Grades 1-3
Introductory Activity – Fiddlesticks
Materials: craft sticks, markers, can or plastic cup
Write the letters of Daniel’s name at the end of sticks, one letter per stick. Make 5 sets of letters. Color the end of 3 other sticks with a red marker. Mix the sticks and place them in the cup, with the blank end up.
Group kids into pairs or teams. Guide each pair or team to take turns pulling sticks from the cup. A pair or team wins if they get all the letters of Daniel’s name. If a pair or team pulls out a stick with the red end, that team must return all sticks to the cup. Say to kids: “Today we will hear a story about Daniel. Daniel obeyed God, even when it was difficult.”
Live It Out
Game – Pass the Lion
Materials: small stuffed lion (or beanbag), timer
Group the kids into two teams. Guide teams to sit in two rows, facing one another (one team on one side and the other team on the other side). Randomly set the timer for 15-45 seconds. Give the lion to one player at the end of the line. Tell kids to toss the lion back and forth (from one team to the other) until the timer sounds. Start the timer and give a signal to start. When the timer sounds, stop the lion. Ask the team with the lion a review question. Award points for a correct answer. Reset the timer randomly and start passing the lion back and forth again. Say the Life Point after all questions have been answered. Comment that Daniel continued to obey God, even though he was in a different land and people wanted Him to stop. Daniel prayed in obedience and God heard and protected Daniel.
Craft – Story Tower
Materials: index cards, markers, scissors
Give each child several index cards. Guide each child to write the story title on a card. She can write facts about the story or draw pictures of the story on the other cards. Help the child cut two slits in the title card, from the bottom up. Then she can slide a card into each slit (perpendicular to the first card) and stand up the cards. She can cut slits in those two cards and slide in other cards to make a story tower. Talk about the story and the Life Point.
Grades 4-6
Introductory Activity – Stick Puzzles
Materials: wide craft sticks, marker
Lay two craft sticks side by side so long edges are touching. Write the word home on the sticks so that the letters extend across both sticks. Make additional pairs of sticks with words of other places kids may go, such as school, church, skate park, store, and so forth. Make several puzzles. Repeat words as you choose but use a different color marker for each set (so kids can tell the difference in pairs). Mix all the pairs of sticks. Place the sticks in a cup. Spill the sticks onto a table or the floor. On your signal, kids can find the pairs of sticks that go together and reassemble the words. When all the words are assembled (or time has run out), call the group together to read the words they formed. Ask kids to name what the words have in common. Lead them to know that the words show places that they may go. Say the Life Point and tell kids that this is what they will explore today.
Live It Out
Game – Review on the Fly
Materials: paper or plastic plates, marker
Write questions on the plates, one question per plate. You can make more than one set of questions. Give each preteen a plate; add blank plates as needed so everyone has a plate. On your signal, kids can toss the plates like flying discs. As plates land near the kids, they pick them up and toss them again. Call for kids to stop; tell each one to pick up a plate. Call on a preteen to read the question on her plate and answer it. She can ask a friend for help as needed. After the question is answered, tell kids to toss the plates again. If the called preteen holds a blank plate, she can lead the group to say the Life Point.
Craft – On-the-Go Life Point
Materials: shoelaces, thin-line permanent markers
Invite kids to decorate shoelaces with the markers. Talk about the Bible story as kids work. Lead kids to add words about the Life Point as a reminder that they can obey God wherever they go. Talk with kids about making choices and remind them that they should think about the choices they are making and what God wants people to do. Suggest kids place the shoelaces in their shoes to remind them to think about obeying God wherever they go.
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