Activity advent calendar

The lead-up to Christmas can be a challenging time for people living with Prader-Willi syndrome and their families. We've developed a list of suggested advent calendar activities which are appropriate for children aged 4 - 12 and encourage physical activity. We suggest tailoring the activities for your child, including increasing the number of minutes of activities as appropriate. This guide on exercise and physical activity for children with Prader-Willi syndrome may be helpful (opens as PDF): 
https://www.som.uq.edu.au/media/188825/Prader%20Willi%20book%20web.pdf

Suggested activities for your advent calendar:

  1. Draw something you hope to get for Christmas
  2. Santa loves red and green. How many red and green things can you count in your bedroom?
  3. Do something kind for somebody else
  4. Make a Christmas card for your favourite person
  5. Do a happy dance
  6. Do five jumps for joy!
  7. Sing a Christmas carol
  8. Take a special family photo
  9. Read a Christmas book
  10. Say one nice thing about every person in your family
  11. Do ten jumps for joy!
  12. Try to say all of the names of Santa's reindeer
  13. Draw a picture of your favourite Christmas memory
  14. Play musical statues using a Christmas song
  15. Make a Christmas video
  16. Dance to a Christmas carol
  17. Draw a picture of you for Santa
  18. Santa has to run really fast to deliver all the presents. Run as fast as you can for two minutes
  19. Count how many houses on your street have Christmas lights
  20. Do tiny elf steps for two minutes
  21. Count how many houses on your street have Christmas trees in their front yard
  22. Watch a Christmas movie
  23. Go ourstide and look at the stars
  24. Make a sign for Santa so he knows where to find you.

Our thanks go to volunteers Lyndsey Cullen and Melanie Carew for their efforts developing this calendar. Lyndsey is a qualified primary school teacher with an interest in encouraging physical activity in school aged children. Melanie is the volunteer director of science communication for the Prader-Willi Research Foundation of Australia. 

You can download and print a copy of this post at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-cuqbljf-r6WmtEZnJmdVZ4Zm8/view?usp=sharing

Ask the Scientist: Dr Sara Howden

What is your expertise and experience?

I have a strong interest in gene therapy and its promise to treat or even cure many forms of human disease. I began my research career as a PhD student at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute by investigating different ways to effectively and safely introduce DNA into various human cell types. Following the completion of my PhD, I moved to Wisconsin (USA) for a postdoctoral position with Dr James Thomson acquiring experience with stem cell culture, reprogramming and gene editing. In 2011, I was lead author on a publication that was the first to report gene repair in patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells. I recently returned to the Murdoch Children's Research Institute for a research fellowship and to continue to develop and apply my expertise in reprogramming and gene editing.

Where do you see opportunity for breakthroughs in Prader-Willi Syndrome?

Pluripotent stem cells can become any of the 220 cell types found in the human body so they offer enormous potential for studying human disease and drug discovery. iPS cells are particularly useful for studying Prader-Willi Syndrome because they can be used to derive the cells that are most affected but not easily accessible (e.g. those in the brain). I believe that one of the most exciting avenues of research is using genetically modified iPS cells in sophisticated "drug screening" assays to identify specific compounds that could be used to treat Prader-Willi Syndrome. People who have Prader-Willi retain at least one copy of the DNA region which is known to be involved in the syndrome, but this "maternal" copy is normally inactivated by epigenetic factors in a process known as genomic imprinting. My research explores the possibility of reactivating this maternal DNA region  using therapeutic compounds.

Why are you involved in the Prader-Willi Research Foundation of Australia?

I have always loved being a scientist because of the thrill of discovery and sharing my knowledge with others. I'm excited that the Prader-Willi Research Foundation of Australia brings together passionate and dedicated people who bring a vast wealth of knowledge, resources and expertise to the table. What's more, we all share the same fundamental goal, to better the lives of people living with Prader-Willi Syndrome. I'm excited to think that my research could benefit the lives of children living with this syndrome.