How do you translate the 5th of November into a suitable Bonfire Night story for kids? We have a few tips! When planning a kids party for Bonfire Night, you can print off and read this tale; accompanied by fabulous festive treats and (for the older ones) some sparklers.
Hundreds of years ago, in the year 1605, Guy Fawkes and his friends were unhappy with the King of England. They wanted someone else to be in charge. So, they cooked up a terrible plan. They would take barrels and barrels of gunpowder to tunnels under the houses of Parliament and set it light, blowing up those important buildings in London where the King and his leaders were.
Guy Fawkes was supposed to guard the 36 barrels of gunpowder he and his friends put underneath the House of Lords in Parliament. But he was caught! That’s good because it meant no one got hurt. The day he was going to light the gunpowder, the 5 November, he was arrested and taken to the Tower of London and it’s because of him that we celebrate Bonfire Night on November 5th every year. King James I decided we’d have a big party to celebrate that this Gunpowder Plot didn’t happen and everyone was OK.
How do we celebrate Bonfire Night for kids?
The School Run explains, “On Bonfire Night, grown-ups set off fireworks, light bonfires and sometimes burn a doll that looks like Guy Fawkes.” But when we celebrate Bonfire Night for kids, they’ll likely get to enjoy some festive food, sparklers and they may even go to see some fireworks in person. For an even more authentic touch, you may want to have older kids learn the famous rhyming poem:
Remember, remember, the 5th of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, 'twas his intent
To blow up the King and the Parliament
Three score barrels of powder below
Poor old England to overthrow
By God's providence, he was catch'd
With a dark lantern and burning match
Holler boys, holler boys, let the bells ring
Holler boys, holler boys
God save the King!
In terms of food, hot snacks are popular like sausages, jacket potatoes, soups and burgers. For dessert, toffee apples go down a treat with a warm non-alcoholic cider to drink; seasoned with some cinnamon, orange, nutmeg and cloves. Fill up a thermos and bring blankets and chairs to your local park where usually the council will put on a bonfire. The British Council explains that this bonfire is “a very big fire, usually in a big, open park, and they make a model of a man that looks like Guy Fawkes. This model is called a 'guy'. Then they put the guy on top of the fire. Lots of people go out in the evening to watch the fire and the fireworks.”
Is Bonfire Night not really your thing? What about planning a Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at home instead? Click here!
