Grades 1-3
Introductory Activity – Straw Toss
Materials: plastic cups, paper, straws, marker
Print the letters PRAY on
paper, one letter per page. Lay the letters around the room. Near each letter,
set 2-4 cups.
Give each child a straw. Show kids how to toss straws like darts or spears.
(Hold the straw parallel to the floor; pull hand back; move hand forward and
release straw.) Lead kids to shoot and get their straws in the cups for each
letter, in order. All kids should shoot for cups around the P. When a
child’s straw lands in a cup near that letter, he can move to the next letter.
Pull the pages together to spell the word. Read it and tell kids they will
learn more about praying today.
Live It Out
Game – Spinner Review
Materials: homemade spinners (or other tops)
To make a homemade spinner: Use hot
glue to attach a marble to the bottom of a CD. Glue a bottle cap to the top of
the CD. Make one or more spinners.
Guide kids to sit in a circle. Ask a child to spin the spinner. When it stops,
ask the person closest to the spinner to answer a review question. After she
answers the question, she can spin the spinner. Continue for several turns.
After you review the story, say the Life Point. Continue the spinner game,
asking kids to name people to pray for.
Teacher Tip: For larger groups, use more than one spinner so more than one child
can answer at a time. Or create several circles, each with a spinner.
Craft – Prayer Chain
Materials: paper strips, stapler or glue, markers
Talk about the Bible story. Emphasize that the people prayed for Peter and God helped Peter. Encourage kids to think about people for whom they could pray, perhaps family members or friends. Invite kids to print the names of people or needs to pray for on paper strips, one per strip. After a child completes several strips, tell her to make a chain. She can meet the ends of one strip (words out) and staple or glue the ends together to make a circle. Then she can thread another strip through this circle and staple or glue the ends of that strip to make interlocking circles. Lead kids to complete chains with their prayer requests. Tell them they can place the chains in their rooms to remind them to pray for others’ needs.
Grades 4-6
Introductory Activity – Guess What?
Materials: index cards or paper squares, athletic headband
Print words or names of objects
associated with Peter (and this Bible story) on the cards or squares. Possible
words could include: disciple, preach,
jail, chains, angel, pray, night, soldier. (Choose words your children will
know and understand.)
Mix the cards. Choose a volunteer to stand in front of the other kids. Place
the headband on his head. Choose a card and show to the other children but keep
the volunteer from seeing it. Slide the card in the headband so the rest of the
kids will remember what the word is. The volunteer can ask 10 questions for
others to answer. After the 10 questions, ask the child to tell the word. If he
cannot name it, show the word. Choose another volunteer to play the game. After
a few rounds, tell kids they will hear a Bible story about Peter and these
words.
Live It Out
Game – Bridge Ball
Materials: balls
Guide kids to stand in a circle with legs spread apart. Tell them to stand foot-to-foot. (They will need to stand with legs slightly wider than their shoulders.) Kids can show they are ready to play by standing with hands on knees. Hand the ball to one preteen to start the game. Kids try to roll the ball through another’s legs and keep the ball from rolling between their own legs. The ball can only be hit with the open palm, not thrown. When the ball goes between a kid’s legs (bridge), ask a review question. The kid can answer or choose someone to help him answer. Retrieve the ball and start again. After the story is reviewed, ask a child and friends on either side of him to say the Bible verse when the ball goes through his legs. Increase the challenge by using more than one ball in the game.
Craft – Prayer Board
Materials: white cardstock paper, clear contact plastic, washi tape, scissors, markers (optional)
Give each kid a piece of the heavy paper. Guide them to use the washi tape to decorate around the edges and sides of the paper, leaving the middle of the paper clear. (They could also use markers to decorate around the paper.) Suggest they print the Life Point on their boards, too. Help them measure and cut clear contact plastic to cover their entire paper. As they work, talk about the Bible story. Discuss needs they could pray for. Tell them that the decorated board could be used as a personal prayer board. They can use dry erase markers to write on the covered board, listing things they want to pray about.
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