ALEC Wish List 2016

Can you believe it's been a whole year since we moved into our Warrington Avenue location! Time flies!

With the afterschool year at a close, we have been working to clean up and improve our space so we can get the most out of what we have for our youth  programs and prepare for camps and the fall semester.
There are a lot of exciting things coming up for our youth at ALEC, the biggest of which is our partnership with Gtech and their graciousness to allow our site be a Green Playces project with the great support of RE360.

Last year I created a wish list which was super helpful and made our transition into the new space much easier with such generous support from our partners and friends. Well, after a year in this space we have taken time to settle in and acclimate ourselves to the larger space and we are aware there are a few items we could use to start off our summer camps and get us ready for the upcoming year.
We would be happy to accept the following items in new or gently used condition.

Allentown Learning & Engagement Center Wish List

Wire Shelving Units (2-4) 

We have struggle for storage this year with art supplies, snacks/kitchen tools and other materials in our closet space and public spaces.  An additional 2-4 shelves would be very helpful to keep things more organized and efficient. 
We recently received two metal cabinets from Phillips Elementary school! Thanks to our friends at Phillips, Cupkas, Ken Wolfe and Barb Rudiak! 

Storage containers (up to 20) 
Update: we could use 5-7 of the long rectangular crates

We have been operating with old cardboard boxes and discarded plastic containers for quite awhile. It would be great to have some storage options that are sturdy and can last us much longer than 6-9 months at a time.

These rectangular milk crates are preferred as they fit the shelves best we can also use pre-loved square milk crates as well.

Thanks to Work Hard Pgh and the CLP Knoxville we have received about 18 cubed crates!   

Tablets (10-15)We are working to incorporate more coding into our overall youth programs, but we are very short on tablets that could be used in these lessons. The link above are to simple, and affordable, NeuTab tablets. However we are open to tablets of all kinds, ipads and other web ready and application based tablets work well. Cases would also be helpful.
Currently our students take turns on a few devices but if we were to have up to 15 we could allow them to pair up for coding lessons.

Felt hanging planters (4-8)
We are always looking for new ways to maximize our space. The garden area has been a huge hit with the kids and with hanging planters we could add a lot more space for growing!

Games

The youth are always in need of more games so we put together a list of our top hits or most requested. In addition we have been adding more techy games to our collections so additional circuit boards would allow for more kids to participate in our snap circuits. Our Kano computer has been a great success as well and with another one we could include more kids and use it in both classrooms so that all of our kids could benefit.

Spot it, Connect 4, Trouble, Speed cup stacking, Mancala, Legos, Chutes and Ladders, Checkers Set, Tic Tac Toe, Sorry, Head Banz, Knex,  Angry Birds Knex, Make-N-Break, Snap Circuits &

Kano computer (1)

Globe and White BoardWe have found that having a globe and an additional whiteboard in each classroom would be very helpful since we run two separate lessons at the same time. 
Whiteboard was generously donated by the CLP Knoxville branch!
We received a few globes from Phillips Elementary school! 

Dictionaries (2-4)
We are focusing on getting the youth to improve their reading skills and to encourage them to discover and learn new words on their own. Having dictionaries readily available in the classroom would really help to promote these ideas. We currently have a dictionary but it is outdated and is used quite a bit.

We received a few used dictionaries from a couple different sources. Thank you!

Book series

Of course we always are looking to get our kids into reading and the best way to do that is to get them hooked on a new series. We included a list of popular series and ones we know our kids are interested in. 

 Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Origami Yoda, Jedi Academy, I Survived, Who Was, You Wouldn't Want to..., Big Nate, Clementine, Magic Tree House, Geronimo Stilton

Art SuppliesArt supplies go by pretty quick here. We do a lot of crafts and activities with art so we are always in need of supplies to use. 

Pipe Cleaners, paint brushes (all sizes), markers, Water color sets, Acrylic paint, Air Dry clay, glue sticks, No 2 Pencils.

Serving tray (like a sturdy cafeteria tray) (4-6)
We often have the kids eating and sharing healthy snacks. To make it easier for the kids to help and carry snacks to their classmates or neighbors we are looking for serving trays with handles that would be strong and easy to hold.
Trays were donated from Phillips Elementary school! 

Gift Cards

    Costco, Giant Eagle, Amazon, Artists and Craftsman, Ikea, Home Depot. 

Again, We are very open to gently used and pre-loved items. We are all about reusing items and reducing our impact on the earth.

If you are able to assist with any of these items, cash/gift cards or have further questions about the listed items, please contact Amber Rooke at arooke@brashearassociation.org or call ALEC at 412.620.8282.


Thank you for all the support throughout the year! The Brashear Association wouldn't be able to have all the programming and opportunities for our youth without the partnerships and kindness we have from the community.  Please do not hesitate to share this list via social media and other networks.


Thank you so much,

-Amber
Special thanks to our Americorps KEYS, Sarah Long, for her assistance in this compilation.

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