At the very end of the school year and after reading Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the students of the English group 2BC immersed themselves in the magical world of Willy Wonka. As has become a tradition in Mrs Steiner’s second-year English groups, they completed the post-reading project “Chocolate Factory Experience” in which chocolate naturally played a central role.

Following their own recipes, the students created unique chocolate treats, turning the classroom into a small chocolate factory for one lesson. The results ranged from classic combinations to surprisingly original inventions.

So what was different this year? Alongside the sweet side of the project, the students took a closer look at the lives of the Oompa Loompas, writing letters to their families in Loompaland describing everyday life and letters to Willy Wonka expressing concerns about working conditions. Others imagined the factory ten years later under its new owner, Charlie Bucket, and reflected on how life and working conditions had changed.

They also developed the future stories of four Oompa Loompas: Billy became Charlie’s personal assistant, Lizzie joined the creative team, Ollie opened his own coffee shop, Brownies, and Elvira fulfilled her dream of studying food technology at university. Their stories highlighted that everyone should have the freedom to choose their own career path, pursue personal goals and shape their own future.

This post-reading activity encouraged students to read this popular classic more critically. As society’s views on human and workers’ rights have changed, readers have become more aware of colonial, Eurocentric, paternalistic and even racist ideas in older literature. The project inspired students to question these perspectives while combining reading, creative writing and a touch of chocolate-making.