How to Re-enact the Nativity Scene

Re-creating the Nativity can become a treasured family tradition in which all the children participate. You can make the costumes as simple or as complicated as you wish; the message is the most important thing.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bookstore/music Gift Certificates For The Magi
• Angel Wings
• Men's Bathrobes
• Scarves
• Women's Bathrobes
• Christmas Carols
• Baby Jesus
• Mangers
• Towels
• Towels
• Cameras
• Shepherd's Staffs
• Towels
• Cameras

1. Decide who will represent the Holy Family. Choose a boy to be Joseph and a girl to be Mary. Jesus can be a real baby or a doll.

2. Assign parts to the rest of the participants. Shepherds, angels, the three magi, the innkeeper and miscellaneous extras can all be accommodated.

3. Design the set. If you're doing the simplest version, all you really need is a place to lay the baby.

4. Dress the cast. Use adults' bathrobes tied with sashes for all participants, saving the plushest velour robes for the magi. Use a white robe for the angels, and a blue robe for Mary. Dress shepherds in brown or black. Give the shepherds staffs made from old broomsticks.

5. Make head coverings using towels or scarves. Wrap towels turban-style for the magi, and add a fake jeweled pin to complete the look. Shepherds should cover their heads and let the remainder of the towel fall down their backs and shoulders. Give Mary a longer head covering that falls around her shoulders.

6. Make halos for the angels, or let them go without head coverings.

7. Provide gifts for the magi. These could be bottles of perfume, objects made of aluminum foil or gold foil wrapping paper, or jewelry boxes.

8. Have all the participants take their places. The baby should be in the manger, with Joseph and Mary at his side. Everyone else should be offstage to start.

9. Have someone read the story of the Nativity from the Bible (start at Luke 3), or from a book about the Nativity.

10. Participants should act out their parts as the reader continues the story. If desired, Christmas songs about the Nativity can be interspersed.

11. Discuss the meaning of Christmas with the children after the performance.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't worry too much about footwear, especially if this is an informal re-enactment.
• If your family pets are cooperative, their help could be enlisted to provide sheep and donkeys.
• If you want to spend a little more time, construct cardboard wings for the angels, and make a shining star from cardboard and glitter.
• Don't forget your camera. Your children may never look so angelic again!

on 11/22/2005 Kids love this and even adults think it's gorgeous! If you have a large window that faces the front of your house and the street, set them up there and watch little faces light up! Simply gather all your teddies, all shapes sizes, the older, scruffier more traditional looking teddy bears are the best. Get some old table cloths or pillow cases in desert colours, cream, pale blue, etc and use to make the head dresses. Any black or dark brown material can be cut to use as cords to keep these in place. Then simply cut some similar material into one rectangle for the back of the teddy (measure each teddy!) then one slightly larger for the front, cut the front panel in half, using some magic iron-on hemming, hem all pieces and then simply sew the back panel to the front ones leaving a gap for the arms, a bit like a dressing gown, and again use some scrap material, twist it and tie it around the waist. Use your imagination for the stable surrounds and you can even use some other plush animals for the manger occupants! This can be so much fun, especially if you have little ones to help!