where children learn dances from various Spanish-speaking countries, the art of puppetry, as well as instrumental music training and arts and crafts. Transportation from selected school locations is available for a weekly fee.

In addition, the Deering Estate at Cutler offers out-of-school programming opportunities through the Estate's award winning Living Classroom.  Equipped with fossils, artifacts and tools, live or preserved specimens, photographs and simple laboratory experiments, the Estate's Education and Interpretive Staff use hands-on interdisciplinary curriculum in the fields of ecology, geology, marine biology, archaeology, history, and art.  The School Yard Science Program can be scheduled at any park or community center as part of an after school care program.  Classes are typically offered once weekly for a two hour session.  The EcoAcademy is taught onsite at the Deering Estate at Cutler and can be offered at the various nature centers upon request or through a home school program. For more information, please visit www.deeringestate.org, or call 305-235-1668, ext. 222.

"Last year over 1,900 children participated in the Out-of-School programs offered at our various parks," said Frank Faragalli, Assistant Director of Operations for Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department. "These programs provide children with a safe and supervised alternative to being home alone when not in school or roaming around town. Our programs provide staffing equipped to help children with their homework, and provide fun, physical-fitness-based games and recreation to help kids stay active and learn the fundamentals of team sports and play."

While registration is open for all Miami-Dade Parks Out-of-School programs and there is no deadline to register, parents are encouraged to register early before programs fill to capacity. Affordable prices vary per park and parents must register directly with the individual park. There must be a minimum of 12 registrants per park for the program to take place. For more information, please call one of the parks listed below.

This program was funded under the Community Development Block Grant Recovery (CDBG-R) Program, an initiative authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and administered nationally by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (U.S. HUD). The Program was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009 and is being implemented locally by the Miami-Dade Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The CDBG-R Program includes funding for roads and highways, educational activities, economic development, and access to healthcare programs. Among other things, Miami-Dade County is utilizing these funds to make strategic investments in our local economy that will create or preserve jobs and modernize long-neglected infrastructure.

Miami-Dade Park and Recreation is funded in part by The Children's Trust. The Children's Trust is a dedicated source of revenue established by voter referendum to improve the lives of children and families in Miami-Dade County.

A list of Out-of-School Program sites follows below:

North

• Arcola Park, 1680 NW 87 St., 305-835-7987 *
• Arcola Lakes Park, 1301 NW 83 St., 305-836-5095
• Country Village Park, 6550 NW 188 Terr., 305-622-2594
• Gwen Cherry Park (Y.E.T.), 7090 NW 22 Ave., 305-694-4889
• Highland Oaks Park, 20300 NE 24 Ave., 305-932-2164
• Jefferson Reaves, Sr. Park, 3100 NW 50 St., 305-635-2081
• Little River Park, 10525 NW 24 Ave., 305-694-5121
• M. L. King, Jr. Park, 6100 NW 32 Ct., 305-633-2044 *
• North Glade Park, 17355 NW 52 Ave., 305-621-2461
• Olinda Park, 2101 NW 51 St., 305-633-4066
• West Little River Park, 2326 NW 84 St., 305-694-5096

Central

• Bird Lakes Park, 14365 SW 48 Ln., 305-207-1644
• Continental Park, 10000 SW 82 Ave., 305-274-9666
• North Trail Park, 780 NW 127 Ave., 305-207-2420
• Rockway Park, 9460 SW 27 Dr., 305-223-8769
• Ron Ehmann Park, 10995 SW 97 Ave., 305-271-3853
• Ruben Dario Park, 9825 W. Flagler St., 305-222-2194
• Tropical Estates Park, 10201 SW 48 St., 305-226-5782
• Westwind Lakes Park, 6805 SW 152 Ave., 305-388-4771

South

• Cinco de Mayo Park, 19350 SW 384 St., 305-242-7930 *
• Deerwood Bonita Lakes Park, 14445 SW 122 Ave., 305-234-1660
• Devon Aire Park, 10411 SW 122 Ave., 305-270-4951
• Eureka Villas Park, 14301 SW 180 St., 305-254-5856
• Goulds Park, 11350 SW 216 St., 305-255-2399
• Hammocks Community Park, 9885 Hammocks Blvd., 305-380-6917
• Leisure Lake Park, 29305 Illinois Rd., 305-248-1527 *
• Modello Park, 28450 SW 152 Ave., 305-247-1553
• Naranja Park, 14150 SW 264 St., 305-258-1945 * 
• Sgt. Joseph Delancy Park, 14450 Boggs Dr., 305-235-4503
• South Dade Park, 28151 SW 164 Ave., 305-247-9453
• Southridge Park, 11250 SW 192 St., 786-293-4549
• West Perrine Park, 17121 SW 104 Ave., 305-235-2053
  * These sites are sponsored by The Children's Trust

Specialty Out of School Programs
Out-of-School Program for those with Disabilities - Sponsored by The Children's Trust:

• (ages 6-22) Camp Matecumbe, 11400 SW 137 Ave.,305-752-4966
• (ages 6-22) Coral Estates Park, 1405 SW 97 Ave., 305-226-1622
• (ages 6-22) Goulds Park, 11350 SW 216 St., 305-234-1673
• (ages 6-22) Greynolds Park, 17530 W. Dixie Highway, 305-945-3425
• (ages 6-22) Tamiami Park, 11201 SW 24 St., 305-222-2128
• (ages 6-22) Westwind Lakes Park, 6805 SW 152 Ave., 305-380-9106

The Children's Trust and the Uninvesity of Miami Health System are sponsors of the Miami-Dade Parks After-school Program.

Cultural Arts Out-of-School Program

• African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, 6161 NW 22 Avenue, 305-638-6771
• Raíces Hispanic Cultural Arts Center at Miller Drive Park, 5510 SW 94 Ct., 305-271-0812

Deering Estate at Cutler

• Deering Estate at Cutler, 16701 SW 72 Avenue, 305-235-1668 ext. 222

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