Afterschool LEARNS at Berkeley schools

I’ve heard these programs are just play based  - we were recommended to sign up for the JCC Berkeley has great enrichment classes

My experience is about 6 years old so take it with a grain of salt - hopefully someone will add some updated information. When I went to sign my kid up for Learns, it was very difficult to even find out any information about the Learns program at the school we were assigned to.  I found generic information on BUSD's website, but each school seems to be its own little kingdom in terms of policies and procedures. When I did find a contact email address, I would send email but not receive a reply. Eventually I figured out to go to the school in person and ask an adult who was on the playground after school interacting with the kids. They gave me a form to fill out but no one could tell me whether there would be room for my child, so that was a little hair-raising for a working mom. My child did eventually get in. I found this out by going to the cafeteria after school where the group met and it turned out he was on the roster. We used Learns for about 3 months until we figured out an alternative.  Learns was not terrible -- there are adults handing out snacks and supervising on the playground. But it was basically babysitting. It was also very disorganized - they continued to bill us for months after we had left the program. Learns did not seem to be accountable to the school or to the district in any meaningful way. For example neither the principal nor the district could tell me very much about the program beyond the name of the person in charge at the school (who did not answer email or phone calls). I think BUSD does not have much of an interest in after-school care beyond making sure low-income kids are covered, and those kids get the bare minimum. So if you have an alternative, I'd use that.

Our son attended LEARNS for K–5 (he is now in middle school) and it was a very good experience for our family. It was our experience that everyone who applied got admitted to LEARNS in K, and then you automatically get a spot each subsequent year (perhaps other schools are different -- ask the school). There is a lot of unstructured time, which turned out to be great -- that is when he could run around on the yard, be a kid, make friends (the kids who didn't go seemed a bit left out, socially). He got tons of exercise that he didn't get during the short recesses during the school day. The program offered many enrichment programs, from hip-hop dancing to chess to soccer, and they had a homework hour. The LEARNS teachers were trained in Common Core so they could help kids with their math homework. In six years of elementary school, we never had to supervise homework since it was all done during the afterschool program! They also provided healthy snacks (boxes of apples, bags of carrots, etc.). Find the LEARNS coordinator at your school and ask questions. 

My daughter did LEARNS all the years of elementary school (she's in 7th now) at Washington. It was disorganized, difficult to get info from them, etc. BUT it was the place where she made the most friends and had the best time. She really just wanted to hang out with her friends and play, so that's mostly what they did. When given a choice for a "afterschool class" she often chose "no class." So that's another perspective for you. Don't sweat this. Just pick one that's cheap and easy for you and your family to get to.

I realized I didn't answer your question. When we were there, some families didn't get in due to lack of space. Luckily there were many other fine options.

Our first grader is in it now, since K. I think there's a date you have to watch for to make sure you get in.  Thereafter, it seems not too difficult to continue- continuing parents get first dibs to continue.  It's fine and we're happy with it.  We're a pair of over-educated parents; we like play.   And they have enrichment programs- dance, drumming, extra PE/games, cooking.  They also have an academic hour too- for homework, etc. I think.  Not sure.  I believe every parent in the district is mailed or emailed with more details in the Spring to enroll. We made sure we were on top of it as we need the childcare.  We had thought of having him go somewhere else, but at least logistically it didn't make sense.  DM me if you have any questions.