Responsibility: The Bonfire Party – KS1&2

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Introduction for teachers

This assembly shows children that planning for a bonfire party is a very responsible job. It also aims to show that children have a responsibility to behave sensibly too and to be responsible for themselves, realising how their behaviour can affect others.

Introduction for children
Something very special happens every 5th November when people all over Britain have bonfires and fireworks at night. Who can tell me what this special day is called? 

[Take suggestions]

That's right. It's called Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night. We call it this because over 400 years ago a man called Guy Fawkes decided to do a really bad thing and blow up the Houses of Parliament, the Prime Minister, all the MPs and James I, King of England with barrels of gunpowder. Luckily, Guy Fawkes was stopped and to celebrate people all over Britain lit bonfires on 5th November every year.

We even have a little rhyme to remind us what happened:

Remember, remember the fifth of November, Gunpowder, treason and plot, We see no reason, Why gunpowder treason, Should ever be forgot!

Today we light bonfires and we also enjoy watching fireworks. Who has a favourite firework?

[Ask children to describe their favourite firework]

There are lots of different fireworks, aren't there, and everyone has a different favourite. There are other traditions that go with Bonfire night: some people like to eat toffee apples or Parkin cake, some people like to have sparklers. What other traditions have you heard of or your family have on Bonfire Night?

[Take suggestions]

As you can see, it's a lot of work to organise a Bonfire Night party. Let's listen to the story of Mrs Reeves who is in charge of safety at her village's Bonfire Night party.

Story
‘Oh dear,' said Mrs Reeves. ‘There's an awful lot to do!'

The other people on the Bonfire Night Committee for Coombe Fortis nodded their heads.

‘It's one of the biggest events of the year," said Captain Bates, the Chairman of the Committee, "so we need to put on a good show. Everyone needs to pull together. If we all take responsibility for our individual jobs, then it should be a fun night for everyone with no-one getting hurt.'

Mr Poole was responsible for the food.

‘I'll ask Joe from Joe's Café if he and his daughter can do the food as usual,' he said. ‘Last year we ran out of toffee apples so I'll need to make sure there are enough. And last year Miss Pomfrey from the old people's home got her false teeth stuck in a toffee apple so I said I'd make sure we had Parkin cake for her this year.'

Mrs Bobbin was in charge of parking.

‘I'll ask Farmer Giles if he can let us have his field again this year,' she said, ‘because I know people drive quite a few miles to come to our Bonfire Night and they all need to park their cars safely. I'll get Bertie Small and Benny Smythe to be parking wardens because they've already got their hi-visibility jackets to wear and Ethel Emmery has offered to make some bigger parking signs because the ones we had last year were a bit too small to be read easily at night.'

Miss Hoskin was in charge of the bonfire itself.

‘We have to be careful," she said. "If we build the bonfire too soon hedgehogs might use it for a nest... and we don't want any roasted hedgehogs. So I'm going to ask people to start bringing in wood at the beginning of November and I'll rope off a site on the village green. But on the morning of Bonfire Night, we'll move the whole lot to the centre of the Green so there are no hedgehog incidents. The Barclay boys have offered to help me move it all.'

Mr Gulliver was in charge of children's entertainment.

‘We'll have apple bobbing as usual," he said, "but I thought we'd have a face painter as well this year. A couple of young teachers from the art school have said they'll do that for us.'

Everyone thought that was a wonderful idea.

‘Now," said Captain Bates, "I'm going to put you in charge of safety, Mrs Reeves. It's a responsible job but I'm sure you're up to the challenge.'

Mrs Reeves bit her lip nervously.

‘It's certainly a challenge," she said. "I've looked on some websites and I've started to make a list of safety issues. I need to make sure that the fireworks we buy comply with BS7114 regulations and are kept in a sealed tin until they're used so there's no danger of them going off until they're wanted. We'll only have one firework being set off at a time so we all know exactly what's going on. And of course fireworks must never, ever be put in your pocket!'

Everyone nodded at this.

‘I'm going to ask Mr Morse to do the fireworks again as he's a very responsible man. He always stands well back once he's lit the fireworks. And we'll keep children behind a small rope barrier so no-one gets too close. We'll have buckets of water ready for children who have sparklers so they can put them out safely. And I think we should put up signs around the village reminding people that fireworks can scare pets so that all animals must be kept inside. And she said,' looking up, ‘I've decided that we're not going to have Chinese lanterns.'

A few people huffed at this.

‘No, I'm afraid not," said Mrs Reeves firmly. ‘Last year one nearly set fire to a haystack and one came down in Farmer Giles' field and his poor heifer was very poorly when she tried to eat one that landed in long grass. We don't want any injuries from our Bonfire Night.'

‘Quite right,' said Captain Bates.

‘We'll need to check the wind direction on the night,' said Mrs Reeves. ‘The prevailing wind is usually from the South West but we must make sure so that our fireworks don't get blown onto people's houses.'

‘Good point,' said Captain Bates.

‘And we must say that no-one can bring their own fireworks,' said Mrs Reeves. ‘Nothing except sparklers. It's just not safe for people to carry around fireworks - and heaven forbid they're silly enough to carry them in their pockets!'

Everyone nodded at this and Mrs Reeves was beginning to feel more confident.

‘I've planned out a route for emergency vehicles like an ambulance or fire engine. Of course we all hope they won't be needed but better safe than sorry,' said Mrs Reeves. ‘Mr Bevan is our qualified First Aider and we'll have some volunteers from St John's Ambulance, too. Oh, and I'll need 10 or 12 people to volunteer to be safety stewards. I've ordered a dozen high-visibility jackets and I have a set of written instructions so everyone will know what to do on the day.'

She hesitated. ‘Well, I haven't written them yet, but I will do.'

‘You've done a very thorough job,' said Captain Bates.

‘Oh, I'm just getting started," said Mrs Reeves. ‘It's such a big responsibility to keep everyone safe at a Bonfire Night display and I want to make sure I do it all correctly. I'm a bit nervous, as you might have guessed!'

‘It is a big responsibility,' said Captain Bates, ‘and that's why you've got the job, Mrs Reeves, because we all know how careful you are and what thorough attention to detail you always have. You just tell us what you need and we'll back you up all the way.'

Mrs Reeves went a bit pink.

‘Thank you very much!' she said. ‘I'm sure it'll be a wonderful evening for the whole village.'

‘Hear, hear!' said Mr Poole.

‘Well done!' said Mrs Bobbin.

‘Phew!' said Mrs Reeves to herself.

Conclusion
Mrs Reeves was given a very big responsibility and she was working hard to make sure she made the Bonfire Night was as safe as possible for everyone.

Prayer
Dear Father,
Thank you for the volunteers in our community who work so hard to make events special for us. Help us to support them and to always be responsible when we go to them. Amen.

Thought
All communities have volunteers who work hard for their community. They don't get paid but they do these jobs because they want to support their community. This could include: people who clean the church, temple, mosque or community centre; people who visit the elderly in care homes or hospitals; people who listen to children read at school; people who fundraise for charities and other good causes; people who help out at nursery groups or in schools; people who organise sponsored events for charities; people who organise litter picking sessions with the local council; people who give talks or assemblies in schools on interesting subjects; and people who organise events within the community.

Do you know any volunteers in your community?

Things to think about
What does it mean to be responsible for yourself? To learn that whatever you do has good and bad consequences and make responsible decisions based on that.

Further information

• Find out more about Bonfire Night traditions and customs
• Learn about fireworks health and safety at home 
• Read regulations on organising a fireworks display