Prepare the Way (Mark 1:1-8)
Today's story looks how John the Baptist prepares the way for Jesus. John the Baptist anticipated a messiah who would be greater than himself. John is portrayed as the forerunner of Jesus who prepares the people for Jesus' ministry. John baptised Jesus and was beheaded by Herod.
ActivitiesYou can find more about John the Baptist in Matthew 3! Here are some activities that you may like to include, if you end up doing a deep dive on John.
I wonder...
A journey to JesusWhat you need:
Create a simple obstacle course, but keep a clear path down the middle from the beginning of the course to the end. Make sure the beginning and end are clearly marked. Invite 3 people to come up and go from the start to the finish. (note- have the second and third people turn their backs to the course so that they can’t see what the people ahead of them have done). Some people might choose to go through and around the obstacles, others might go straight from one end to the other. Say something like: When roads are built, the engineers who design them work really hard to make the roads as easy as possible to drive on. They work so that the mountain roads aren’t too steep. Sometimes if the mountain is too high and rocky, workers might build a tunnel straight through the mountain to make driving easier. Instead of scarey, wild turns, engineers smooth the roads as much as possible so that they’re mostly straight. In our course, there was both a twisted obstacle way to go and a simple, straightforward way to go. Some people chose to go through the obstacles, others went straight to the prize. (if that’s the case) In our Bible reading today, we heard about John the Baptist helping people get ready for Jesus’ coming. Can you think of some ways that we get ready for Christmas? (allow answers- buying gifts, going to church, lighting Advent candles, putting up the Christmas tree, etc). Those are good answers and you’re right. December is a really busy time for most of us with all the getting ready that we do! Some of it’s really important and maybe some of it isn’t so important, but it’s easy to get caught up in all the excitement of the season. In our Bible story today, John is a bit like a road engineer. He wants it to be easy for people to get to Jesus, so he reminds them about what’s really important. John the Baptist was living in the desert. He was helping people get their hearts ready, not their houses or their clothes or anything like that. He wanted people to be able to recognize Jesus when he arrived and to know that Jesus was coming to offer them love and forgiveness. By helping people open their hearts to Jesus and his love and forgiveness, John the Baptist was making a straight, easy road for people to follow. Today it’s the same. We are asked to spend time getting ready for Jesus, opening our hearts to him and being excited that he’s in our lives. Sometimes with all the busyness and craziness in our lives- especially in December, it can feel like we’re on a steep and wildly curvy mountain road, but it doesn’t have to be like that. We can take the straight and gentle path to Christmas. Gospel ConversationsA video from a previous year - a new one will come soon!
Enter John the Baptist! Preparing the way for Jesus, preaching in the wilderness, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy of one who will point towards a time when all people will know the salvation of God. A wonderful Gospel this week, and Michael Godfrey is joined by Alec Clark, Judy Ringland and Anne van Gend to unpack it together. Prayer Of Confession
Supplies: Bowl of water, towel
One way that John the Baptist helped prepare the way for Jesus was by getting people to tell God they were sorry for the bad things they had done, or to stop doing things that got in the way of their relationship with God. John the Baptist would help people to understand the new start they were making by dipping them below water in the river and having them come back up again. This was a way of showing everyone that this person wanted to change the way he or she was living. We can use this bowl of water today to help us prepare our hearts for Jesus this Christmas. If you'd like to pray then one by one we will cup our hands with water and let it trickle back into the bowl. This is a sign of us asking God to wash away the things we do that we know we shouldn't. You can wipe your hands dry with the towel and after everyone has prayed we'll finish by praying together... "Dear God, thank you for the work John did getting people ready for Jesus. We thank you that through Jesus we get a fresh start and power to change the way we live. Please help us to walk in a way that pleases you by the things that we do and the choices we make, especially as we focus on you this Christmas. Amen." |
Gospel ConversationsAdvent 2, and we launch into the Gospel of Mark properly from the beginning. The strange, challenging figure of John the Baptist calls us to get ready, to prepare, to be open to Christ's coming, and this week Michael Holdaway, Mannie Marara and Anne van Gend join Michael Godfrey to ponder what that might look like.
Intergenerational ideasSometimes we can feel that God is quiet, very quiet, too quiet.... but In what feels like the silence of God, we realise God is patiently working. An intergenerational resource from Intergen Australia, written by Elizabeth Waldron Anstice. Check it out here
Red Light, Green Light
Use this stop/go signpost game to introduce the theme of John the Baptist being a signpost to Jesus.
Supplies: Two circles of card: one red, one green To play, one person is chosen to be the traffic cop. All the players stand on the starting line about 5 metres away from the traffic cop who has his back to the rest of the players. When he says "green light" and holds up the green circle behind his back, players try to run to the finish line to "Win" But if the traffic cop says "red light," he quickly turns around and players have to stop in their tracks. If the traffic cop catches a player moving, he sends them back to the starting line. First person to cross the finish line wins and becomes the new traffic cop. Debrief: Talk about where children see stop lights (eg: traffic lights, pedestrian crossings, train crossings) and what other signposts they've seen on the road that point out things ahead (eg: school ahead, horses crossing, elderly people ahead). Explain that today we will be hearing about John the Baptist who was like a signpost pointing the way to Jesus coming. Road Sign talkSermon given on Luke 3:1-6, where John the Baptist talks about making the way straight to the Lord.
Talk uses roadsigns as a visual prompt. What you'll need:
Road Sign QuizWhat you need:
Interactive journey prayersWhat you need:
Memory VerseIn the desert someone is shouting, “Get the road ready for the Lord!” Luke 3:4 (Good News Translation)
What you need:
For younger children use “Get the road ready for the Lord” Luke 3:4 Journey gameWhat you need:
Have the groups play the game by rolling the die, moving their marker and doing what’s written on the board. Note: you can make enough game boards to send one home to each family. If possible, include 4 playing pieces and a die in a small bag. 
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The Baptism of Jesus (Mark 1:4-11)
John the Baptist anticipated a messiah who would be greater than himself. John is portrayed as the forerunner of Jesus who prepares the people for Jesus' ministry. The Baptism of Jesus is also found in Luke 3:15-17, 21-22.
Bible stories with picturesWe stumbled across a great website with some John the Baptist lesson resources, with a John the Baptist story with illustrations, and group discussion questions
Download here Worship resourcesThe Church of Scotland have some good lectionary reading content on their website, which is helpful for those preaching this 1st Sunday after Epiphany, or looking for background information on the scriptures.
You can find their information here ActivitiesJohn the Baptist
Jesus' Baptism
What is baptism?Younger Kids
Sit the children down and ask them if they know what baptism is, have they been to one etc? Do they know if they are baptised? Then read them the story from the Beginner’s bible of Jesus’ baptism. Talk about the symbol of water - it washes us clean, makes us feel fresh. Often people like to shower first thing in the morning so they are ready to start the new day! Jesus didn’t need to be baptised but he chose to start his work on earth by being baptised, it marked the start of his work of telling people about God his father and teaching them how to live as God wants us to. God was so happy with Jesus and all the good work he was doing that he said it aloud for everyone to hear! God is also pleased with you when you try hard to be kind to other people and love them and to remember all the things Jesus taught us. We will make a picture of Jesus’ baptism to help you remember! Older kids Baptism! What is baptism? Why do we get baptised? What are some of the symbols? Get out the bibles and find and read the passage together, taking turns. Then talk about - do they think Jesus needed to be baptised? Why did he choose to be baptised? Why did God choose to speak out loud and send a dove?? Talk about the symbols of baptism. Talk about how when you baptised the priest signs you with a cross on your forehead, like a secret sign of belonging to God. If you have been baptised then you will always have that invisible sign of God’s love on your forehead! If you haven’t been you might like to think about arranging to, just talk to the your church leader. Squirter GameGame : Squirter. Sit the children in a circle with somone in the middle. Leaders sit in the circle too. Start them off with a word, the person next to them has to say a word associated with it, like if they say Banana, the enxt person can say yellow or another fruit. If they don’t or hesitate longer than about 5 seconds, the person in the middle gets to squirt them with water! (suggest you set your squirter to mist!). Then swap out the person in the middle and choose a new word.....
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Intergenerational WorshipRecognising God's voice, an intergenerational resource written and compiled by Melissa Neumann from the Uniting Church, for Intergen Australia. See here >>
Object Talk What you need:
What you do: Set up the bowl of water, soap and towel on a table. Say something like: When was the last time you got dirty? I mean really dirty! Maybe you were playing in the dirt or fixing a car or clearing out the attic. Can you think of what you were doing? Tell the person next to you. Great. What did you do to get clean again? (allow a few answers). My hands are a bit dirty, so I'm going to wash them in this basin. Maybe you used soap and water or got in a shower or bath or jumped in the pool or used a hose. Those are all great ways to get clean on the outside. But what happens when we're dirty on the inside? What happens when we've lied or hurt someone or taken something that doesn't belong to us? Will washing in this basin help those things go away? No, not really. We can be spotless on the outside, but still be full of mess on the inside. When we're baptised, and when Jesus was baptised, it looks like a washing up on the outside, but it's more than that. Baptism is a way of showing that we want to be washed up and clean on the inside, too. When we're baptised, it's like saying that we're sorry for the bad things we've done and we want a new start. And God always forgives us. That makes a lot of sense for us, because we do bad things a lot. Sometimes we do them without knowing, sometimes we know that what we're doing is wrong. We need to be cleaned up on the inside. But Jesus never did anything wrong. He didn't need to be cleaned up or forgiven, but he still got baptised. That made him extra close to all of us, doing something that we do. When God looked at Jesus, he sent his holy spirit, in the form of a dove down.. Then God said that he loved Jesus very much and was really, really pleased with him! God is pleased with us, too, when we want to be clean on the inside and on the outside! Glitter Bottles
What you need:
Small bottles or jars, 1 per child (make sure they have lids)
What you do:
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Desert Times (Mark 1:9-15)
Today's story talks about the baptism and temptation of Jesus.
Lenten CalendarThis week is the first Sunday of Lent. You might like to make a creative calendar to count the days, and encourage children to take up something that would remind them of Jesus (reading the Bible, picking up litter to care for creation, encouraging someone each day)
Gospel ConversationsWe enter Lent with a bang, hurried along by Mark's rapid-fire story-telling. Baptism, temptations, proclamation, all in a few short verses. Aptly, our conversation this week is also short and sharp! Bishop Steven Benford, Peg Riley and Anne van Gend explore with Michael how to respond to heavenly voices, demons, angels, and wild beasts!
The Marshmallow Test
Talk to the children about what temptation is. Talk about how our parents and teachers teach us what is right and what is wrong and sometimes it is hard not to do the thing we’ve been asked not to! See if they have a story to share about that. Is it hard not to eat more lollies from the packet when your Mum/Dad has said no?
Give them each small paper plate, 2 pipe cleaners and 1 button with 2/4 holes in (not too small). Tell them about how although Jesus is the Son of God, he too had to face temptation. He knew though, that the most important thing of all was to make sure that he put God first in his life. So that, when he face a difficult choice, he made the right decision because he wasn’t thinking about himself, he was thinking about what God would want. Sometimes when we give into temptation and we do something we know we shouldn’t, we might then be tempted to try and hide what we did! This can lead to more trouble. You can also show them a clip like this Marshmallow Test. Intergenerational worshipIntergenerational material compiled and written by Rev Sandy Brodine for Intergen Australia. View here
Children's TalkCan anyone tell me what Season we are about to start? (pause) I’ll give you a clue, it starts this week on Ash Wednesday. Does anyone know? (pause). Well, the season is Lent.
The bible story we heard today told of Jesus spending forty days in the desert, and of how the devil tried to tempt Jesus into doing bad things during those forty days. Lent is the forty days leading up to Easter and is a time when we can take time out to think about what is really important, and to prepare for the celebration of Easter Sunday. One way that people mark Lent is to do what Jesus did and give up something for forty days. It could be eating chocolate, or watching TV. And every time during the forty days that you are tempted to eat chocolate or watch TV, you pray to God instead. Something else you can do, is instead of giving something up, you can commit to spending some time everyday doing something to help you think about what Jesus did for us at Easter. You may like to read the bible for five minutes each day, or light a candle and pray, or even paint a picture about Easter. There are lots of ways that you can prepare for Easter during Lent. So today, I challenge you to think about what you might do. The activity we are going to do – A Lenten Calendar- will be able to help you remember what you have decided to give up or do. Obstacle GameFor older children
You will need: Blindfolds and obstacles around the room like tables and chairs What to do: Divide the children into pairs. Get each pair to decide who will be blindfolded, and who will lead. (Note: this game can be repeated by getting the pairs to swap roles) Get the pairs to line up at one end of the room. Tell them the object of the game is for the person who is blindfolded to move around the room silently and letting their partner guide them. They don’t need to go in a straight line as the point of the game is to build up trust in the pairs. At the end of the game you might like to talk about what it was like, and then tie in how we need to trust and rely on God, even when we can’t see where God is leading us. For younger children Making it through the wilderness - a team blindfold game You will need: blindfolds and obstacles What to do: Get the children to line up, one behind the other. Get them all to put on blindfolds. Tell them that once their blindfold is on, they cannot speak anymore. Get them to put their hands on the shoulders of the person in front of them. The leader is at the front and doesn’t have a blindfold. Once everyone is ready, the leader will take the blindfolded children for a walk around the room, leading them around things, under things and over things as they wish. The point of this game is the same as the older children’s version. |
Weekly worshipThe Church of Scotland have put together some helpful resources to help your worship this week, unpacking each of the lectionary readings. You can find them here.
Questions
Temptation!What you need:
Lollies (enough for the whole group) A plate or serviette to put the lollies on A bread roll and a rock A map of the world or globe Legos or duplo to make a tower What you do:
The Story: After Jesus was baptised, he spent 40 days in the desert getting ready for the important work that God wanted him to do. During that time he didn't eat anything and so he was very, very hungry! The devil came to Jesus and said, "Why don't you turn these stones into bread? That way you can eat all you want! You don't need to be hungry." Jesus said, People don't live only on food!" Then the devil showed Jesus all the countries in the world (show the map or globe). The devil said, "You can have all the countries in the whole world. You can rule all of them if you just worship me instead of worshipping God." But Jesus said, "No! We're only supposed to worship God!" Then the devil brought Jesus to a tall tower (point to the duplo tower). "If you're really God's Son, throw yourself off this tower, and show me that you won't be hurt!" Jesus said that even though he knew that God's angels would catch him and keep him safe, we aren't supposed to test God like that. Jesus wouldn't do it. You know, Jesus was tempted with all three of those things; food, power and showing how much God loved him by getting angels to keep him safe. But he didn't yield to those temptations. He knew that even though those things might feel good for a moment, the plan to help the world wasn't about turning stones into bread or jumping off towers or being a ruler over all the countries. Jesus knew that he needed to do something else to change the world and bring God's love and forgiveness to everyone. Temptation Talk - Older KidsFor more detail around Jesus' time in the desert, read the passage in Matthew 4:1-11 together.
We often have this bible text at the beginning of lent. Who knows what lent is? What do we do in lent? Why? So why do we have this bible reading? Has anyone ever tried to tempt you to turn stones in to bread?! No? Ever been tempted to throw yourself off a building to see if the angels will catch you? No? I’m glad!! What do you feel tempted to do sometimes? So you might be wondering what was so hard about those temptations for Jesus. Very often with the bible we have to look a bit harder than just a quick read, to find how that passage is of use to us. Because I know the bible IS of use to us and everyone, but sometimes that can be difficult to get. Where is the connection to Jesus’ temptation and ours? Well the tests that Jesus faced were very specific to him, just like temptation is different for us all. I’m not tempted to eat loads of lollies but I might be tempted to eat lots of chocolate! But what is the same is that the very basic or underlying temptation that we share with Jesus, is the temptation to treat God as less than God. To treat God as less than God. We might never be tempted to try turning stones into bread, but we are constantly tempted to mistrust God’s readiness to help us through the difficult things. We might not be tempted to test God by leaping off a cliff but we are often tempted question God’s helpfulness when things go wrong for us. It is hard to only serve God and not be influenced by wanting to do what our friends are doing or what the world thinks is cool. That is the real temptation that we all, you, me, your parents, your friends, vicars, bishops, all of us. Jesus held firm and never doubted that God is God and can always be relied on. We must try to do that too, especially when things are hard or life is tricky because we need him then more than ever! Cup Stack GameThis game can be played as an upfront game or everyone can participate, either at the same time or as a relay.
What you need:
What you do:
After the game is over, you can ask something like, "Was this an easy thing to do?" Some people might have found it easy, but for some it might have been hard to work so quickly. Ask, "Were you tempted to cheat by taking more than 1 cup at a time?". Say something like, "It's good that you didn't cheat! God doesn't want us to give in to temptation and cheat, even when things get hard!" We can remember how Jesus resisted temptation in the desert and we can try and do the same. |
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Jesus calls the fishermen (Mark 1:16-20)
Jesus goes to the Sea of Galilee and finds Simon and his brother Andrew who are fishing. He speaks the famous phrase "Come, follow me,...and I will make you fishers of men"
Icebreaker Fishing GameYou will need
Fish CraftYou will need
Activities
Intergenerational WorshipWhat does the good news mean? An intergenerational resource from Intergen Australia, written and compiled by Melissa Neumann.
See here >> 
Family PrayerLoving God,
Help us to become good fishers of people. Help us to share Jesus with them, in the words we use, the ways we love and care. Help us to tell others about you and to have the courage to speak about you. May our church be a community of welcome and belonging, and one we can invite our friends into. Amen Additional CollectGod of Good News,
Bearer of the Gospel, you bring your kingdom closer; call us to repentance, call us to belief, so that we may fish for people in our generation and hasten in your kingdom. Through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen |
Children's TalkIntroduction
This talk was shared with the children at All Saints Hataitai, by unpacking the story of Jesus calling the disciples piece by piece. As the story was unpacked, the children were engaged and responsive to the different props. Each prop is taken out the box and placed in a consecutive order on the floor. Once the story had been told, all the props were put back in the box and the children recalled the story and remembered the visual cues for each part. What you need
Tell the story
Take out the MONEY Once there was a man who had a job. Can you think of different jobs that you can have to earn money? (let children offer ideas) What job would you like to have when you're an adult? This man had a job -- can you guess what it was? Take out the CAN OF TUNA. This man was a fisherman! What do you think he would look like? What do you think he would smell like? He might have rough salty hands, and smell of the sea and fish? The man in this story was called Simon. Take out SIMON FOOTPRINT. He had a brother called Andrew. Take out ANDREW FOOTPRINT. Their job was to catch fish. Take out FISHING NET and put lots of FISH SHAPES into the net. One day they were out fishing and minding their own business when someone came walking along the shore of Lake Galilee. 
Take out CANDLE and light it.
Who do you think it was? Wait for answers until someone guesses it was Jesus. Jesus saw the two brothers out fishing on the lake, as they were casting their nets out and hoping for fish. Jesus said to them, “Come with me! I will teach you how to bring in people instead of fish.” Take out FISHING NET and SMILEY FACE BALLS. Give a kid the net and throw the balls into the net for them to catch. And what did the two brothers do? Did they go back to fishing? Did they jump on Facebook to let the world know? No, at once the two brothers dropped their nets and went with him. Simon and Andrew followed Jesus. Place down two footprints — SIMON FOOTPRINT and ANDREW FOOTPRINT. Jesus walked on until he saw James and John. Their dad had a great name -- his name was Zebedee! They were in a boat with their father, mending their nets. Jesus asked them to come with him too. Straight away they left the boat and their father and went with Jesus. Place down two footprints — JAMES FOOTPRINT and JOHN FOOTPRINT. Jesus went all over Galilee, teaching in the Jewish meeting places and preaching the good news about God's kingdom. He also healed every kind of disease and sickness. These men became some of Jesus' closest friends, and Jesus even changed Simon's name — became known as Peter. Flip over the 2nd Simon footprint to show PETER FOOTPRINT And do you know what Peter stands for? Peter can mean Rock -- and he was called rock because he would become an important person on which God built the church. Even though he made some mistakes and made some funny choices, Jesus loved Peter and knew that he would be someone he could trust. Take out ROCK** Put all the props back in the box and see if the children can recall who the story unfolds. 
[Optional] **We used this talk the week of the 7.8 Kaikoura earthquake, and then went on to link the story of Peter being called a rock to how God can be our rock and our refuge. It says in Psalm 46:1-2 that "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging". We printed out these two verses and gave each child a rock and the words from psalm 46 to take home. The kids decorated the rocks with stickers of road cones and building machinery, and wrote their prayers on it, asking God to keep us all safe.
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Jesus drives out an impure spirit (Mark 1:21-28)
In this reading from Mark, people in the temple were amazed at Jesus' teaching and authority
Intergenerational WorshipAn intergenerational resource written and compiled by Melissa Neumann, for Intergen Australia. View here
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Church of ScotlandThe Church of Scotland have prepared some great sermon resources for the 4th Sunday of Epiphany here, which help unpack the four readings. Really helpful for those writing sermons or preparing services.
Additional CollectHoly One of God,
as healer and teacher of the faith, your words astound, and transform the lives of many. May we teach your word and be bold in our actions so that your presence will be revealed. For you are alive and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen |
Jesus heals many (Mark 1:29-39)
Church of Scotland resourcesIn today's gospel reading, the write users the Greek word “egeiro”, used for “get up”, and this is the same usage as for the resurrection of Jesus in Mark chapter 16. There’s a clear proleptic intention by the author – this action is a sign of what is to come in the Gospel.
The Church of Scotland provides some great context and background for these Lectionary texts today - see here Intergenerational WorshipSome resources from Intergen Australia, written and compiled by Melissa Neumann. This week they consider how the Bible passages spur us on to delight in God, and how God delights in us. View here
Gospel ConversationsIn this video, the Gospel Conversationalists are starting again for another year. We launch with the energetic combination of Bishop Kelvin Wright, Revd Wendy Scott and Emma Wilson, who join Archdeacon Mike to talk about the rush of stories that strike us just as the Gospel of Mark begins. Thanks Dunedin Diocese!
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GamesThe games are taken from the website Jesus Without Language, at the following link and play on the three ideas of links to Jesus, healing and touch.
Holding On Give the youngsters tape, paper and scissors to make paper-chains. Get the youngsters to construct a paper-chain that links everybody’s wrists together. Talk about how we all came to church because of somebody we are linked to – a family member, a friend, etc. then stand up and try to move without breaking the chain… this probably won’t last long. Say that even though we came to church because of somebody else we are each loved individually by God. Plastering Balloons This is a messy game that can be played with water in the summer. You need at least one balloon per child, tape or small sticky plasters and a sharp pin. Before you give the balloons out make 3 or 4 pin holes in them. Give the children a balloon and say it’s broken, but they can fix it. The game starts when you shout start and ends when either all the balloons are fully inflated, or the first balloon is fully inflated. Plaster Hunt Like hide the thimble meets a treasure hunt but with plasters. Just be careful that they can be removed from where you place them. As they are found they can be stuck to the person who finds them. Additional CollectHealing God,
in the touch of Jesus the sick were healed, the chains unbound. Freedom is before us. Set us on a new path of wholeness, deliver us from all that binds us, turn us to embrace that life giving love offered through Jesus Christ, who is alive and lives with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen |
Jesus Heals a Man With Leprosy (Mark 1:40-45)
Today's old testament reading talks about a man's miraculous healing at the hands of Jesus.
Lent Begins!This week marks the start of Lent!
For more ideas about how to engage your families in the lenten journey, head to the Strandz website Gospel ConversationsThis week's gospel is the story of Jesus healing a leper, and the beautiful interactions between them. Why was this one healing told in detail, when there had been so many healings before this one? Damon Plimmer, Gary Griffith-Smith and Anne van Gend join Michael Godfrey to explore the significance of this life-changing story for the leper, and for us.
Jesus Heals Leprosy MazesHelp the man with leprosy get through the city to reach Jesus and be healed. There are three different levels of difficulty: simple, average, difficult.
Download printable pdfs here: GamesThe games are taken from the website Jesus Without Language, at the following link and play on the three ideas of links to Jesus, healing and touch. See here
Holding On Give the youngsters tape, paper and scissors to make paper-chains. Get the youngsters to construct a paper-chain that links everybody’s wrists together. Talk about how we all came to church because of somebody we are linked to – a family member, a friend, etc. then stand up and try to move without breaking the chain… this probably won’t last long. Say that even though we came to church because of somebody else we are each loved individually by God. Plastering Balloons This is a messy game that can be played with water in the summer. You need at least one balloon per child, tape or small sticky plasters and a sharp pin. Before you give the balloons out make 3 or 4 pin holes in them. Give the children a balloon and say it’s broken, but they can fix it. The game starts when you shout start and ends when either all the balloons are fully inflated, or the first balloon is fully inflated. Plaster Hunt Like hide the thimble meets a treasure hunt but with plasters. Just be careful that they can be removed from where you place them. As they are found they can be stuck to the person who finds them. Hand Letters This game must be played in pairs. Each child uses one hand and must combine it with the other child’s hand to make the shape of a letter. Have the children make the letters GEHNAIL… and then ask they to rearrange the letters they have made to tell you what the story is about today – HEALING. |
Shortbread Baking ActivityA tasty reminder of today's story! Make and easy shortbread with added M&Ms using the recipe below, cut into shapes with gingerman/woman cookie cutters.
Shortbread recipe Ingredients:
Saddleback Kids: The Thankful Leper (Luke 17:11-19)
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