What a Year!
Events in 2026
by Claire Law
Suitable for Key Stage 2
Aims
To consider the special events in 2026 and to consider the importance of rest and refreshment.
Preparation and materials
- You will need the PowerPoint slides accompanying this assembly (What a Year!) and the means to display them.
Assembly
- Point out that there are some big events taking place in 2026. Ask the children if they can name any of them.
Listen to a range of responses. - Show Slide 1.
The 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics took place in Milan-Cortina, Italy in February and March. - Show Slide 2.
The biggest ever men’s football World Cup takes place in North America in June and July this year. - Show Slide 3.
In August, the first total solar eclipse in Europe in over 20 years is anticipated to take place.
Ask the children what is meant by a solar eclipse.
Listen to a range of answers. - Show Slide 4.
The new Tom Holland Spider-Man film, titled Spider-Man: Brand New Day, is scheduled to be released in UK cinemas on 31st July, 2026. Many of the scenes were shot in Glasgow and other UK locations. - Show Slide 5.
However, this year, there will be something missing from the summer list of events called the Glastonbury Festival. Explain that this is a music festival which takes place in Somerset. It is a popular festival with thousands of people attending each year. It is one of the largest greenfield music and performing arts festivals in the world. It usually takes place in June. - Explain that this June it is having a break. The reason for this break is that the farmland where the festival is held needs time to recover and regenerate. This is called a ‘fallow year’. Every 5 years, the music festival takes a break to avoid causing irreparable damage to the working pastures of Worthy Farm. Co-organizer Emily Eavis says: ‘The fallow year is important because it gives the land a rest, it gives the cows a chance to be out for longer and reclaim their land.’
it also means that the people who are involved in the planning and setting up of the event get a year off, and the local community in the village of Pilton, where the festival is held, can enjoy a quieter summer in 2026, ready to welcome festival goers from around the world in June 2027. - The concept of a fallow year, or a year of rest for the land, is not new. A fallow year has been part of agricultural practices for many centuries. Land is left unplanted to improve soil quality and allow it to replenish its nutrients for cattle grazing.
- The Bible includes the concept of a fallow year.
Show Slide 6.
In the Hebrew Testament, sometimes known as the Old Testament, we read the following: ‘For six years you may sow your fields... But in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land—a Sabbath to the Lord. You are not to sow your field or prune your vineyard.’ Leviticus 25:3-4.
The Biblical teaching on the fallow year, known in Hebrew as Shmita or the ‘Sabbath year’ means that agricultural land can rest and replenish, so the land remains productive in subsequent years.
Time for reflection
Let’s consider the following questions about how we rest and recover:
What do we do to rest and restore, so that we can continue to be productive?
Listen to a range of suggestions.
Are we people who factor in regular breaks when we are working hard – not to avoid work, but to take care of ourselves.
Allow time for thought and reflection.
Or are we people who refuse to take a break, believing that if we stop, we are being lazy?
Allow time for thought and reflection.
As with most things in life, there is a balance between being productive and resting. Both are important.
Let’s pause for a moment and to consider what the idea of a fallow year might mean to each of us in our lives.
How can you get the balance between working hard and doing many things, and resting?
Pause to allow time for reflection.
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Please help us to work hard.
Please also help us to see the importance of resting.
Help us to see the importance of sleep as our bodies rest and recover.
We pray that today, this week, and this month we can find ways to get the balance between rest and productivity.
Thank you for your continuing care for us.
Amen.
Song/music
‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’. An example can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4BVqj_V4gM
