Happy Birthday to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Ninetieth birthday celebrations for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
by Janice Ross
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To celebrate the ninetieth birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Preparation and materials
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You will need a selection of items commonly used during a birthday celebration, such as candles, a birthday card, a balloon, a party bag, a cupcake, a present, a banner, paper cups and straws.
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You will also need the following images and the means to display them during the assembly:
- the Queen, available at: http://tinyurl.com/jo9cppb
- Prince George, available at: http://tinyurl.com/zx7o552
- the Balcony at Buckingham Palace, available at: http://tinyurl.com/z5m7ao7
- Windsor Castle, available at: http://tinyurl.com/zej2z9t
- St Paul’s Cathedral, available at: http://tinyurl.com/zqr9g8l
- The Mall, available at: http://tinyurl.com/jh5dmgy -
You may wish to sing or listen to the National Anthem as part of this assembly, available at: http://tinyurl.com/jurbz4g
It is 2.44 minutes long. -
Other useful information can be found at: http://www.royal.gov.uk/
Assembly
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Show the birthday items one at a time and describe each one. Ask the children to guess the theme of today’s assembly.
Ask the children what they enjoy most about their own birthdays.Listen to a range of answers.
Ask the children what they like about birthdays with close family and friends.
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Ask if anyone has a birthday in April. Ask those children to stand up. Explain that you are going to say each date in April and you want the children to sit down when they hear the date of their own birthday. List each date, but miss out 21 April.
If any children are still standing at the end of the list, point out that they share a birthday with a very special person. Ask if anyone knows who that person is.
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Explain that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday is on 21 April.
Show the image of the Queen.
On that day, just as we do on our own birthdays, the Queen will share her birthday with her close family and perhaps even have a little birthday tea. Maybe her second youngest great-grandchild, Prince George, will join her!
Show the image of Prince George.
Ask the children if they think he will have made her a card!
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However, the Queen is a bit different to the rest of us because she has two birthdays. There is her actual birthday in April, but she also has an official birthday on a Saturday in May. The official birthday is celebrated with the whole nation. It is always held in May because the weather is likely to be fine, enabling the Queen to make a public appearance.
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People are very fond of the Queen and appreciate all that she does for our country. They love to see her in person. The Queen often makes visits to different places so that people get the chance to see her. On special occasions, she and her family appear on the balcony at Buckingham Palace.
Show the image of the balcony at Buckingham Palace.
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This year, the birthday celebrations are going to go on for four days. That is because the Queen will be celebrating her ninetieth birthday.
Who can work out what year the Queen was born?
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This year, from 12 to 15 May, we are all invited to share in the Queen’s birthday celebrations. Let’s have a look at what the celebrations will be!
Show the image of Windsor Castle.
For four nights, Windsor Castle will be the scene of big celebrations. The well-known TV stars, Ant and Dec, are going to host these evenings and thousands of people have bought tickets to attend. All the money from the tickets will go to charity. Each night, some members of the Royal Family will attend. These evenings will tell the story of the Queen’s life from when she was a little girl, through the Second World War, to her coronation in 1953, her Jubilee celebrations and right up to today.
900 horses will take part and 1,500 people from all over the world will perform. There will be bands and singing and dancing. The Queen will be present on the final night. Everyone is invited to share the celebrations on TV.
Show the image of St Paul’s Cathedral.
The second celebration will be a Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral. When Queen Elizabeth II was crowned in 1953, she made some promises before God that she would serve her people. With God’s help, she has been able to be faithful to those promises. She and the nation want to give thanks to God for helping her throughout her years as Queen.
Show the image of The Mall.
The Queen has invited 10,000 guests to the third celebration. The Queen is patron of over 600 organizations in the UK and the Commonwealth. This means that she supports them in any way she can. Many of these organizations are charities. They have been invited to a huge street party lunch. You need a big street to hold a lunch for 10,000 people, so it is being held on The Mall, next to St James’s Park. -
I wonder how many sandwiches, sausage rolls, cupcakes and juice will be needed! Let’s hope it doesn’t rain!
Time for reflection
Show the image of the Queen again.
Imagine that you are writing a birthday card to the Queen.
What would your message be?
The Queen is a very special woman who has served the country with grace and dignity throughout her reign. It is special to be able to celebrate her ninetieth birthday together.
Ask the children if they have heard of the National Anthem. Explain that they may have heard the anthem music being played at sporting events and other occasions. Read the words of the National Anthem to the children.
God save our gracious Queen!
Long live our noble Queen!
God save the Queen!
Send her victorious,
Happy and glorious,
Long to reign over us,
God save the Queen.
Thy choicest gifts in store
On her be pleased to pour,
Long may she reign.
May she defend our laws,
And ever give us cause,
To sing with heart and voice,
God save the Queen.
Prayer
Dear God,
We thank you for our Queen and for all that she means to the nation and the world.
Please help her to have a special ninetieth birthday.
Please help us to follow her example and to spend our lives helping and caring for other people.
Amen.
You may also wish to use the National Anthem as a prayer.
Song/music
You may wish to sing the National Anthem together or listen to it being sung, available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9eK9fWUb3s
