Tag Archives: Sibling Day

My first Sibling Day

Eleven-year-old Shaine Body tells us about his first Sibling Day

My first sibling day was amazing! The theme was ‘My Headquarters’. When I got off the bus I wasn’t sure what to think of Very Special Kids. However my feeling of uncertainty went out the window as soon as I got first glance of the building. I felt very comfortable and when I arrived almost every adult there was saying hello to me.

After making a bag and door handle we went into another room. In that room we learnt about all the rules for the day and split up into our groups. The different groups were all based on different emotions and I was in group ‘Sad’.

The first activity we did was going to different islands. The first island my group went to was ‘Goof Ball Island’ where we made ‘spiders’ (lemonade with ice cream) then had a go at the ‘Big Splash’ ( like a dunking machine) where we had to throw a ball and hit a lever which would push a bucket of water on a very unlucky person!

Then we went to ‘Memory Island’ where we stood in a circle and threw a ball to each other, the person catching the ball would share a memory they had.

Then we to ‘Family Island’ where we talked about different experiences with different family members, then ‘Friendship Island’ where we wrote our friends names in a circle of who do we see the most, then who do we see less often etc. We got to play dress ups also!

Then we went to ‘Mystery Island’ where we got a sheet of paper that had questions and a tick box next to each question. We had to find the answer to each question in a treasure hunt then claimed the completed sheet for a prize!

Then we had pizza for lunch!

After lunch we did some therapeutic activities including making a little book of feelings and a memory ball where we wrote and / or drew a memory on a piece of paper and put it in a ball with decorations. Once we were done it was time to go!

Siblings celebrate “being me”

Siblings, and bereaved siblings, of children with life-threatening conditions, enjoyed games, crafts and meeting new friends at a special day all about them.

Three Very Special Kids Sibling Days were held in the April school holidays, each with the theme “It’s All About Me”, encouraging children to take a day to focus on their own needs.

Kids scurried around the Very Special Kids grounds in Malvern participating in a scavenger hunt including relays, yoga, planting seeds, juicing oranges and making friendship bracelets.

A highlight was lessons from Taekwon-Do Masters Scott T Cole and and Steve Kara from Pilsung Elite Taekwon-Do Academy.

The Very Special Kids Sibling Support Program was created to address the impact on children, of having a brother or sister with a life-threatening condition. The activity-based Sibling Days help kids explore their emotions, enhance their self-esteem and meet peers.