A Journey Through Genesis
This coming January, our children will walk with the characters of the book of Genesis, smell the wonderful scents of the garden of Eden, gather up animals two by two, travel the sands of the wilderness with Hagar, hear the crackle of sacrificial fires, and watch a nation emerge from Sarah and Abraham. It’s going to be a wild ride, so stay tuned as we finish getting the final supplies to make this a truly memorable experience!
Our lesson plans:
Week 1 (January 29) will cover the creation of the world and humankind with activities of creating a three-dimensional creature and games using stuffed animals to symbolize the immensity and wonderfulness of God’s creations. We will discuss Adam and Eve and explain the importance of the Tree of Knowledge using apple fruit roll ups.
Week 2 (February 5) will look at the story of Cain and Abel with activities of a sheep sacrifice candle and a fun clothespin game to show how it is possible to overcome selfishness of siblings and best friends. We will talk about love through sharing with a healthy snack for the children.
Week 3 (February 12) will experience the Great Flood and Noah’s Ark with activities of an ark craft (where your child will be able to be get inside!), animal crackers, and an animal matching game that will show how many animals God gathered on the ark and how Noah trusted God when no one else did. We will talk about being together and trusting that we will be able to get through difficult times.
Week 4 (February 19) will talk about the Tower of Babel with activities of coloring and then building a Styrofoam tower as high as they can make it and a speaking game that will attempt to react how confusing all the new different languages must have been. We will also build our own Tower of Babel out of hundreds of small boxes as high as we can make it. We will talk about overcoming our pride and trying better to love others even if they do not speak the same language.
Week 5 (February 26) will discover the origins of Christian heritage through Abram (who would become Abraham) with a family tree craft and a puzzle scavenger hunt that, when put together, will reveal Abram and what he was doing before God called him. We will talk about large families and how God has blessed all of us through Abraham.
Week 6 (March 4) will travel the sands of the desert with Hagar and Ishmael with a craft that makes a resting place for the baby Ishmael as Hagar goes into the wilderness to search for food. We will also try to find the baby Ishmael hidden in 1 of 100 hiding spaces to show how easy it is to get lose in the wilderness, and we will discuss how God still loves us even in tough times and give us the strength to make it through
Week 7 (March 11) will trek up the mountain with Abraham and Isaac, as Abraham faces a difficult choice of sacrifice. We will play a game that requires following instructions (Simon-says), and discuss how it is important to listen to God at all times (even when we think we know what we are supposed to do)
Week 8 (March 18) will mediate the sibling rivalry between Jacob and Esau, as Jacob tricks his father to get Esau’s blessing. We will make play dough baskets to indicate how blessings often occurred in ancient times, and discuss that while siblings can often do mean things, we have the capacity to talk to them and explain why we are upset (instead of sulking).
Week 9 (March 25) will enter into the dream world to get a glimpse of Jacob’s ladder, and God’s call to Jacob in the wilderness. We will make three-dimensional ladders to show what this might have looked like for Jacob in the moment, and we will discuss how dreams can be important ways to better understand ourselves, God, and the world.
Week 10 (April 1) will wrestle with the fight between God and Jacob, and God’s eventual blessing of Jacob. We will make a golf ball paint box that will show how messy this wrestling match must have been, but in the end, how beautiful something messy like this can become, and we will discuss why it is important to stay strong even through the difficult times.
~The Puppetsburg Puppets will be joining us this week to give us their own spin on the moral of this story! It will be extraordinarily entertaining!~
You can visit http://puppetsburg.blogspot.com/ for more information
Week 11 (April 8 ) is Easter! In addition to Easter egg hunts, puppet shows, and crafts for kids of all ages, our Sunday School this week will talk about why we celebrate Easter. We will have some wonderful Easter crafts of many varieties that will show the joy and magnificence of the Resurrection!
Week 12 (April 15) will dream the magnificent dreams of Joseph, son of Jacob. We will make a dream wheel and for ourselves, and watch the first part of a musical called Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. We will discuss what it means to be really good at something, and not to be jealous of those who are good at other things.
Week 13 (April 23) will learn how Joseph’s favoritism gets him into trouble as he is sold in slavery by his jealous brothers. Finishing up the second half of JATD, we will also make a 3D crown to symbolize both the extravagance of Joseph’s rise from slavery, and the important role he now plays (that he only dreamed of as a child). We will discuss how perseverance is important in overcoming adversity