Grades 1-3
Introductory Activity – Hidden Messages
Materials: white paper, white crayons, watercolors, paintbrushes, cups of water
Cut paper into approximately 6-by-9-inch pieces. On the white paper, use a white crayon to write Jesus. Make enough sheets for every child or every pair of kids. Distribute the message papers. Guide kids to paint over the paper with watercolors to reveal the hidden word. Tell kids they will hear another story today about Jesus. They will learn another way to follow Jesus’ example. As time permits, offer blank paper and white crayons for kids to write messages; friends can paint over to reveal the messages kids write.
Live It Out
Game – Drop and Tell
Materials: beanbag or handkerchief
Choose a child to be It. Lead the other kids to sit in a circle. It walks around the circle, carrying the beanbag. He drops the beanbag behind someone and continues walking. The kid chosen says the Life Point or Bible Verse. If she completes saying it before It gets back to her, she becomes It and the first child sits in her space. You may want to change up the game, asking the chosen child to answer a review question or tell a way people can follow Jesus’ example.
Craft – Movable Person
Materials: construction paper or other heavyweight paper, scissors, hole punches, brads, markers
Lead kids to use the paper to create people figures. Each child can cut a rectangle for the body and four strips for arms and legs. (He can cut a separate head if he chooses.) Lead the child to punch one hole on the end of each strip. He can punch one hole on either side of the square body and two holes along the bottom edge of the body. Using brads, he can attach a strip to the body at each hole (making arms and legs). If the child cuts a separate head, he can punch a hole and attach with a brad on the top of the body. Tell kids to use the markers to write the Life Point on the figure. They can also add facial features and other details to their persons as they choose. Talk about the Bible story and Life Point as they work. Say that Jesus treated all people as important, even children. Ask kids to think of how they could follow Jesus’ example.
Grades 4-6
Introductory Activity – Emojis
Materials: yellow paper circles, paper scraps, markers, glue sticks, scissors
Show the materials and suggest kids use the materials to create emojis to represent different emotions. They may want to create traditional emojis or create their own versions. After kids have completed their work, ask each one to show his emoji and talk about the emotion represented. Tell kids that in the Bible story today people will show different emotions—disappointment, anger, happiness. Tell them to identify the different emotions as they listen to the story.
Live It Out
Game – Pendulum Point
No materials needed.
Group the kids into two teams. Guide the teams to sit in chairs, facing one another. Say the Life Point together. Then lead Team 1 to stand and say the first word of the Life Point and sit. Team 2 can stand and say the second word of the Point and sit. Continue alternating back and forth. If a team says the wrong word, start over. When the Life Point is completed, say the verse word by word again, starting with Team 2. Increase the speed. Talk about the Bible story. Ask kids to think of different people who need to be treated as important.
Craft – Yarn Hearts
Materials: floral wire, yarn, small cards, colored pens, scissors, wire cutters
Cut lengths of floral wire (12-18 inches). Lead kids to bend the wire into heart shapes and twist the ends together. Give kids lengths of yarn and guide them to tie the yarn to the heart shape. Tell kids to stretch the yarn across the heart to the other side, wrap it a couple of times, and then stretch it across to a different point. They should continue to stretch and wrap the yarn across the heart shape to make a “web.” Tell them to tie off the end of the yarn. They can start other colors as desired. As kids finish their yarn hearts, tell them to write the words of the Life Point on a small card. They can slide or tuck the card in the web of their hearts. Talk about the Bible story and how Jesus treated the children and parents. Talk about ways kids can treat others as important, following the example of Jesus.
Leave a Reply