Monday, October 28, 2013

Reformation Day Celebration

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The Reformation is a wonderful thing to celebrate.  It falls on October 31st each year to commemorate when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door in Wittenburg in the year 1517.  There is so much rich history to learn about from that time period, but when you have little children, sometimes you just need to have a party...with games!

Last year, we had a family from church over to celebrate Reformation Day. Everyone had a great time and the kids got to learn a bit about church history.  The kids dressed up in costumes that related to Reformation Day in some way, and I taught the kids about Martin Luther through the games that we played.

If you would like to have a Reformation Day Celebration, or just looking for ideas to enhance your history studies, here is a look at what we did.  You can even download all the information for your own use (look for the link at the bottom of the post).

Reformation Day Costumes



I dressed my daughter up as a peasant girl and my son as Martin Luther.  You could also be a princess, a king, a horse, or anything else related to the 16th century!


Reformation Day Games


You can come up with lots of fun games to play on Reformation Day!  The ones that we played told the story of Martin Luther in a simple way for our young children.



Coin in the Coffer:


Story to say to the children:

Did you know that in Martin Luther's day, people were told that if they gave money to the church, they could save their relatives that had already died?  We know that this is not true, but they were not allowed to read the Bible for them selves, so they didn't know!

Instructions:

Give each child 4 coins.  Have they try to throw each coin into a pan.  The child gets to keep each coin they get in.  We let the kids keep trying until they got all of them in =) 




Pin the Theses on the Door:



Story:

Martin Luther realized that this and other things people were learning at church were wrong and he wanted to let everyone know, so he wrote a long list of many things that he wanted to share with the people.  He then nailed the list to the church door for everyone to see.

Instructions:

Blindfold each child and let them take turns trying to tape their 95 Theses onto a door.  The girls from the family we had over loved watching their mom get in on the game!



3-Legged Race for Your Life! 

Story:

After a few years of defending what he wrote, the church declared him a heretic and ordered his arrest!  martin Luther had to flee for his life!

Instructions:

Pair the child up and tie their legs together.  Have them run around a circle to remember how Martin Luther had to run for his life after the Catholic church ordered his arrest!



Translating the  Bible:


Story:

Martin Luther was rescued by friends and kept safe in a basement where he translated the New Testament from Latin into German (the language that the people understood).

Instructions:

Give each child a picture of the word Bible with an illuminated letter B.  Let them color the B and then have them try to make their own illuminated letters!



If you want to have your own Reformation Day Celebration, you can download all of this information (and more!) to make your planning easy.  Included you will find:

 

Suggested Order of Events
Snack Ideas
Games (Stories and Instructions)
Reformation Day Balderdash (Instructions and Suggestions)
95 Theses (typed small so you can print them all, back-to-back, on one page)
The word Bible with an illuminated letter B


 

Download the Reformation Day Celebration Idea Booklet

 



Here are some ideas and resources that we have enjoyed!


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17 comments:

  1. Now that's pretty awesome, Amy! Meaningful activities and I am DEF. bookmarking this so when we get to Reformation in our Medieval studies this year! Thanks for sharing and btw, I love your gal's outfit! :D too cute.

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  2. What a wonderful way to celebrate a momentous event!
    Monica
    http://www.happyandblessedhome.com

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  3. Those are great game ideas! I remember dressing up as Katherine Luther in childhood, and giving a little presentation on the Reformation. It's a good memory. I'm sure your kids are gathering lots of great memories as they enjoy these activities.

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  4. I love your ideas and borrowed a few for our family today. Thank you for sharing these.

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    1. Great! I'd love to hear if you came up with any other ideas as well!

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  5. Think you will be doing this again?? LOVE IT!! I love how deep and purposeful your activities are! I featured you on Theology Thursdays FOR KIDS!!! Come check it out tomorrow and link up again!

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    1. Thanks Jessica! If we can find people to come over, we would definitely do it again! Maybe since it's on a Friday this year, it will be easier to have a get-together.

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  6. Thank you for giving me some ideas. These are great ways to teach young kids what Reformation day is about. Very meaningful. Thanks.

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  7. You are welcome! Thank you for stopping by.

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  8. Replies
    1. It was! We are looking forward to doing it again this year. I saw you shared this post on Twitter...thanks!

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  9. Found this through a Google search! Thank you do much! This will save my hide this weekend. ;)

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