If there is one thing we know at Little Hiccups, it’s that “structured fun” can sometimes feel like a bit of an oxymoron for our kids. But this week, we threw open the gates to Wonka’s Wonderland, and the result was pure magic—with just the right amount of wonderful mayhem.
Led by the brilliant Kathleen (who has 30 years of dance experience and the ADHD superpowers to match), our mini Oompa-Loompas dived into a world of music, physical theatre, and “Pure Imagination.”
“Just Let Them Be”
We know the drill: you turn up to an event, and the pressure for your child to “perform” or “join in” starts rising. We wanted none of that. One of our lovely mums summed it up perfectly after the session:
“Thank you for a lovely event. It was so cool that ‘M’ could just explore and there was no pressure on her! She loved the musical instruments and the jigsaws best! 45 mins to the minute she stayed which is pretty much all she can do anywhere at the moment. Thank you for being so flexible and letting the kids just be really fluid in the environment and gravitate to what they wanted to do themselves.It goes along way with ‘M’ when structured sessions are free flow she feels safer faster.”
That is exactly what we aim for. If a child wants to spend the “dance” session investigating a jigsaw or testing out the musical instruments instead of doing a jazz hand? Go for it.
It was a bit of a hectic day behind the scenes, but seeing kids engage who usually prefer to stay on the sidelines made every frantic moment worth it. Whether they were mastering an Oompa-Loompa move or just enjoying being in a space where they didn’t have to “mask” or fit a mould, every single one of them earned their Golden Ticket Certificate.
A Huge Shout-Out
A massive thanks to Kathleen for being such an advocate for inclusion and for understanding that “ability” doesn’t have a fixed age. And, of course, thanks to our parents and carers for navigating the beautiful, busy reality of a Hiccups event.
As Willy Wonka said: “We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.” Even if those dreams involve 45 minutes of solid jigsaw work in the middle of a musical theatre workshop!
