Meet Aarav Sharma: the Rising Junior behind FCSN’s Intro To Spanish Course

Meet Aarav Sharma, a rising junior at Archbishop Mitty High who taught an 8 week Intro to Spanish Course at the South Bay FCSN Center. However, this was not Aarav’s first time teaching classes with FCSN. Previously, Aarav has also taught subjects ranging from coding to math to children with special needs at the South Bay FCSN Center. Continue reading Meet Aarav Sharma: the Rising Junior behind FCSN’s Intro To Spanish Course

FCSN Young Leaders Committee

Since its founding in 1996, FCSN has seen an abundance of volunteers with talent, creativity, and knowledge, all working toward a common mission to serve the special needs community. With the aid of many high school volunteers, FCSN has expanded to feature over 44 programs, ranging from one-on-one tutoring programs to individual enrichment classes. This year, although a roster of exceptional leaders and volunteers have ended their high school journey and will leave their hometowns to pursue different paths in life, many of them hope to still stay involved with FCSN. Started in the summer of 2022, the FCSN Young Leaders committee is a recent initiative dedicated to preserving these volunteers’ connection to FCSN through networking, events, and volunteer experiences.  Continue reading FCSN Young Leaders Committee

Color Your World: Spotlight on FCSN’s Cartoon Character Drawing Class

Art is a fantastic medium for students of all ages to develop their creativity and their imagination. The Cartoon Character Drawing Class, taught by Riley Xu, opens students to the possibilities of art. The students are taught to replicate their favorite cartoon characters through simple lines and shapes, paying attention to the details of their features. Through this class of around four to five students, they develop their attention to detail, their own unique art styles, and creativity, growing with the art skill needed to make their favorite characters from the film world their own outside of the classroom. Continue reading Color Your World: Spotlight on FCSN’s Cartoon Character Drawing Class

WeDo2 Lego Spring Class Builds Robotics Knowledge at FCSN

In the spring of 2023, Team Alphabots, a FIRST Tech Challenge robotics team, hosted a series of 8 weekly Lego robotics classes to introduce FCSN students to engineering and programming skill sets. With the mission of spreading awareness of STEM fields to young and underprivileged students in the Bay Area, Alphabots’ nonprofit organization, Alphabots4All, reached out to FCSN hoping to assist special needs students in developing an interest in robotics. In Alphabots4All’s lessons, students use the Lego WeDo2 sets, software, and instructional manuals to build projects and learn to code.  Continue reading WeDo2 Lego Spring Class Builds Robotics Knowledge at FCSN

Biology For Curious Kids

Originally starting as our passion for biological sciences, Biology for Curious Kids has since blossomed into a virtual enrichment program to help kids with special needs learn about biology and its applications to the real world. Through cartoons and thoughtful explanations, the class focuses on engaging students and aiding them in discovering the ever-changing world. We try to make this class as interactive as possible by having the students compete in kahoots, answer questions, or just talk about their day.  Continue reading Biology For Curious Kids

2022 President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA)

The Presidential Volunteer Service Award is an award given by the President to reward volunteers for devoting hours to community service. Since 2014, FCSN has been participating in this program as a certifying organization to incentivize our volunteers to participate in more activities and serve their communities. In the past year of 2022, 31 FCSN youth volunteers earned the PVSA young adult and teen awards for bronze, silver, and gold categories. Continue reading 2022 President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA)

Breaking Down the Wonders of the Human Body: A Neurodiverse-Inclusive Approach to Biology Education

The complexity of the human body makes it both a fascinating and a challenging subject to comprehend, particularly for special needs individuals. The terminology and concepts used to describe human anatomy can also be overwhelming and frustrating, making it difficult for special needs individuals to grasp the subject and limiting their access to educational resources in the medical field. To bridge this gap, Med-ucate, a student-run nonprofit program, provides free healthcare education by employing interactive teaching styles to help students of all learning abilities understand subjects such as anatomy and physiology.  Continue reading Breaking Down the Wonders of the Human Body: A Neurodiverse-Inclusive Approach to Biology Education

Unlocking the Power of Music and Dance: Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment for Special Needs Individuals

Special needs individuals thrive in an education environment tailored to their individual needs. Verbal communication may be a challenge for them, but music can provide an effective means of expression, allowing them to communicate through sound and visual images. To ensure the success of the Virtual Music and Hip-Hop program, we created interactive, tailored courses in different subjects to introduce special needs individuals to the wide array of stimuli that can spark their curiosity. Continue reading Unlocking the Power of Music and Dance: Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment for Special Needs Individuals

Sairisheeth’s Journey in Creating FCSN Tennis Camp

“When I first found out about FCSN, I wanted to bring something I was passionate about to this special community,” FCSN Tennis Program Founder Sairisheeth Venkat said. Sairisheeth learned about FCSN when he was searching for volunteer opportunities online and was fascinated by the close-knit community and numerous opportunities offered by the organization to help special needs individuals.  Continue reading Sairisheeth’s Journey in Creating FCSN Tennis Camp