what is homago?

Rebecca Fabiano

By Guest Blogger Rebecca Fabiano

​Bryan Belknap has worked at the McPherson branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia since 2015. The McPherson branch provides a safe haven for children in the Kensington area of North Philadelphia, PA, which is known as the epicenter of the opioid crisis in Philadelphia. Bryan is the Lead Maker Jawn Instructor with the library. Jawn is a Philly colloquialism to mean just about anything (space, things, place, person, etc.). Monday through Thursday children and teens can drop in to the library’s Maker Jawn space.  

I’ve known Bryan for a couple of years and hold him in high regard. Earlier this summer he dropped the term HOMAGO in one of our conversations “HO, what,” I thought? I had to know more. This is what I learned from our conversation where he schooled me on this framework:

“HO-MA-GO” comes from the field of youth media and is an approach that Bryan and his colleagues at the Free Library of Philadelphia have been utilizing for the past couple of years.
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• They [youth] “hang out” with friends in virtual social spaces such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
• They [youth] “mess around” or tinker with digital media, making simple videos, playing online games, or posting pictures on social media.
• They [youth] “geek out” in online groups that facilitate exploration of their core interests.​​

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McPherson Square Library- Source: whyy.org

“HOMAGO fits well at this particular library because its structure provides a safe place for youth to be, and the neighborhood is often unsafe for residents of all ages,” says Bryan. He goes on to say: “Providing a safe place has always been the top priority, and you’re [youth] free to come in here and you can get comfortable here and feel safe here you can just come hang out. There’s no additional requirement other than contributing to the atmosphere of safety and welcoming.” And while Bryan received training on HOMAGO from the Free Library when he started, they’re not just using it related to youth media, but more an approach to youth engagement. HOMAGO is backed by research, which demonstrates high retention of learning, development of problem-solving skills, and critical thinking skills. Though they are a drop-in program, offering clubs and ‘free’ time in the Maker Jawn, the participants attendance tends to be cyclical, it is also predictable.

In fact, HOMAGO aligns well with the three core protective factors developed by using a Positive Youth Development framework: positive relationships (hang out), clear, fair and high expectations (mess around, understanding how to use the materials and tools) and opportunities to connect, navigate and to be productive (geek out). While I visited Bryan, I saw several of the projects the participants were working on including a jacket a young person had taught herself how to make through trial and error, getting to know how to use the sewing machine, watching YouTube videos and lots of encouragement.

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Source: springboardexchange.org

To facilitate HOMAGO, they set up work stations with sewing machines, cardboard, hot glue guns with popsicle sticks, snap circuits are always out and something messy like slime or painting.  There’s also a computer where youth can play video games, which they usually do in a small group huddled around the computer. Having these all out all the time, youth see each other messing around and get inspired to try new things.

Things to consider if you want to try HOMAGO at your drop-in or afterschool program:
·    Learning and exploring is self-directed by the participants
·   There’s a lot of organized chaos; what makes it organized is the clear expectations for how to use the space, the tools and materials.

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Rebecca Fabiano, MS in education, is the founder and president of Fab Youth Philly, a small, woman-owned business that supports youth-serving organizations and serves as a lab to create programming for and with youth.