VE Day Activities for Kids

VE Day is coming up and what with this lockdown, it’s a great excuse to break away from your normal routine and have a celebration – albeit only with the people who live in your house. We’ve lots of ideas for making it a super fun day for all ages, no matter what you’ve already got at home and what your budget is.

When is the 75th anniversary of VE Day?

The 75th anniversary of VE Day is on the 8th May 2020, and in the UK there will be a bank holiday, which is normally on a Monday – also called May Day.

What is VE Day?

VE Day stands for victory in Europe, and is the day celebrating the formal acceptance of the German unconditional surrender after World War 2, and meant there was a cessation of hostilities in Europe after 6 years of war. However war continued in the Pacific area as the Allies sought to secure victory over Japan. On the first VE Day, on the 8th May 1945,  there were huge crowds in London – and all over the UK –  celebrating the end of war together. The Royal family and Winston Churchill came onto the royal balcony to wave to the excited crowd, whilst the princesses Margaret and Elizabeth secretly joined the crowds to celebrate. VJ Day (Victory in Japan) happened on 15th August and meant that the war was officially over all over the world.

Free Captain Tom Colouring Poster

Here at Mrs Mactivity we’ve got lots of resources to help you celebrate VE Day, including this free Captain (Now Colonel!) Tom colouring poster that you can pop in your window to cheer up passers by. Captain Tom has wowed the world with his efforts during the COVID-19 lockdown by what started out as a plan to walk up and down his garden 100 times to raise £1000 for the NHS. Fast forward a few weeks, and Captain Tom has really caught the publics’ imagination – to date he has raised over £33 million and had a number 1 single – and all in time for his 100th birthday! He has now been made an honorary Colonel by the army to mark his efforts. During World War 2 Captain Tom fought in the Far East, and was a Lieutenant, then Captain, serving first in India, Burma and Sumatra. He was in the artillery division – a tank man. His personal sacrifice, plus his determination and bravery to do his bit for Britain once again – just ahead of the VE Day 75th anniversary celebrations – have made a huge impact on the UK public during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Captain Tom Colouring Posters
Captain Tom Colouring Posters

VE Day Bunting

I would say that this is one of those times that you can go completely over the top and no-one will care – in fact you will probably be applauded! We’ve got some awesome VE Day bunting that you can either print in colour or black and white and ask children to decorate themselves. You can either use inside your house, around your table, as well as using the VE bunting around your garden table and on the the front of your house – perhaps lamented just in case of the great British weather!

VE Day Celebration Bunting

VE Day Flags

Children love a good flag, and they love waving them too! We’ve created some awesome VE Day flags, again in colour and black/white (for children to decorate themselves), that are perfect for waving at any point during VE Day – really getting into the excitement just like on the first VE Day in 1945.

VE Day Celebration Flags
VE Day Celebration Flags

VE Day Decorations

If you want to go the whole hog on VE Day, you’ll love these VE Day paper chains that can be used as a table runner – just in time for your VE Day afternoon tea, or to be draped on your walls. Children love decorating these and fixing them together. Again we have these in both colour and black/white – so the choice is yours.

VE Day Celebration Paperchains
VE Day Celebration Paperchains

VE Day Printables

We’ve got loads of VE Day resources planned for Mrs Mactivity, but for now you can get started with our VE Day lanterns – another brilliant VE Day decoration that children can make and do with ease. Colour in to match the rest of your VE Day decorations.

VE Day Celebration Lanterns
VE Day Celebration Lanterns

If you like our VE Day lanterns, you’ll love our VE Day wreaths! These are really easy for little ones to make and you can print out a black and white version so children can decorate themselves.

VE Day Celebration Wreath Paper Craft
VE Day Celebration Wreath Paper Craft

Children love designing their own medals, and our VE Day celebration medals template is a great prompt for children to be super creative!

VE Day Celebration Medal Template
VE Day Celebration Medal Template

And my personal favourite – a complete VE Day activity booklet that is fun for all ages! This will keep children busy for ages whilst teaching them about VE Day.

VE Day Celebration Activity Booklet
VE Day Celebration Activity Booklet

Children love momentos of different occasions, and our VE Day celebration bookmarks are ideal! Something to keep and they also encourage reading.

VE Day Celebration Bookmarks
VE Day Celebration Bookmarks

Combine finding out facts about VE Day with this super interesting reading comprehension – all created by us!

VE Day Reading Comprehension
VE Day Reading Comprehension

I’m also loving our brand new helping hands VE Day bunting! Combining thoughtfulness with celebrating.

VE Day Celebration Helping Hands Bunting
VE Day Celebration Helping Hands Bunting

We also have another version of our VE Day bunting that allow children to write their own messages – perhaps something around their hopes and dreams – and “we’ll meet again” keeping that wartime spirit that Britain is so famous for!

VE Day Celebration Helping Hands Bunting - Writing Version
VE Day Celebration Helping Hands Bunting – Writing Version

And last but not least – if you’ve got a lego fan in your house, then our VE Day Lego challenge cards are the ideal thing to keep them busy!

VE Day Lego Challenge Cards
VE Day Lego Challenge Cards

VE Day afternoon tea

It’s not VE Day if you don’t have an afternoon tea! And we all know that kids love baking. Save yourself a trip to the shops by making your own afternoon tea at home. You could also go retro and introduce children to some of the “treats” that people had during wartime including:-

  • eggless cakes
  • honey ice cream
  • apple crumble
  • bread and butter pudding
  • pineapple upside down

If wartime cakes aren’t your thing then how about bringing your afternoon tea into the modern day?  You could use our VE Day doily plate liners to make it look extra special. You could have:

  • scones with clotted cream and jam (we love ginger scones with honey as a tasty alternative)
  • finger sandwiches
  • fairy cakes – see our fairy cake recipe here.
VE Day Celebration Fairy Cake Recipe
VE Day Celebration Fairy Cake Recipe
  • macarons
  • mini cheesecake
  • mini lemon meringue pie
  • mini chocolate brownie
  • mini cupcakes
  • mini flapjacks

Not forgetting a cup of English breakfast tea to go with it – and maybe some fizz for the grown ups. It is a celebration after all!

What are your plans for VE Day 2020? Tell us in the comments below!

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