Silent Disco

A Silent Disco

A Silent Disco equals, a school disco without the headache!

How many times have you walked away from the school disco with the chicken dance ringing in your ears? or you end up with the Macarena on repeat in your head for the next 2 days. We’ve all been there, right?

Well put the Panadol down and listen up because we have the solution to save your ears. A silent disco. I know it sounds like an oxymoron but the kids will love it and the novelty can be a real drawcard.

How does it work?

It’s essentially the same as your typical disco except that it involves all participants wearing headphones which stream the music straight to their little ears (and not yours!).

Wireless headphones (with volume limits) provide the entertainment and can even be set up with a number of music options to suit the different tastes of all your attendees.

There are a stack of companies that offer packages for the hire of the headphones AND they will do most of the work for you including the setup, lights, DJ and keep the kids entertained with games throughout the event. You’ll still need to have a couple of volunteers on hand to collect money at the door and so on though.

Alternatively, if you have someone who is a bit tech savvy, you can save yourself some money and get away with just hiring the equipment which won’t cost as much.

Logistics

Numbers of headphones will determine how many people can have a boogie at any one time but if you have a bigger school, you can split the grades up or offer time slot bookings to keep numbers down.

Having limited numbers of tickets available can be a great way to create interest, especially if you’re selling tickets ahead of time but make sure you cover your costs in the ticket price.

You could also think about setting up a classroom or two that is not part of the ‘silent’ disco but still has music for those that may still want to dance but don’t want wear headphones.

Pocket extra funds

Raise additional funds through raffles, food and drink sales, glow sticks, UV face and body paint or face painting, a crazy hair colour stand (you can even buy black light UV hairspray from Kmart!) or even a photo booth.

And it’s not just for the students either. Hosting a parent disco is a great social (and fundraising) opportunity too, especially when you throw in a slushy daiquiri machine 😉

I’ve also come up with a few other ideas for events you can give the ‘silent treatment’ to:

• Movie nights
• Lapathon
• Colour run
• A ‘pop up’ dance floor at your fete
• Graduation party
• Theatre performances
• School Incursions

So, get your crowd together, raise some funds and party like it’s 1999 (am I showing my age?) 😉

Regina Underwood
Fundraising Whisperer Freelance Writer
Regina is a mother of three and a P&C President. She knows first hand the ups and downs of volunteering.