Welcome

On Wednesday December 16th, 2020, The Wishing Star Project held their second season-themed craft event for students in Sir Robert Borden High Schools' Autism program. Held two days before the winter break, students were able to have fun and get in the mood for their long awaited vacation by creating cotton ball snowmen. Students were given a variety of supplies from cotton balls, ribbon, pipe cleaners and buttons to personalize their snowmen using their creativity and art skills. Throughout the event, participants were connected with a 2:1 ratio of student volunteers, giving them the opportunity to make new friends by socializing and collaborating with one another as they crafted. With a welcoming atmosphere, a fun activity and passionate volunteers, the event was ultimately a success. It not only allowed students to have an entertaining and pleasant experience as they expanded their connections with youth in  their community beyond our first craft event in November but, it additionally helped us increase our impact and achieve our purpose of providing meaningful learning experiences for youth with Autism and Down syndrome in our community through a culture of caring. 

On November 13th, 2020 students in Sir Robert Borden’s Autism program had the opportunity to let their creativity shine by participating in the Wishing Star’s Autumn Art event. Each student was given a variety of craft supplies from pipe cleaners and construction paper to stickers and gemstones where they had a blast decorating and personalizing their own fall-themed wreath as the autumn months and changing foliage emerged.  Throughout the event, students were able to make meaningful  social connections, meet new friends and collaborate with others with a ratio of two student volunteers per participant. Volunteers worked with, chatted and got to know students as they personalized their crafts. The event ultimately served as a means of not only providing a fun and engaging activity to bring joy into one’s day  but, it additionally allowed students to gain new skills and experiences building connections with fellow students in a safe and welcoming environment, something of utmost importance amid the pandemic.

On Saturday October 3rd, 2020, The Wishing Star Project held an a fun and  interactive online Zumba event led by the phenomenal zumba instructor Abha Jain. Youth volunteers and participants joined us on ZOOM from around Ottawa to listen and dance to a wide variety of music from rap and hip hop to childhood classics. Between intervals of Zumba, board members held a number of engaging and active icebreaker games like Simon Says, sharing our favourite things and learning more about one another with a stand up/sit down if (and other actions)  game. By bringing youth together for the event, participants and volunteers were able to learn some cool dance moves, meet new people, destress and keep active! After assessing feedback from our instructor, participants and volunteers, the event was an overall success and helped us implement our team’s mission of providing a safe and welcoming environment for youth with Autism and Down Syndrome where youth can have fun, meet new people and learn new skills. Throughout our Zumba session, participants were able to build connections through experiences with students in their community, an especially relevant and important achievement during these challenging and unpredictable times as youth are feeling more isolated and lonely than ever.