'The Mem' is a beautiful old building dating back to 1928 and it was built as a memorial to the shipworkers who lost their lives in the First World War. It's future had been in doubt for a while but I am so pleased to see that it has been renovated and is being used again by the people of Wallsend and surrounding areas. My husband's mother used to go to dances there when she was a young girl, the ballroom is amazing.
We entered the ballroom and our names were ticked off the list, first task to complete was to make a Communicator. which was fun and really got the children into the mood. Once everyone had arrived, Stephen took charge of the event and did an amazing job keeping all the kids interested and involved. It was now time to meet the Superheroes and start the mission.
The first hero was Superman. It was great to hear the children's excitement as he entered the room and took them on their first challenge which was to design their very own superhero and decide what powers he had.
With that mission successfully completed, the children were given a superhero mask and it was time for the next challenge, Captain America. His mission involved throwing shields at a target, fabulous, the children really enjoyed that and put lots of effort into it.
A firm favourite with both the kids and mammies was Batman, he was next with his challenge and that was a really fun obstacle course. The three heroes provided the children with lots of help and encouragement and of course lots of hi-fives.
Next up was the obvious favourite, Spiderman, he leapt into the room and the kids shrieked with delight! There was even more enjoyment when they realised Spiderman was there to 're-fuel' them with their packed lunch!
Whilst the children were enjoying their food, all the heroes circulated the room stopping to talk to each child and make sure that any photographs that were wanted were taken. Also, Stephen took this opportunity to come round to make sure all was ok and tell the children what was to happen next. Unfortunately, Spiderman was called off on an emergency so had to dash off and it was then time for the 5th hero - Iron Man, again clearly a crowd favourite.
Iron Man's challenge was a superhero parade where the kids had to do the poses of each of the heroes, this was really funny as the children took it quite seriously and completely joined in. The last hero to join the squad was Optimus Prime, he was pretty cool!
At the end of the event it was time for the presentation, the children had all joined the 'Superhero Squad' and were all given a certificate and medal along with a balloon and goody bag.
I was really impressed at how well it was ran and all the thought that had gone into the challenges and activities. Bravo Hopscotch, a fantastic job and we are looking forward to the next mission.