The Evolution of AATLc
2018—2026
Since its establishment as a non-profit in 2019, AATLC has collaborated with scholars, educationists, school-teachers, and local community resource centers to develop and provide opportunities for technology-enhanced learning to children, adults and seniors in the Lincoln Heights community and beyond. The work and activities evolved through the years as we acquired more expertise, support, and funding.
Programs
2019
In 2019, AATLC’s education mission started with a Learning Science with Technology program with a group of K-6 children and a Digital Equity for seniors.
The programs for children began with a weekly, 4-week pilot program, April 18 - May 9, 2019, entitled ‘Learning Science with Technology’. This pilot is a precursor to both the 2020 Digital Equity and Technology Infusion (DETI) in STEM and DETI in Literacy. The program for seniors began with a needs assessment in July 2019 and a 4-week program in August. These multiple, small group, weekly sessions are also precursors for the 2020 adult and senior Digital Equity and Technology Infusion program.
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April 2019: Taught 8 group sessions of Learning Science with Technology
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August 2019: Taught 8 group sessions of Digital Equity for Seniors
Activities for K-6 children
The children’s program focused on sparking their curiosity and love for learning by introducing them to interactive e-books, games and apps. In these early days they were taught either on their own equipment (if they had any) or on outdated, borrowed devices in the center.
Activities for Seniors
The seniors were introduced to practical tasks like doing web searches and connecting with their families and friends online through fun learning activities such as online scavenger hunt to find a restaurant and make lunch plans.
2021
During the 2020-21 pandemic shutdown, the center continued its educational mission by helping children maintain their literacy skills through one-on-one online sessions and with the help of the Little Free Library, distributed 60 books to 30 children in 16 families.
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January-May 2021—Led 32 bi-weekly individual online tutoring sessions
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Feb-May 2021—Led 28 biweekly individual online tutoring sessions
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June-December - a return to the Center
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June 2021—Began two separate in-person group sessions of Digital Literacy for Seniors
An online room was set up in the home of the President of AATLC for 2 young learners. One was six-years-old and the other was 7-years-old. They met on Zoom individually twice a week on different days for one-hour sessions. An adult was always in the room, in listening distance, or somewhere in the home of the child. Teachermade ebooks were created using photos of book pages and PowerPoint presentations or purchasing Kindle books aligned with the child’s interest, favorite school subject, or extracellular sport or activity. The room’s blank walls were decorated with colorful cut outs such as “How to think like a Scientist” and “The Writing Process”. There were also multicultural posters depicting different cultures/countries and their connection to Math. And stuffed animals surrounded the Zooming area. Activities for seniors were also curtailed during this Covid season with school and center closings. However, AATLC had been invited to steward books from the “Queen City Books: Little Free Library” program, which were also stored and delivered from the home of AATLC’s President. Senior residents reported the ages of their grandchildren, grand-relatives, or grand-friends and the appropriate books were delivered to them by car. This stewardship continued to the present after the Center reopened.
Activities for K-6 children
An online room was set up in the home of the President of AATLC for 2 young learners. One was six-years-old and the other was 7-years-old. They met on Zoom individually twice a week on different days for one-hour sessions. An adult was always in the room, in listening distance, or somewhere in the home of the child. Teachermade ebooks were created using photos of book pages and PowerPoint presentations or purchasing Kindle books aligned with the child’s interest, favorite school subject, or extracellular sport or activity. The room’s blank walls were decorated with colorful cut outs such as “How to think like a Scientist” and “The Writing Process”. There were also multicultural posters depicting different cultures/countries and their connection to Math. And stuffed animals surrounded the Zooming area.
Activities for Seniors
Activities for seniors were also curtailed during this Covid season with school and center closings. However, AATLC had been invited to steward books from the “Queen City Books: Little Free Library” program, which were also stored and delivered from the home of AATLC’s President. Senior residents reported the ages of their grandchildren, grand-relatives, or grand-friends and the appropriate books were delivered to them by car. This stewardship continued to the present after the Center reopened.
Reflection and Assessment/Outcomes
Both children continued with their one-on-one sessions, but only once a week, when the Center reopened in 2021. As they matured they would occasionally participate in group sessions and one attended the 2023 Step UP! Summer Program. Even after they moved on to other summer camps, and after-school activities like study groups, gymnastics and football, their parents credit their children’s involvement with the Althea Center for their current reading level skills as well as other motor skills. One child, for example, was a stutterer, which was never directly treated except with patience and compassion, but only stuttered once, after returning from vacation, in all of the time spent with this Center teacher. In fact, it was reported that this child began to frequently volunteer to speak in the public school classroom and the local church. The other child, even at the age of 6, always displayed extraordinary skills at interpreting the pictures and verbally proposing what the book was about. As the years passed, those skills blossomed into the ability to read and interpret poetry.
Activities for Seniors
The seniors were introduced to iPads and MacBooks during a technology workshop in June 2021. To keep them active, weekly zoom exercise sessions were offered as well.
Activities for K-6 children
Lessons with Dr. E J Bahng
AATLC worked on a partnership with Dr. E J Bahng, an Associate Professor at Iowa State University (ISU) to provide a variety of origami workshops. These workshops began in 2021 and incorporated instruction in STEM topics, culture, geography, and the art of origami. Dr. E. J. would Zoom into the Althea classrooms to direct the children in creating an origami connected to the season, holiday, or a particular topic. Below is a sample of the workshops offered in 2021.
Reflection and Assessment/Outcomes
(will add reflections and qualitative observations of this half of the year)
2022
The Digital Literacy and STEM (Science Technology, Engineering Math) programs for children and seniors, continued in 2022. By summer time, 2022 Step UP! Reading, Writing, and Technology summer program was launched which included field trips to science museums, hands-on activities and individual reading sessions.
Step UP! is a six-week program offered every Summer (June – July) to Lincoln Heights children getting ready to enter in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades in the Fall. The target enrollment is 20 children.
Activities for K-6 children
Lessons with Dr. E J Bahng continued and many new themes were explored, as listed below. For more detailed information and education materials, check the Children Workshops page.
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Valentine's Day - February 2022
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Happy Pumpkin - October 2022
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Native American Heritage Month - November 2022
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Thanksgiving Turkey - November 2022
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Paper Xmas Trees - December 2022
2022 Step UP! Summer Program
The program began June 20th and ended July 29th. It ran Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. A typical day would begin with a breakfast and after that many reading experiences that promoted fluency and encouraged critical thinking and comprehension.
Monday through Thursdays, in the morning, the children gathered to listen to a story read by the activity coordinator and have some discussions on the topic. In the afternoon, they engaged in arts and craft activities that caused them to think about the moral of the story or important issues that were raised. In addition, each student got daily one-on-one sessions with a teacher to do some educational activities and assessments as well as getting ready for the 3rd grade Ohio state test. Children also had the opportunity to work on vocabulary and sight words lists. Thursday afternoons were for technology activities in the iPads and Macbooks. Fridays were field trip days to places like Gorman Farms, iSpace, West Chester MidPointe Library, Cincinnati Art Museum, and Newport Aquarium. Finally, every Friday each student could pick a book from four multicultural, diversity titles read that week to take home to keep and share with friends and family.
The Step UP! staffing, including the Director, two Teachers, and the Activity Coordinator, along with food provisions were funded by an Impact 100 Next Step Award. The field trips were partially funded by a grant from the Wyoming Foundation's Joint Women's Collaborative (JWC) and the books were generously supplied by the Little Free Library of Queen City Book Bank.
Activities for Seniors
The seniors had three exciting workshops this year:
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Origami pumpkin - October 2022
There were two sessions of origami crafts. Seniors made and decorated happy pumpkin and an accordion-like pumpkin. -
Thanksgiving Turkey - November 2022
They celebrated Thanksgiving and the Native Americans Heritage month by creating decorative origami turkeys -
New Year calendar - December 2022
They created a New Year calendar with season greeting or personalized with family pictures
2023
Recognizing the value of small-group learning, AATLC renewed its focus on STEM and literacy while adding origami sessions for K–6 children and older adults. Through paper folding, participants explored geometric shapes and developed tactile connections to mathematics. Incorporating origami also added the “A” for art to STEM, creating STEAM.
These programs also connected STEAM concepts with cultural practices and geography to help children contextualize information and form a wider world view. Building on this interdisciplinary approach, the AATLC team launched the 2023 Step UP! STEAM(SS) summer program, expanding STEAM to include Social Studies.
Activities for K-6 children
Lessons with Dr. E J Bahng
Detailed information of these activities can be found at the Children Workshops page.
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Origami Fish & Boat - January 2023
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Origami Hearts - February 2023
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Origami Spring Baskets - April 2023
2023 StepUP! Program
Activities for Seniors
More detailed information of these activities can be found on the Senior Workshops page
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Celebrating Health & Wellness with the Japanese Paper Crane- an origami activity- January 2023
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Digital Literacy for Adults - Microsoft Office for Beginners - April 2023
Funding & Equipment
FUNDING
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Ingenuity Growth Foundation= $25,000
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Allison Kent Edwards Foundation= $10,000 initial; $5,000 per year for 5 years
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Skyler Foundation= $1500 initial; $30,000
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T.A. Leigh Memorial Funds= $30,000
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Greater Cincinnati Foundation Learning Links Grant= $2500
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Wyoming [OH] Foundation’s Joint Women's Collaborative Grant= $1000; $2500
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AATLC BOD member= $2500
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KFM Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation= $2000
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Fidelity Charitable= $1000
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Cengage Publishing= $500 employee match (=$1000)
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WalMart= $250 employee match (=$500)
EQUIPMENT
All new purchases and current models at the years of purchase, typically direct from the original manufacturers:
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(15) Apple MacBook student laptops
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(1) Apple MacBook Pro administrative laptop
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(23) Apple iPad student tablets
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(1) Apple 25“ iMac desktop
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(1) Prusa mini 3D printer
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(2 ) Dremel 3D printers
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(1) SMART 55” interactive smartboard
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(1) HP b/w laser printer
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(1) Brother color laser printer