Sibling Day

The 9^th of June 2012 was a very fun day at our Stepping Stones center in Bangsar. New friendships were made, new games were learnt, everyone laughed till their tummy hurt, and most importantly the concept of same/different brought a whole different meaning to five different children who had siblings with special needs.

Sibling day is a day where brothers and sisters of children with special needs get to meet other siblings in a fun and relaxed environment. This day is designed for siblings ages 6 -13 and the activities usually run for about three hours.

To break the ice we started off by making name tags for ourselves. We had to write our names, age and draw how we think we look like. The children immediately got busy making their name tags. Then we each had to introduce ourselves and make a silly action while saying our name. The children got really creative and it was very impressive. We thought we would make it more interesting by having a “snowball fight”. The children were divided into groups and were given recycled paper “snowballs” to throw to the other team. The team with the least amount of snowballs on their side would be the winner. This definitely broke the ice among the children.

After playing some active games we did a little bit of discussion and peer support. We talked about how we are all different, have different experiences , look different, like and dislike different things, and many more. The children were also able to talk about their siblings with special need and how they handle the differences. This was really an eye opener as I observed the other children getting some ideas on how to handle their siblings too. We also played some games in between and the sound of laughter from the children was priceless. I missed being a kid at that point.

Then we adjourned to the kitchen to make our lunch. We made individual pizzas for lunch. The children got really creative with their pizzas. While waiting for the pizza to cook the children were talking about movies they have watched recently, their school and life in general. When the pizza was cooked everyone ate very quietly. This was the only time I realized the group was quiet.

We then took some silly pictures and said goodbye. The children wanted to come next week again to hang out – which meant they had lots of fun. Pictures should be up on our Facebook soon! 

We will be having another Sibling Day coming up this year so just watch out for our advertisement somewhere in August 2012.

Written by

Jessica Ganesha

Consultant, EAP Malaysia