You are warmly invited

to the ConnectiKids Botanical Ball and Fundraiser. Your participation will help sustain ConnectiKids' mission is to connect students facing systemic inequities and other barriers with people, places, and experiences that level the playing field and inspire academic achievement, positive life choices, and big dreams.

ConnectiKids fulfills its youth-empowering, equity-advancing mission in partnership with schools, families, and the community. We provide one-on-one academic tutoring, individualized mentoring, arts and enrichment programs, and community-based learning experiences during the academic year and summer. These connections and opportunities motivate historically underserved kids to embrace high expectations, overcome adversity, and reach their full potential.

ConnectiKids' programs have profoundly enhanced children's lives by providing essential academic and socio-emotional support. By choosing to attend this event or offer sponsorship, you will play a crucial role in ensuring that ConnectiKids continues its indispensable work of shaping brighter futures for our youth. We sincerely appreciate your thoughtful consideration of this opportunity to participate in our annual celebration and to contribute to our enduring impact!

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Your attendance, donation, or sponsorship will support:

ConnectiKids offers a dedicated program that pairs students with personal tutors and mentors. The central goal is to furnish students with fair and comprehensible academic assistance through personalized tutoring, which is intended to enhance their classroom learning. Key objectives of the ConnectiKids Tutoring and Mentoring Program include:

Facilitate the development of meaningful relationships between children and caring tutors or mentors. These relationships allow for: A) enhancement of classroom learning, resulting in improved grades and a positive attitude in school; B) fostering a lifelong enthusiasm for learning; and C) nurturing an improved outlook on the future.
Enhance students' comprehension of educational materials and concepts, such as literacy, reading comprehension, and math/problem-solving skills, which are all fundamental to long-term academic success.
Improve study habits and attitudes towards academics, encouraging a more dedicated and enthusiastic approach to learning.
Enhance problem-solving abilities, improve communication skills, and foster increased self-esteem.
Promote self-confidence, self-discovery, and independence.
Provide exposure to new people, places, and opportunities, expanding students' horizons.
Encourage engagement with reading by developing a rich vocabulary, exploring diverse book genres, and strengthening reading fluency.

The ConnectiKIds enrichment program is a dynamic and engaging series that operates throughout the academic year. Designed to cater to children of different grades and groupings, the program offers a myriad of activities that foster significant personal development. Students participating in these experiences benefit from enhanced social skills, a clearer sense of self-identity, and a deeper understanding of their personal strengths, interests, and goals. These attributes are instrumental in boosting academic performance.

The offerings aim to equip students with essential life skills, improve their problem-solving abilities, sharpen communication skills, and build self-esteem. Our proven model seamlessly integrates school-based concepts and thematic units into the arts. Through this integration, students are provided an opportunity to express themselves, define their identity, and gain insight into their strengths, interests, and aspirations.

The ConnectiKids summer program offers children a richly engaging and enjoyable educational experience throughout the summer months, carefully crafted around a thematic curriculum. The program is structured into two distinct parts. In the morning, children participate in book clubs and dynamic group activities that foster collaboration and critical thinking. The afternoon sessions are filled with excitement and adventure, featuring outdoor excursions, swimming activities, and visits to parks, inviting students to discover and relish the beauty of the outdoors.

ConnectiKids is not limited to offering after-school and summer programs; it is committed to much more than that! The organization is dedicated to the holistic development of children, including the involvement and well-being of their families. In collaboration with various community organizations, ConnectiKids addresses student needs that extend beyond its immediate services. This includes areas such as mental health counseling, housing, food insecurity, and other structural disparities that require a collective response.

The organization organizes an array of field trips that invite parent participation, creating opportunities for parents to engage in educational and enjoyable activities alongside their children. Additionally, ConnectiKids works hand in hand with other organizations to offer workshops for parents, host family events, and provide community-wide learning and growth opportunities, all of which have a positive impact on the students it serves.

Moreover, ConnectiKids features a Counselors in Training (CIT) Program designed for young people aged 14 to 18. This program is geared towards equipping them with professional development and leadership skills, exploring college and career pathways, and providing exposure to professionals within their fields of interest—all of which support their aspirations for the future.

46 years in Hartford

ConnectiKids, Inc. began its commitment to improving the lives of Hartford children in 1978 when volunteers initially got together to provide a positive summer experience for third grade students at West Middle School, a public elementary school in the Asylum Hill neighborhood. Upon completing their first summer, the volunteers realized there was a greater need for assistance and with help from local corporations, decided to provide occasional after-school homework help for those students. The group formed what was to be known for the next twenty years as the West Middle School Committee.

The name of the organization was changed to ConnectiKids in October of 1999 to reflect better the program's wide-ranging impact and the connections it makes among children and adults from many walks of life. ConnectiKids has completed 46 years of operation, having grown to provide multiple schools with both afterschool Tutoring and Mentoring and Enrichment Programs, as well as a Summer Program for over 300 children annually. With the passion of the staff, volunteers, donors, and community ConnectiKids has been able to impact over 15,000 children's lives. We hope you want to become part of our story as we continue to educate, enhance, and empower young people.