Welcome, Ellie!

Written by: Ellie McNeil Ellie McNeil is a fourth-year student at the University of Northern Iowa, studying Recreation, Tourism, and Nonprofit Leadership. She will be interning with GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago for the Summer season. Ellie grew up about 3 hours East of Chicago, in the Quad Cities. She has two older brothers she looks up…

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Occupational Therapy Capstone Projects at the Playhouse

Written by Allison Harvey – Rush University Occupational Capstone Student Being able to complete my capstone experience at both GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago and Gateway to Learning was one of the best experiences that I will truly cherish for the rest of my life. Not only was I able to implement my Universal Design program that…

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Valentine’s Day Party Blog

Authors: Sydney, Colleen, Emily, Lucy, Leslie, and Ryan We had an awesome and amazing Valentine’s Day Party at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago! It was on Thursday February 9th. Our favorite parts were the chocolate fountain, the treats, and the singing/dancing. We did a partner dancing game where you had to switch partners when the music stopped,…

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Partnership with North Park Elementary School

by Jennifer Casey, Outreach Committee Co-Chair – GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago We are grateful to Cassidy and Sam, wonderful moms from North Park Elementary School, who reached out this fall as they considered local community learning opportunities for their children’s 1st grade class. When we met shortly after, we felt an immediate connection to them and…

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A Trip to the Zoo!

By: Stephanie and Karen Last week, we went to the Lincoln Park Zoo! We had a great time. Our favorite part was the penguins and the meerkats. We got to test a new sign and give our feedback to make it more accessible for people with different abilities. They had really cool adapted schedules that…

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Welcome Anna & Allie! Rush OT Capstone Students

Meet Anna! Pictured Left Hello! My name is Anna Parker and I am a third-year Occupational Therapy student at Rush University. I am spending 14 weeks at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago to complete my doctoral capstone project. For my project, I will be running a health and wellness program with the goal of increasing self-determination and…

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Taking Action to Prevent Bullying in Your Community

  Did you know that 1 of every 5 students report being bullied, and less than 50% report the bullying incident to others (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2019)? Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior that is repetitive and involves a power imbalance.     There are different types of bullying, including:  Verbal Bullying – saying…

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GiGi’s Playhouse National Leadership Conference

  Who loves GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago?  Who is proud of all we’ve accomplished this year?  We are!   During the first week of November, the leadership team at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago attended the GiGi’s Playhouse National Leadership Conference, where teams from 57  Playhouses throughout the U.S. and Mexico gathered for education, networking, and celebration.  …

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Welcome, Maggie!

  Written by: Maggie – GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago Intern Hello my name is Maggie! I am an intern at GiGi’s Playhouse Chicago and a PACE student at National Louis University in Chicago. I am a 3rd year student with with learning disabilities. My hobbies are sewing and also art and crafts and my favorite animals…

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A Message from Hafsa

  Our Playhouse had a special visitor the past two months named Hafsa! While visiting from France, she came to the Playhouse for programs and to help with intern tasks! One of those tasks being to write a blog to share her story with our Playhouse families! Learn about Hafsa and her time here at…

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