We recently had the opportunity to attend a Renaissance Day with our Girl Scout troop, and it was such a fun experience I thought I’d share it with you. If you belong to a homeschool co-op you could either look into your local community and see if you have any non-profit educational Renaissance groups that would put on an activity for you, or you could put one together yourselves.
Our event was coordinated by volunteers from the Siouxland Renaissance Festival, which is a non-profit group in our community that fosters education through Re-enactment, Interaction, Presentation and Participation.
The afternoon was divided up into 15 minute sessions and the girls got to participate and learn about Renaissance culture and activities.
Our group started off with a lesson in dancing. The importance of it (to show that a man was fit and was a good match for as a prospective groom), and they even got to learn some steps to one of them. Then they headed off to learn manners and social deportment of the times. How to curtsey, why a lady’s ankles must never show, why hats are always worn, and other important etiquette so you wouldn’t be banished from court!
Off to try on some Renaissance clothing. No whale bone corsets were donned but the girls had fun realizing why it was so important to have servants to help one dress. There were a lot of lacing and layers to get into during those times.
My daughter who is far more into swords and daggers, than skirts and hoops, was happy to attend the Weapon Master’s session. The different types of armor, and types of weapons to use in various battles was interesting, and a bit terrifying too!
Lucet training was a little challenging for some of the girls. It was a nice change to see the fingers that text and video game doing something a little out of the ordinary, with some yarn and wood. In the end they all managed to (some with a little help) produce a small bracelet on the lucet.
Another fun activity was jousting, of course in a gymnasium we did not have real horses, but pool noodles and needlepoint hoops sparked the imagination. And nerf swords and shields make for fun hand to hand combat.
Entertainment from the Storyteller, brought us tales from Windsor Castle, the Tower of London and Westminster Abbey.
To round out our afternoon, the cooks prepared us a feast over their fires. Some of the finest in the land, cucumber sandwiches, pumpkin & sweet potato mousse (apparently one of Henry the VIII’s favorites), orange and raisin cakes along with some apple tea to wash it down.
It surely was a fun day to play in the past and learn about the days of Elizabeth I.
Also check out this website for more information and resources. www.all-about-renaissance-faires.com
Tammy’s blog is located at Three Different Directions, where she does product reviews and giveaways. She has a couple of giveaways running there right now. Visit her blog to see how you can enter to win.
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