Introductory Activity – Letter Puzzles
Materials: interlocking blocks (about 25), marker
Make stacks of three blocks. (If
your blocks are large, use only two blocks in each stack.) Print one of these
letters on each stack; print the letter large, covering all three blocks in the
stack: T, R, U, S, T, G, O, D.
Break apart the stacks and lay the blocks on a table. Invite kids to assemble the blocks to make the letters. After all the stacks are correctly reassembled, challenge the kids to put the letters in order to create two words. Tell kids that they will learn more about trusting God in today’s session.
Live It Out
Game – Tic-Tac-Toe Toss
Materials: masking tape, 10 plastic plates (5 of each of two colors)
Create a tic tac toe grid on the floor. Group the kids into two teams. Guide players from the teams to take turns tossing plates (like flying disks) onto the grid. When a team’s plate lands in a space on the grid, ask a review question. If the answer is correct, the plate stays in the space. If the answer is incorrect, the team must retrieve the plate. The first team to get three plates in a row on the grid wins. Say the Life Point and talk about times people need to trust God.
Craft – Sun Catcher
Materials: paper plates, scissors, tissue paper, clear contact plastic, permanent markers, hole punch, yarn
Cut the middles from the paper plates. Cut pieces of clear contact plastic to fit the openings in the paper plates. Guide a child to print Trust God on a piece of contact plastic. He can remove the paper backing and lay the plastic sticky side up. Help him place the paper plate ring on the plastic, centering the plastic in the opening. Tell the child he can cut tissue paper squares (or other shapes) and stick on the sticky plastic. When he has finished creating a design, help him remove the paper backing from other piece of contact plastic and stick the plastic on top of the design (sealing in all the sticky surfaces). Punch a hole in the top of the sun catcher and thread a piece of yarn through the hole and tie it for a hanger. Talk about the Bible story and the Life Point as children work.
Introductory Activity – Draw What I Say
Materials: paper, pencils
Group kids into pairs. Give each kid a piece of paper and a pencil. Tell partners to sit back to back. Guide one kid in each pair to draw an object or simple picture. Then that child will give simple directions to his partner to recreate the drawing. Directions can only be descriptions of shapes or lines; kids cannot tell partners what image they are drawing. For example: “Draw a triangle at the top of the page. Then draw a square underneath it.” When all the directions have been given, kids can compare the drawings. Then swap roles and draw again. Say: “Sometimes it is difficult to understand what we hear. Today we will think about how we can trust God and what God says.”
Live It Out
Game – Cup Flip
Materials: 30-50 cups, timer
Place the cups throughout the game area. Stand half the cups with opening facing up and half the cups with the opening facing down. (Both orientations should be mix throughout the space.) Group the kids into two teams. One team will flip cups facing up and the other team will flip cups facing down. Tell kids to stand around the game area. Set the timer for 1 minute. On your signal, teams will begin moving through the area, flipping cups as instructed. Each person can only flip one cup at a time. When the timer sounds, tell team members to freeze. Ask a review question. The team that answers correctly can flip over two more cups. Reset the timer and continue the game. Play in this manner until all review questions are answered. Count the cups to determine which team has more cups facing its way; that team is the winner.
Craft – Trust Wristband
Materials: craft foam sheets, alphabet stickers, other stickers, thin ribbon, scissors, hole punch Cut the foam sheets into 2-inch-wide strips. Give a strip to each kid. Kids can use the alphabet stickers to spell trust on their strips. They can use the other stickers to decorate around the word. When a kid finishes with the stickers, she can punch a hole in each end of the strip. She can tie ribbon in each end and use the ribbon to tie the wristband on her wrist. She may want to punch additional holes and lace ribbon through those holes for decorative effect. Say the Life Point as kids work.