For the first time I put together a Reformation Day party, and I think it was a success! I thought I'd share some of the things we did in case anyone else wants some ideas for next year.
Before I get into it, please check out all my Reformation Day posts here! Over the years I have shared a ton of book suggestions and other resources for learning about the Reformation as an adult and with your kids. Every October we spend time studying the Reformers leading up to Reformation Day!
1. Reformation-themed snacks. My sister brought worm pudding as a play on the "Diet Of Worms" which was the counsel where Luther made his famous statement about standing on the word of God! We also made edible hammers out of marshmallows and pretzel sticks. Aside from that we just had fall snacks like apples and pumpkin dip, along with popcorn, and chocolates!
2. Watched a movie about the Reformation. This year we did the Martin Luther Torchlighters animated show, and before the party I had my kids watch a short documentary called "On The Shoulders Of Giants" as an extra.
3. We colored the Lutheran rose symbol. This is a symbol that Luther invented to represent different doctrines, and it was fun to talk about it together while the kids colored! Here is more information about this symbol.
4. Reformation Day games.
Pin 95 Theses On The Door. We played the classic "pin the theses on the door" - I kept it really simple and just drew a dry-erase circle onto the center of our glass door, and blindfolded the kids so they could try to pin the theses printable papers onto the door (we got the printables from this guide).
Five Solas Target Practice. For a second game we drew concentric circles on the driveway with sidewalk chalk, and then wrote the five solas, one in each circle. The kids had to try to toss a stone into each sola circle. It was trickier than it sounds!
5. We sang "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God". This is Luther's most famous hymn, and we've been practicing it! It was nice to sing it together as a group!
6. Reformation Day craft. I wanted to include some sort of Reformation Day craft, since my kids are still at an age to enjoy that sort of thing, but we ran out of time! This year we were going to do a printing press activity, which I got from the guide from Brighter Day Press, but if you have rubber stamps at home I think that would also give the same idea! You can read more about what the printing press had to do with the Reformation in this post.
7. Reformation Day shirts. My kids still had Reformation Day shirts that I've made them in the past, and of course we all sported our shirts for the party! Not necessary at all, but fun!
We had a really fun time, and the kids are already asking that we do another party next year! This party was obviously focused on elementary school kids, but I am storing away ideas for how to make a Reformation Day party more "grown-up" as they get older.
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