Bonfire Night

With 5^th November fast approaching, bonfires and fireworks will soon be lit up and down the country.  While these traditions undoubtedly make Bonfire Night one of the most exciting celebrations of the year for many, they also bring potential dangers. Therefore, it is important for us to teach our pupils how they can participate in these festivities safely. 

Rules to Stay Safe

Teaching children the rules they must follow on Bonfire Night is essential in keeping them safe.  Some of the ones that you could share with your class are shown below:

• Never touch or go near a firework (even if it has not gone off). 
• Keep well back from bonfires.
• Stay with an adult when watching a firework display.
• Wear warm clothes and avoid dressing-up costumes, as these can burn quickly. 
• If your clothes do catch fire, don’t run and don’t panic. Instead: do the Stop, Drop and Roll!
  • Stop moving.
  • Drop down to the ground and cover your face.
  • Roll from side to side until the fire goes out. 
• When holding a sparkler, always wear gloves and keep it away from your body. 
• Once a sparkler has gone out, put it in a bucket of sand or water. 
• If you have a pet, keep it inside when fireworks are going off. 

Delivering Firework Safety Messages

Arranging for a local fire crew to give a school assembly on how to stay safe on Bonfire Night can be a great way to initially engage your pupils in this topic. Alternatively, you can do this yourself by sharing resources like this interactive cut-and-stick activity or this informative presentation, both available on CGP+.   

Once the pupils have learnt the fire safety rules, you could get them to share these by asking them to make bright Bonfire Night safety posters to display around your school.   

The outdoors can provide great opportunities for pupils to practise ways to stay safe. With your class, you could use sticks, leaves and coloured wool to make pretend sparklers and a model bonfire.  Then roleplay what they would do on Bonfire Night by getting the children to stand well back from the “fire” (behind a skipping rope barrier if you wish!), while using their “sparklers” correctly. 

Action games are always popular with children.  You could ask the children to move around the hall and then do these movements when you say the words below (as well as any others you wish to add!):

• “Fire” – do the “Stop, Drop and Roll!”
• “Rocket” – jump up in the air
• “Catherine wheel” – spin around twice on the spot

Through doing this, the pupils will not only have fun but also learn what to do if their clothing catches alight. 

If there are animal lovers in your class, they will enjoy learning about how to keep pets safe on 5^th November. With the support of this worksheet about looking after animals on Bonfire Night, they could create a leaflet or blog entry to share what they have found.

At the end of your topic, you will want to assess what your pupils have learnt, and a class quiz can be a fun way to do this – especially if you can arrange some prizes for the winners at the end!
 

Bonfire Night Activities

There are many different Bonfire Night activities that you can use to provide learning opportunities across the primary curriculum. 

To support children in finding out about the origins of Bonfire Night, you could share the true story of the Gunpowder Plot and then ask pupils to recount the event with this timeline resource, or test their knowledge with this reading comprehension.  To explore the Gunpowder Plot further, you could also get your class to write a warning letter to Lord Monteagle or a diary entry as Guy Fawkes.   
 

At this time of year, acrostic poems about fireworks or bonfires can be a really great way to engage pupils in English lessons.  If you get your pupils to write some of these, they could also try performing them with their own musical accompaniments.     

Bonfire Night also makes a wonderful inspiration for artwork.  You can use the helpful guides on CGP+ to support your pupils in creating their own pieces, from textured firework art to clay models. Children could base their work on firework displays they’ve been to, or from images such as the ones in this photo discussion pack.

For even more handy resources all about this celebration, check out this page of Bonfire Night resources.

Hopefully, by reading this you will have found some ideas that will not only “spark” the imaginations of the children in your class but also help them to stay safe on Bonfire Night!   
   

I worked as a class teacher for over 15 years, teaching children in both Key Stages one and two.  During this time, I was also employed as a family learning tutor and supported parents in developing their children’s learning in the Early Years. Following a short career break, I began writing resources for CGP + and tutoring pupils with a range of Special Needs, for an alternative provision provider.
 

To see CGP+ resources written by Tina, click here.