Christmas Assembly - Chocolate Sprouts

I’ve done this assembly a few times before and it seems to work a treat!
It takes a bit of preparation and planning in advance, but it’s brilliant on the day and well worth it.

Here’s the preparation bit…
Buy some Brussels Sprouts and some cooking chocolate.
Boil the sprouts (make sure they’re not too soft) and stick ‘em in the fridge overnight.
Next morning, melt the chocolate and dip the sprouts in so that they look like truffles. let them set on a baking tray, then put them in small cake cases and sprinkle them with cocoa powder. (You might have to patch up the ‘truffles’ with a bit more melted chocolate once they’ve set.)

Hey Presto! Chocolate Sprouts!

Now for the really fun part!
At the start of the assembly, announce that you love Christmas so much, that you want to share it with everybody, and that what you have with you is something that will always remind them of Christmas day - delicious truffles!
Ask for a couple of volunteers to see if they can emulate Christmas day, by eating as many truffles as they can in 1 minute.
Build up the expectation and emphasise the need for speed in the challenge.

Once the pupils start eating the ‘truffles’, they’ll realise that there’s something not quite right and their facial expressions will change from ones of sheer delight, to ones of outright disgust a they discover the sprouts.
(you may want to have a plastic bag handy at this point!)

OK, so it’s a bit revolting, but here’s the point.

Ask the pupils who loves chocolate, and also, who loves sprouts.
Say that Christmas, for most of us is a time of celebration, indulgence and happiness. We love the ‘niceness’ of the Christmas season. It’s a bit like chocolate!

Go on to say that for many people, Christmas is not an easy time. For some it’s a time of loneliness, homelessness and struggle. For many people, Christmas is like our experience of sprouts - something to struggle through.

You could mention the firsty Christmas as an example. Mary blessed Gos for the news that she was to be the mother of his son, but probably struggled with knowing that her life could be in danger because of her pregnancy.

Challenge the pupils to consider how they spend Christmas - to be grateful for the Christmas they have, and to be mindful of those who will struggle through Christmas.