"It's about actually encouraging everybody to use multiple modes of communication", says performer Emma Watkins.
"It's about actually encouraging everybody to use multiple modes of communication", says performer Emma Watkins.
Welcome to season five of the Herald’s parenting podcast: One Day You’ll Thank Me. Join parent and host Jenni Mortimer and weekly guest hosts as they navigate the challenges and triumphs of parenting today with help from experts and well-known mums and dads from across Aotearoa.
When it comes to understanding children, there’s no better person to sit down and discuss the nitty gritty of parenting like one of the best kids’ entertainers in the biz.
Emma Memma, or Emma Watkins, has been charming her way into kids’ hearts since 2010 and is now bringing her Twirly Tour across New Zealand this December.
Sydney-born Watkins rose to fame during her time performing with The Wiggles, not only replacing Greg Page as the yellow Wiggle but becoming the first ever woman to join the musical group.
Two years since she left the band, she is bringing her solo musical dance show to kids around the globe.
However, the child entertainer is not jut putting a smile on our babies’ faces, but seemingly breaking down barriers when it comes to inclusivity, women’s health and sign language.
On today’s episode of One Day You’ll Thank Me, Emma Memma discusses the importance of accessibility, her struggle with endometriosis and getting her PHD while performing with The Wiggles.
Emma Memma is on her Twirly Tour.
A PhD is no easy feat, especially when you’re juggling a career at the same time. And when that’s mixed in with shaping a whole future generation? It’s a big achievement when you finally get the piece of paper.
“It was a long journey but now using that research has actually shaped Emma Memma,” says Watkins.
The performer researched ways in which we can integrate sign language better in children’s media, and it became integral to her show and her multi-modal interactions.
“It’s been really important because over the last 15 years performing in children’s entertainment, we see so many different families using different communication styles and communication modes.”
This is why accessibility is so important to the performer when it comes to her shows.
“We have tried over the last two years in particular to change the way that we approach our live shows and our visual content to make sure that it’s accessible, mostly visually, because we are dealing with children that are using their hands and their bodies and their facial expressions to make language,” says Watkins.
She continues: “But really it’s important because it serves everybody. It doesn’t matter what ability you have. It’s about actually encouraging everybody to use multiple modes of communication.”
So what has the entertainer learnt about kids during her 13 years in the industry? The importance of context.
“I get a lot of questions, especially about where and how I got there,” says Watkins. “‘Oh, so where’s my orange bus?’ and ‘where did I park it?’ and ‘why isn’t it here?’ Logistical.”
Podcast host Jenni Mortimer could relate to Watkins’ observation, chiming in, “My son is big into logistics. He needs to know how things are made. He’s 4.
“We’ve just been in Fiji and he got handed one of those Fijian warrior sticks. He was like, ‘where is this from? How was it made? Can I carry it?’”
“It’s context,” says the performer. “And it’s something that we didn’t really think much about before, but giving children, especially preschoolers, context about objects and different things.
“That’s their world. That’s how they’re building their understanding.”
Found out more about what Emma Memma learnt on this week’s episode of One Day You’ll Thank Me.
Listen to today’s episode of One Day You’ll Thank Me below for more on the importance of sign language in public forums.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are out every Thursday.
Want to get in touch with the podcast? Email the team at odytm@nzme.co.nz.
