Eleni and Hector—also known as Hehe—proposed and implemented a joyful and liberating way for children to interact and play. A game that provided young children with the essential environment of respect and acceptance, as well as the appropriate natural and artistic materials, focusing on the process rather than the outcome of the children’s actions. We’re talking about the sensory play activity known as Messy Play.

Sensory Play Groups Messy Play with Hehe, which include Messy, Sensory, and Clay Play, have proven something we already knew in theory: When children are given the freedom, in a respectful environment, to play and truly explore art supplies and other appropriate sensory stimuli, they are more focused and creative. They collaborate, communicate, and learn with joy and on their own initiative.

At the same time, we saw that adults, too, have a deep need for sensory play, and that when they find themselves in an environment of acceptance, free from competition or criticism, they discover their own creative powers—powers that may have been hidden within them since childhood.

It is a type of play in which people of all ages and abilities use materials that engage all the senses. Messy Play uses materials that may get messy. Sensory Play uses materials that may not get you quite as messy. Clay Play harnesses the unique properties of clay, a primal material, as a means of connecting people with nature.

Sensory play is not an “activity” that we create for children. It is their natural need for contact with many different stimuli. It is the result of the creative experiments and explorations they undertake, acting as little scientists and artists.

This natural way of playing provides children—and adults as well—with an excellent means of self-expression, exercise, stress relief, and relaxation. For children, it is an ideal opportunity to develop their skills, self-confidence, and independence through sensory play—especially when this takes place in a well-maintained environment.

The Objectives of Hehe's Messy Play Workshops

After years of practice, observation, and study, in 2015 we began organizing the pioneering seminar “Messy Play: Sensory Play as a Means of Development.” Today, we have designed and now offer three levels of training: Messy, Sensory, and Clay Play.

To date, hundreds of educators, therapists, artists, and parents from all over Greece have attended our Messy Play Seminars, giving us the immense joy of sharing our knowledge and vision for sensory play while enjoying Messy, Sensory & Clay Play together with so many unique and interesting people!

The goals of our seminars over the years:

• To highlight the importance of sensory play, which has been so sorely lacking in our country, and to encourage parents, educators, and therapists to incorporate it into their practices.
• Let's share our experience and knowledge about the different types of play (Messy, Sensory, and Clay Play).
• Through sensory play, we aim to promote a form of positive interaction between children and adults, based on respect and equality—a fundamental prerequisite for the unhindered development of children’s creativity and self-esteem.
• To help promote sensory play throughout Greece, until Messy Play is available in every school as a standard offering—rather than a luxury—so that all children can enjoy its magical freedom.

More than ever before, children—and we adults alongside them—will need enjoyment, focus, and release. But also the relaxation and deeper engagement that free, non-directive play with sensory materials can offer us.

We need to know how best to support this need for sensory play. This is because, in addition to all its other benefits, we believe it can be a great help this year. Both for the psychosocial support of children and for managing the challenges we face. Indeed, now more than ever, we urge educators and parents to incorporate sensory play into children’s daily lives. At home, at school, in nature—everywhere!

It is with great pleasure, then, that we recommend Hehe’s comprehensive 50-hour training program. It is an enjoyable, creative process that will offer an in-depth look at sensory play and provide the necessary theoretical and practical knowledge regarding its various forms: Messy, Sensory, and Clay Play.

The goal is for the trainees to begin offering the children they work with this gift of free exploration through the senses, with knowledge and self-confidence. At the same time, the experiential component of the training on sensory play will encourage participants to explore their own attitudes and boundaries regarding creativity, messiness, and chaos. It will also allow them to approach experiential play like young children, with the carefree spirit and innocence that characterizes them, freeing themselves from conventions, “don’ts,” and “musts.”

The online seminars of the comprehensive training program are also offered individually, in case someone wishes to attend only some of the seminars.