Wish Schools

Make-A-Wish is one of Australia’s most trusted charities.

Each and every day, we bring amazing people together to grant life-changing wishes for children with a critical illness.

Wishes are designed to complement medical treatment, supporting families and empowering sick children with hope and joy when they need it most.

And for everyone involved, wishes have a remarkable, uplifting and positive impact – well beyond the wish itself.

Wish Schools is your go-to site for bringing greater imagination, creativity and resilience to life at school.

Whether you're a teacher, school leader or student, you can inspire your peers, empower your community and make a difference in the lives of critically ill children.

Explore free lesson plans, impactful fundraising ideas and other opportunities to connect your school with one of Australia's most trusted charities.

Together, we can spark joy and bring hope to kids who need it most!

It’s natural to want to help the people we care about when they’re going through tough times. However, every wish family is different, and while some children will appreciate support from their school community, others may prefer to keep things private. 

If you have a wish child in your class, start by asking if they're comfortable sharing their wish and medical situation at school. If the child and family are interested, you could consider a range of actions to support them, and spread compassion and kindness:

• Let kids know that when people are feeling sick or sad, there are always things we can do to help. Brainstorm with your class what kind and thoughtful things you can do to help brighten their day. (Create a class card, send a funny video to their friend in hospital, play some quieter games together at lunch, help carry heavy bags etc).
• If your classmate’s wish is coming up soon, what are some things you can do to celebrate this milestone together? 
• Consider hosting a school dress-up day, bake sale or fundraiser to help Make-A-Wish grant more wishes in your community. Kids love helping other kids, and this can be a great way to show your support while inspiring students with real-life examples of community spirit, resilience and kindness.

If you have a wish child in your class, please first ensure the family is comfortable sharing their child's wish and medical situation.

If so, you can explain to your class that:

• Make-A-Wish grants wishes to children who are fighting a critical illness.
• Doctors prescribe wishes to help empower sick kids with hope and joy, giving them something positive to look forward to while going through their medical journey.
• Knowing that our classmate isn't feeling well, what could we do to support them? How can we celebrate their wish?

Learn more about Make-A-Wish and our wishes here.

Kids love helping other kids, which is why Make-A-Wish is such a perfect fit for your next school fundraiser. By supporting Make-A-Wish, your school can help more kids experience the joy and hope of a wish come true. Best of all, Make-A-Wish makes fundraising easy with creative ideas, ready-made resources and a dedicated team to support your efforts. 

You get to feel good, knowing your support is being directed to one of Australia’s most trusted charities while helping students feel a sense of purpose, achievement and pride.

Check out our school fundraising page for more ideas and to register your fundraiser.

Make-A-Wish has a range of ready-made fundraising ideas and toolkits on our website:

• For primary students, we recommend dress-up days such as Wear What You Wish (suitable for any date), Wear It Blue (to celebrate World Wish Day on 29 April), or Hallowish (now running annually in October).
• For secondary students, we recommend our Bake A Wish fundraiser (suitable for any date), Wear It Blue (to celebrate World Wish Day on 29 April) or Hallowish (coinciding with Halloween in October).

You can also have your students design their very own fundraiser (think lemonade stand, crazy hair day, Colour Run)– the possibilities are endless! 

Raising money can be as simple as collecting gold coin donations or creating an online fundraising page in a few easy steps.

See our school fundraising page for more ideas and to register your fundraiser.

Good news! Make-A-Wish has developed a range of lesson plans to help you teach kids all about creativity, community and resilience. They're free to download, easy to teach, and each plan connects with Australian Curriculum outcomes.

Jump over to our Lesson Plans page for more information.