AMASE Choir is run by graduate music education students at Northwestern University and takes place on the university campus. (AMASE stands for Academy of Music and Arts for Special Education) The participants and volunteers from Northwestern experience what it’s like to be in a choir, as they practice and perform in a group, sing solos and duets, and prepare for a public concert to showcase what they have learned. They also build social connections with peers in college.

Armchair Travel is a multi-sensory, educational program designed to simulate international travel from the comfort of Our Place. Participants visit some of the world's best museums, wildlife parks, and tourist attractions, and explore the culture, customs and foods of the places they visit. As with any trip, they will send postcards, keep a travel journal and share their experiences with friends. Participants can expect to improve their understanding of the world, expand their expressive abilities through writing and speaking and learn to incorporate what they’ve seen into their daily lives. As they sample foods from around the world, they may also broaden their tastes and learn to try new foods.

Research shows that artmaking can benefit mental health. In this program, participants explore and discuss various aspects of mental wellness while doing thoughtful art projects. Participants can expect to experiment with painting, illustration, art journaling, and various other art techniques while they find ways to reduce stress and build inner strength.

Participants spend the afternoon at the world class Gillson Beach in Wilmette. They will pack lunches at Our Place for a picnic at the beach and then join in activities of their choice including swimming, walking, getting buried in the sand, building sand castles and enjoying water, sand and fun. Sunscreen provided and regularly re-applied. Bring swimsuits, towels and sand shoes. Participants can expect to enjoy one of the signature North Shore experiences on beautiful Lake Michigan. Summer only.

Book Club is a literacy program that fosters enjoyment and appreciation for literature. The participants listen to and discuss novels, short stories and poems that they select as a group. Participants can expect to expand their reading experiences, explore theme, characters, and plot and become adept at expressing their views and listening to others.

Community Lunch is mostly about having fun with friends while eating out at local restaurants every week. Participants negotiate with friends on which restaurant to choose, aiming for variety. After choosing a restaurant, they plan their order, fill out a budget form, and make sure they have enough money to pay for their selections. They place their orders at the restaurant, pay, and keep receipts so they can track their expenses. Participants can expect to strengthen friendships, practice independent planning and ordering, learn how to navigate in a restaurant and mostly have good conversations. After lunch they take a long walk – outside if the weather is nice and at the fitness center track if it’s cold or rainy.

In this five hour program, participants explore destinations throughout the whole Chicagoland area, focused on outdoor activities and summer events. Venues include Millennium Park, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago Botanic Garden, Morton Arboretum and The Grove. Participants can expect to experience the joys of summer, explore our broader community and just have fun with friends. Seasonal.

Each week, participants make predictions about professional and college sports games and create a sheet of their choices that the group can reference later. The group also watches exciting highlights of the week's games and documentaries about historic sports teams or events. This program allows participants to spend an afternoon together discussing players, teams, news, and everything in between. The discussions about sports also encourage participants to think about other important factors in sports that they can implement in their own lives, such as teamwork, a strong work ethic, and staying healthy in mind and body.

For participants who like to party early we’re offering a social in the morning. The program includes preparation of healthy snacks, dancing to work up an appetite, a break for conversation and snacking and Karaoke or interactive games to wrap up. We will set a theme for every week, including Country Western, Derby Day, Earth Day and Cinco de Mayo. Participants can expect to raise their heart rates while dancing, learn how to prepare healthy snacks, relax with good food and conversation and get a jump on weekend fun.

Friday afternoon is the perfect time to kick back and relax with games and friends. We feature board games, corn hole, bocce, Karaoke and friendly competition. Participants can expect to improve their ability to think strategically, solve problems creatively as a team, work on pattern recognition, and build simple math skills, as they engage socially. They also are urged by peers to follow rules, take turns, and win or lose gracefully. They can then join in these activities with their families and at community game nights.

Participants experience engagement and choice as they build social skills in these online programs. The program opens with socializing as friends join online. The group chooses which game they want to start with, including The A-Z game, Jeopardy or a YouTube trivia. They also choose the theme of the games. There is usually enough time to play another game, so the group chooses from the remaining options. We end with all hands in 1-2-3 Our Place! Participants can expect to have an enriching hour of socializing as they practice making group decisions, following directions, waiting their turn and being team players.

Participants move to their favorite songs as they share their love of dancing. Everyone gets to choose their favorite songs and then the group dances to the beat for a fun and effective workout. Participants can expect to improve their endurance, coordination, team spirit and love of new types of music.

Participants gather in the main room for a healthy lunch provided by Our Place. They chat with friends, staff and volunteers before heading off to their early afternoon activity. Participants can expect to share a good meal around conversation.

This program is all about variety and choices. Each week participants work with a different staff member to create the program for that day. They choose from a list of activities, including those that are active, creative, expressive or based on life skills. Participants are encouraged to choose some from each list over the session to gain a well-rounded experience. Participants can expect to try new things, learn to make decisions as a group, and have fun.

Music and Movement is a program that allows participants to explore the world of musical theater and dance. Each week participants focus on one musical, movie, or show as they use dancing and acting to choreograph dance routines for the chosen musical numbers. Participants can expect to build confidence and creativity through expressive dance and acting as well as teamwork and performance skills.

Participants listen to a wide variety of the work of famous musicians past and present and learn about each artist’s contributions to the world of music. They then discuss the impact of the music on themselves as individuals and on the world.

OP Dance Crew explores a variety of dance styles, including partner dances, line dances, and international dances. Dancers also practice creating unique choreography for their favorite songs. There are three rules in OP Dance Crew: try your best, be creative, and have fun. Participants can expect to get a fun workout while improving endurance, balance, rhythm and coordination. And they’ll be ready for a cruise, wedding or any celebration that includes dancing.

In this five hour program, offered only in the summer, participants explore the trails at local forest preserves, nature centers and botanic gardens and learn about the unique and ever-changing wonders of the world around us. We kayak, paddle boat and walk in this physically active program. Participants can expect to relish summer outdoors while experiencing physical activities in nature. Seasonal.

These were the first programs we offered when we were building the Our Place community and they continue to be wonderful entry points and ongoing fun ways for participants to have plans for Saturday nights. Socials take place from 6 till 9 and include pizza and dessert, socializing, dancing, karaoke, dessert baking and interactive games. Participants choose the activities they want to join during the evening and who they want to hang out with. Saturday Socials in particular provide low-pressure ways for participants to engage with peers in areas of their interest and to develop meaningful relationships that carry over into general programs and get-togethers outside of Our Place.