Grades 1-3
Introductory Activity – Bread Buffet
Materials: varieties of bread, flatbread, tortillas, matzo, crackers
Offer a variety of breads for your kids to taste. Ask them to compare and contrast the breads. How are they alike? How do they differ? After kids have tasted the breads, make a chart with their comments or graph which they preferred. Tell kids that today’s story includes loaves of bread.
Live It Out
Game – Ball Pass
Materials: construction paper (3-5 colors), gift bag, music
Make at least two paper balls of each color of paper. Place one ball of each color in the bag. Guide kids to sit in a circle. Distribute one ball of each color among the kids. Play music and direct kids to pass the balls to the right around the circle. Stop the music. Pull a ball from the bag; ask a review question to the child with the matching color. After the answer, start the music again. Play several times. (Add more balls, if available.) Stop the music. Pull two colors from the bag (or pull one color if you have multiple balls of the same color in the circle). Ask kids with the color(s) pulled to repeat the Life Point. Encourage kids to talk about how the disciples may have felt as they passed out the pieces of bread to all the people.
Craft – Door Hanger Reminder
Materials: craft foam, stickers, address labels with the Life Point written on them, hole punch, chenille stems; blank address labels and gel pens (optional)
Guide kids to cut foam into a rectangle or another shape. Each child can place a Life Point sticker on the shape; or kids can write the Life Point on blank stickers with gel pens. Lead kids to decorate the shapes with other stickers. Talk about the Bible story. Ask review questions or encourage kids to talk about how Jesus showed His power to meet the people’s needs. When a child finishes, help him punch a hole in the shape and add a chenille stem as a hanger. Tell kids to hang their shapes on their doors to remind them about the things Jesus did.
Grades 4-6
Introductory Activity – Venn Diagram
Materials: two plastic hoops or long lengths of yarn/rope, paper squares, markers or pencils, gift bag
Lay the two plastic hoops on the floor, overlapping along one side. Or use the yarn or rope to create two overlapping circles. Write Needs and Wants each on a paper square. Lay one of the labels in each circle (the larger, non-overlapping area).
Guide kids to think of things they need or want. They can write their ideas on paper squares, one item per square. Lead kids to drop their ideas in the gift bag. Continue for a few minutes. Mix and spread the ideas on the floor. Lead kids to work together to place the items on the Venn chart. Each item goes in the large area with the appropriate label. Some items may seem like both wants and needs or may be debated by the kids. Place these items in the overlapping space. After the items are sorted, talk about the items, especially the ones in the overlap. Move items if kids change their minds through your discussion. Tell kids that they are going to hear about someone who meets needs.
Live It Out
Game – Hot Potato Duel
Materials: two beanbags, bell or tap light, music
Set the bell or tap light on a table in the middle of the game area. Group the kids into two teams. Teams should move to opposite sides of the area (opposite sides of the table). Each team should sit in a circle. Play music and each team passes a beanbag around the circle. Stop the music unexpectedly. The two kids holding the beanbags should come to the table. Ask a review question; the first one to hit the bell or tap light gets an opportunity to answer. If the answer is correct, the team gets a point. If not, the other team may answer for a point. The two players move back to their circles; start the music again. After the game, challenge the winning team to say the Unit Verse.
Craft – Bread Reminder
Materials: air-dry clay, craft sticks, other clay tools, embellishments (optional)
Give each preteen a piece of clay. Tell kids to form the clay to resemble bread. Allow kids to choose how their “bread” will look. When finished forming their bread, kids can use craft sticks or other clay tools to write the Life Point in the clay. If embellishments (beads, etc.) are available, kids can add those to their reminders. Talk about the Bible story and how Jesus met the needs of the people. Say the Weekly Verse (or Unit Verse) together.
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