First Day Festivities!

Welcome back everyone for another year of experiments, adventure, and quality time at ALEC with our after school programming!  Monday and Tuesday we kicked off the program with some games and activities with the kids to introduce them to some of the things we have in store this year.

One of the games was of my own design, something I just called bucket ball so the kids could have a general idea.  The aim of the game was to bounce as many of the plastic balls as they could into their buckets, of which there were three.  The closest bucket was worth 1 point, the middle worth 3, while the furthest was worth  5.  Using blue tape to mark the spot to stand behind, all of the 4th & 5th grade class was able to test their hand-eye coordination...and it was a great game to watch as well!

Sarah's 2nd & 3rd grade class was able to experiment with sound using the laptop computer's microphone, which captured the volume of their clapping through the website: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/2806153/. They played a game creating different patterns with beats and the classroom had to follow together.

We also were fortunate to meet more of our volunteers from Duquesne University, who assist with tutoring and stay long enough to play at the end of the day!

All in all it has been a great start to the program; we have dabbled with delectable snacks, we entertained with the power of science and technology, and we are learning more about life every day.  Be sure to stay up-to-date with us this year, and check back on our blog often!  We appreciate your support, and we hope these ideas help you out!

Until next time!

- Steven