Pancake Day / Shrove Tuesday

What does Pancake Day celebrate?

Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday, is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent – the 40 days leading up to Easter – was traditionally a time of fasting and on Shrove Tuesday, Anglo-Saxon Christians went to confession and were “shriven” (absolved from their sins).

When is Pancake Day celebrated?

Tuesday, 21 February

 Who celebrates this day?

Pancake Day is also known around the world as Shrove Tuesday. It falls on the day before Ash Wednesday each year, the first day of Lent. Pancake Day was originally a pagan holiday in which eating pancakes during Shrovetide week was extremely important. The word shrove is derived from the word shrive which means to gain absolution from one's sins, through penance, which is important before the beginning of Lent. In the Christian faith Pancake Day is sometimes referred to as Pancake Tuesday and Fat Tuesday. On Pancake Day the main activity is the consumption of pancakes, which is used by some organizations as a means to raise money for charities.

Activities – How to celebrate

• Knowledge & Understanding of the World - Explain some of the history around Pancake Day, how the pancakes were made, cooked then eaten!
• Music/Rhyme
  • 5 flat pancakes in a bakers shop
    “Round and flat with sugar on the top
    Along came (Childs name) with a penny one day
    Bought a flat pancake and took it away.”
    Continue the rhyme with 4 flat pancakes
• Role Play - Have paper chef’s hats, white aprons and children’s bakery equipment in your home corner including bowls, spoons, whisks, jugs, plates, frying pans etc. The children can re-enact cooking and tossing the pancakes
• Pancake Races - Pancake tossing races. Try and toss some pancakes during a race! Create a trail with equipment outside which children have to follow whilst balancing the pancake in a frying pan
• SHROVE TUESDAY PANCAKE RECIPE - You will need:
  • 125g of plain flour
  • 2 eggs, medium sized
  • 300ml of milk
  • Pinch of salt
• METHOD

1. Beat the eggs together with a fork.
2. Pour the flour into a bowl and make a well in the middle.
3. Pour the eggs into the well and whisk together.
4. Gradually, add in the milk.
5. Put the mixture in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
6. Rub oil around a non-stick pan.
7. Ladle out your mixture – one ladle equals one pancake.
8. After a couple of minutes, give your pancake a jiggle and when it no longer sticks give it a flip to do the other side.

• Personal Social Emotional - Do they like Pancakes? Likes and dislikes, which toppings and fillings do the children prefer?After cooking the pancakes, let the children wash up a few of the dishes to show them how it is good practice to clean and look after the equipment.