God s Gift to Us. Primary Teacher s Guide Fall Quarter, 2018

Transcription

1 Primary Teacher s Guide Fall Quarter, 2018 God s Gift to Us Unit 1 God s Gift of Creation September 2 Begin with a Capital! September 9 Go Within the Lines September 16 End a Big Statement with an Exclamation Point September 23 The Lines of Family Responsibility Quarterly Objective: The learner will explore some of God s gifts to discover their value for today. Unit 2 God s Gift of Loving People September 30 If Everyone s Doin It, Why Shouldn t I?. 32 October 7 Help Others Go in the Lines October 14 When Someone Writes on Your Lines.. 44 October 21 When We Don t Stay Within the Lines.. 49 Unit 3 God s Gift of His Word October 28 God s Writings November 4 The Whole Truth November 11 From Cover to Cover November 18 How To Love Jesus November 25 How Can I Understand? Volume 3, No. 1, Fall Quarter, 2018 Writer: Lena Case Editor in Chief: Kyle Elkins, kyle.elkins@bogardstore.org Business Manager: Wayne Sewell, wayne.sewell@bogardstore.org 2018, Bogard Press, 4605 N. State Line Ave. Texarkana, TX ;

2 Leaving the Comfort Zone Children are smarter these days! They are knowledgeable about more subjects than there were subjects to know about a generation or two ago. A recent feature article in a daily newspaper revealed new methods and techniques used in a school district to enhance learning. Instead of departmentalized education with separate schedules for reading, spelling, math and science, teachers integrated the different subjects into one lesson. They believed the new approach prepared the child for the real world more effectively than the old system of teaching. In relating that idea to Christian education, teachers also need to understand the integral role of Bible lessons in everyday life. Preparing a child to live for Christ in today s world takes more than sitting still for the Bible story presentation. It involves the whole person body, mind and spirit. Instead of departmentalizing spiritual education to one day a week, children need to experience a daily growing relationship with Jesus Christ. Foster their understanding of God as Creator. Relate the lessons about creation to life throughout the week. As Bible truths mesh with experiences, learning happens. Effective teaching uses practical participation to allow learners to hear, see, touch, taste, smell and share in classroom projects and activities. Such meaningful involvement may mean stretching beyond one s comfort zone, but the benefits make the discomfort productive. Adopting new ideas requires thinking, planning and preparation. It is easier to coast along in familiar paths that we know by memory. These paths are comfort zones. Remove not the ancient landmark (Proverbs 22:28) does NOT refer to teaching methods. Replace outdated same old same old routines with innovative fresh techniques to stimulate genuine interest in learning Bible principles. God is at work in our world. He uses people real people like us to accomplish His purposes and plans. To join Him in His work means leaving our comfort zones to enter the arena of faith and dependence on His Spirit to guide and help. Children are in prime time to be taught godly values. The lessons about God s Gift of Loving People and God s Gift of His Word have pertinent messages for real life. Integrate Bible truths with life to enhance children s learning experiences. Give them opportunities to think and assimilate Bible principles. Christian living is not a spectator hobby. We have to get out of our comfort zones to accomplish God s kingdom work. 2

3 9-2 Primary Visual Aids, Item 7 Building a Resource File Primary Visual Aids, Lesson 7, Stick Puppets Fall Quarter, 2012 David Adonijah Solomon Nathan Primary Visual Aids Fall Quarter, 2012 Primary Visual Aids, Lesson 8, Picture Series Fall Quarter, There is more to teaching than showing up a lot more! You know that if you teach regularly. If you are new to the classroom of young learners, welcome to a most rewarding experience. Children learn through senses, so effective teachers use extra ideas besides just words. Ideas in the lessons of this teacher s guide suggest learning methods that will impact seeing, feeling, tasting and touching along with hearing. Add the emotional/spiritual dimension of experiences, and the impact results in more permanent learning. Pictures are essential tools for teachers of children. Learners get a clearer understanding of Bible story details with visuals that illustrate the action. This curriculum has a correlated package of visuals with materials for every lesson. The various presentation methods using them maintains interest for young learners. The Bible-centered learner s manual gives each child a personal resource for responding to the lesson. Designed for the capabilities of third- and fourth-graders, the activities stimulate thinking about God s Word in relation to daily life. Direct application with personal Bible searches prompts spiritual growth in the participants. Another ready resource for busy teachers is the make and take book for this curriculum. It provides a weekly ready-to-use project that serves as a lesson reminder. Some of them focus on the Bible story while others have a life-application purpose. Two pages of colored stickers to add to the projects make Bible learning fun. Teachers use many resources other than curriculum to make learning stick. That is the reason for building a resource file to which you can go for extras that add sparkle to Bible lessons. It may be a sturdy box, but wherever you store them, it should be free of toss and throw items. An expansion file folder for collecting pictures makes a good start. Magazines and calendars are the most accessible and plentiful source, but store catalogs and advertising brochures sometimes have colorful pictures to put into the file also. Family, home and nature magazines are usually valuable sources of good, descriptive pictures. Use individual file folders for grouping the pictures by subject. Quick and easy access requires organization. Separate pictures by subject, action or objects (family, friends, children, church, home, school, Bible, toys, food, nature, animals, sharing, helping, praying, playing and so forth). Program your mind to be alert for easy-to-use teaching pictures. It is amazing how quickly a picture file grows after the first step of choosing to develop it. Some active learning methods suggested in the lessons call for objects you have in your home or that come from a discount store or mail order supply. As you collect materials, store them as resources. They are investments in learning tools that will make class time more meaningful. 3

4 Lead Them to Jesus Salvation is the greatest need of anyone in our world today. It changes the eternal destiny of all who receive Jesus as Savior. Think of the horrendous future of any child who rejects Him. That horrifying visual image of seeing a child go into eternity without Christ should motivate us to pray for and personally witness to each learner. One of the greatest joys of serving in church is to see boys and girls become members of God s family. Plant the seed and trust the Holy Spirit to bring it to harvest. Help every child understand how he can become God s child. The need of salvation is brought about by the work of the Holy Spirit, but each individual has to make his own choice. Avoid group decisions in which children may feel influenced to follow the response of others. You may encourage and share with the entire group God s plan for their salvation but be sensitive to spiritual needs and deal one-on-one when someone shows concern. Talk and pray personally with anyone who wants to accept God s gift of eternal life. Follow these basic steps and talk simply with the child who wants to receive salvation. 1. Heaven is a beautiful place where there is nothing to make one sad. God lives there and wants you to come there someday. He offers Heaven as a gift. No one can be good enough on his own to earn going there. (Read Revelation 21:27.) 2. God sent Jesus, His Son, to earth to die for our sins. His death paid the penalty for sin. Since Jesus never sinned, He could be the sacrifice to take the punishment for sin. (Read Romans 5:8.) Jesus died in our place. 3. To receive God s gift of eternal life, see yourself as a sinner who deserves God s just punishment. Repent of sin. Be sorry for doing wrong and just tell God you want His forgiveness through Jesus who died in your place. (Pause for the person to pray.) 4. Believe in your heart that Jesus is your Savior and receive God s forgiveness. When you depend on what Jesus did and trust Him to be your Savior, God makes you a member of His family. You receive God s gift of eternal life, and your name goes into the Lamb s Book of Life. (Read John 1:12.) 5. After becoming a member of God s family, nothing can take God s gift from you. (Read John 3:16, John 10:28, 29 and Romans 8:38, 39.) You belong to God, and He will be with you now and forever. Encourage the new believer to tell someone about his salvation as soon as possible. Encourage him to be baptized and join the church. Following Jesus example of baptism is the first step in growing spiritually. Share with your pastor the names of any who make a profession of faith in Jesus for salvation. 4

5 God s Gifts to Us Creative Room Decor The stimulating affect of an attractive room is priceless. Learners respond to appealing decor with appreciation and eagerness to participate in class sessions. Your investment in their lives pays off in eternal dividends. Bible and school supply stores usually carry a line of products for instant wall and door decorations. It takes only a little time to develop your own with poster board, construction paper and art supplies. Make this around-the-door display for visual excitement to welcome learners. Cut gold cardstock or paper for the title section above the door. Frame it with small limbs or twigs hot-glued around the edges. Add cut-out letters for God s Gifts to Us. Attach it to the wall securely with Plasti-Tak. Add squirrel and bird cutouts at the top on each side. Make a collage of fall leaves and other fall decor to extend about halfway down on the sides of the door. A background piece of the same gold cardstock or paper used for the top panel will simplify arrangement and mounting. 5

6 Unit 1 Lessons 1 4 God s Gift of Creation Unit Objective Learners participating in these lessons will know details of the biblical account of how God began everything. The true account of the beginning of everything in the universe as God created it gives learners a solid basis for their faith. Boys and girls will know that the Genesis account of creation is true in every aspect. Learners will feel awe and appreciation for God s creative work. Everyone can stand firm for God s truth about how the world came into existence. This Unit and Your Learners The powerful story of God s creation of the universe in the opening verses of Genesis stimulates wonder and worship. What amazing power, wisdom and beauty! Children have an enormous curiosity about everything they see, hear, smell, taste and touch. This unit will help them appreciate the marvelous world God has provided. Evolutionists say that all life gradually evolved from a single cell which came from nonliving matter. Creationists believe that all life and everything in existence came by the acts of a Creator. The complexity of the order and design of our planet and universe point to God as the source of their being. As learners explore the intricate details that make true science a fascinating study, they will discover facts that will help them know why the universe could not have come into existence by chance. A stronger appreciation for the sanctity of human life will result from learning about the image of God in every person. You can guide them in learning the truth to build a solid foundation of faith in the Genesis account of God s work in the beginning of time. O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches (Psalm 104:24). The most up-to-date statement on the origin of the universe and all that it contains is still in the beginning God created. Overview of Bible Lessons God states in the Bible (Romans 1:20) that nature and creation itself reveal there is a Creator. The Bible lessons examine God s work up close. Begin with a Capital! The Father, Son and Spirit were in eternity and brought about the marvelous earth on which we live. The story of creation is like the capital letter at the beginning of God s sentence about man s history. Go Within the Lines God ordered the universe as a multitude of interdependent units which make up a whole unit depending upon Him. All life reproduces like itself. End a Big Statement with an Exclamation Point Making man in the image of God was the climax of God s work in creation. God formed man from the elements of the earth and gave him spirit life. The Lines of Family Responsibility Every member of a family has duties and responsibilities which are important to every other member of the family. Family happiness depends on each one staying in the lines which God planned. BULLETIN BOARD q Materials Needed: gray paper, plastic kitchen wrap, leaves or colorful paper for leaves, tan paper, yellow paper, gold paper, orange paper, glue, cotton Portray beautiful expressions of God s artistry during the fall season with a bulletin board display made with children s help. Cut a tree from gray paper with black highlights. Invite boys and girls to bring real leaves to fasten to the tree and ground. Seal them between clear plastic kitchen wrap (details under Nature Hike on page 15) or laminate them to make the colors last longer, or cut leaves from fall colors of paper. Make pumpkins from orange paper. Cut backs for them that are a little smaller than the fronts. Glue around the edges leaving an opening to make a pocket. When dry, stuff each with a small amount of cotton to give a rounded look. Cut the cornstalks gathered into shocks from tan paper. Make a big yellow harvest moon in the sky. Cut letters from gold paper. 6

7 Unit 1 Pattern Page 7

8 Begin with a Capital! Genesis 1:1-18 Lesson September 2, 2018 God s great gift of the creation of the universe. u Lesson Objective: Learners will say that God spoke the universe into existence. X v F Bible Principle: God the Father, the Word and the Spirit created everything in the universe in the beginning of time. Bible Insight: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible. Colossians 1:16 Life Application: I understand that such a complex object as our universe could not have come into being in any way other than by the work of a Master Designer who planned and ordered it so. Only God could create the cosmos and make it function so orderly. The First Week in Time Genesis 1:1-18 Time, a segment of eternity, began with the creation of the universe. In the beginning refers to the start of time when God intersected eternity with a world controlled by time. At the command of God, everything came into being. It was not a random happening but a well considered and planned construction project that was begun by God. Creation is God s capital letter at the beginning of the sentence. God caused the world and everything in it to appear at His spoken command. His great power keeps all nature functioning as He designed in the beginning. 8

9 Lesson 1 Begin with a Capital! 9 KNOW GOD S WORD The beginning verses of the Bible teach the powerful details of God s amazing work in creation. True science and the Bible agree. Some scientists choose a different opinion and offer several theories for the beginning of the universe. None of them have solid scientific proof. One theory that receives widespread attention is called the Big Bang Theory. Creationists reject this erroneous idea. Accidental evolvement of matter could not possibly result in the intricate plant, animal and human life-forms of today. Children need to discover the truth of the biblical record of creation and build their faith on the premise of a perfect creation. Your teaching can help fortify children against false beliefs early in life. Trust in God s book should be strong so that when opposing theories come along they will reject them without question. When a theory does not state the same thing God s Word states, we must reject the theory. Instill the truth as absolute. Before time began, God dwelt all alone. No heaven, no earth, no angels, no universe, no human beings. There was nothing but God in an eternity past. Then He began time, a segment of eternity. God created the heavens and the earth. He also created angels. There are differences of opinion as to the creation model. Some believe He created a perfect world with no blemish of sin. A period of time elapsed between the first and second verses of Genesis 1. Isaiah 45:18 teaches that the earth was perfect when spoken into existence by the Creator. In the beginning God created clears away the blur of uncertainty left by scientists who reject belief in an omnipotent God. Accepting by faith what God s Word teaches is not contradictory to true science. The Bible has proven trustworthy throughout its history, and the biblical account of creation is completely worthy of our confidence and acceptance. As creation is God starting the sentence with a capital, He also drew the lines in which all nature continues to operate as He designed. Creation speaks to the truth that Jehovah is a God of order, form, beauty and purpose. He created everything for a more noble purpose than its own existence. God prepared the world for a higher being than the birds, fish or beasts of the earth. He created the earth as a habitation for man. The atmosphere, water and dry land provided a habitat for plant life. The creation of animals came after the environment was ready to support such life. Man, made in the image of God, was the final and crowning act of God s creative work. Evidences of God s greatness surround us daily, yet most people have only a limited understanding of the eternal existence of God. Our vague comprehension of His true sovereignty is not extensive enough to appreciate His actual power. We must not segregate true science from the Bible. A child who learns Bible truths but feels it is completely separated from scientific facts will have a handicap. True science and the Bible harmonize. Keep abreast of scientific developments Prepare Your Room q Materials Needed: Cardboard, felt, contrasting felt for FALL letters, Heart Smiles Micro-Mini Stickers, T-pins, felt-tip pen, corn husks, Indian corn, gourds, attendance chart, pumpkins, fall scenery pictures, 5' strip of light blue paper A child s view of the world involves color and action. Bright displays and imaginative involvement stimulate their hunger for learning. The classroom setting should be appropriate to the age of your learners, lively yet efficient. Children like to touch and examine. Innovative ideas energized with color will make the class come alive for third- and fourth-graders. The bulletin board suggested for Unit 1 makes a beautiful seasonal decoration that fits the creation theme. If you prefer, make an oversized flannelboard for the display. Cover a piece of cardboard the size of the bulletin board with felt in your choice of color. Cut letters for FALL from a contrasting color of felt. Cut the designs for the display from felt and add details with a permanent marker. Attach the cardboard to your bulletin board with four sturdy T-pins, one to secure each corner. Learners can arrange the felt pieces of the design to make the display. Letter THE CREATOR paints the beauty of FALL on a banner to add to the wall above or below the felt display. Add corn husks, Indian corn, colorful gourds and pumpkins on a table to set a seasonal mood. Pictures of fall scenery in God s world also add color to emphasize God s dependable world. Calendars, state tourism pictures and magazines are good sources for them. Children s teachers need a collection of nature scenes for each season of the year. Keep them filed to have when needed. Put a 5' strip of light blue paper about 10'' wide on the wall for a background of visual figures during the Bible story. Write words of the Bible Insight Scripture on the board to use as a memorization aid during class time. Attach the attendance chart to the wall with names lettered on it. Have Heart Smiles Micro-Mini Stickers on hand.

10 10 Begin with a Capital! Lesson 1 Vocabulary Words universe the totality of all things that exist create to bring into being from nothing; to cause to exist creation the things created by God; all the world creature anything created, usually a living being of any kind cosmos the system of order and harmony combined in the universe Lesson Set q Materials Needed: newsprint, felt-tip pen Have learners write their names on the board or piece of newsprint. Point out how each name begins with a capital letter. Say: Capital letters are an important part of learning to write. They identify names of people and places. How does every sentence begin? Creation is the capital letter of God s sentence about the meaning of life. God began time with a capital letter. That capital letter was creation. The Bible story teaches about it. and balance them with truth. Create within learners a sense of wonder at the marvels of nature God created. This unit of study will help eight- and nine-year-old children know beyond any doubt that God spoke the universe into existence because He is God. The Bible will become more real and challenge learners to strengthen their relationships with our awesome God as they discover truths about creation. EARLY TIME ACTIVITIES q Materials Needed: Plasti-Tak, fall pictures, pencils, Visual Item 1, stickers Class should be an exciting weekly highlight for you and the learners. Visual stimulation and interaction are both important in the learning experience of a young person. Have preparations finished ahead of time so that you can connect mentally and emotionally with youngsters as they arrive. Provide Plasti-Tak for learners to attach pictures of fall around the attendance chart or other display area you choose. The pictures provide a beauty spot and emphasize the continuing work of God in a dependable world of nature. Provide pictures of fall scenes and invite the first arrivals to make a display of autumn beauty provided by God. If you made the felt board scene for the bulletin board, point it out to the children. Let them arrange the felt pieces to make an attractive display. Attendance Chart Let each member of the group choose his preference from the Heart Smiles Stickers to re c- ord attendance on the chart for this quarter. All About Me! Give out pencils and ask each child to write information on page 2 in the learner s manual during early time. When early time is about to end, invite each one to show you his work. Make a mental note of information or copy the page for your use. Talk about the capital letters children used in their writing. Ask: Why do we use capital letters? Every sentence begins with a capital. Important words like names of people, places or events begin with a capital. God s creation was a capital letter that began the history of mankind and our universe. We will learn about it during lesson time. WORSHIP TIME DEVOTIONAL God Made the Universe, Acts 17:24 q Materials Needed: Bible, newsprint, felt-tip pen Discuss eternal and eternity. Invite learners to share with you how to illustrate eternity. Then draw a circle on the board or piece of newsprint. Print ETERNITY inside it. ETERNITY Beginning of time Genesis 1:1 End of time Revelation 10:6 How does a perfect circle represent eternity? (It has no beginning point and no end; it goes on and on without stopping; it keeps going forever.) Before the beginning of time, there existed a Supreme Being God. He is eternal. He has always been. God chose to interrupt eternity with something called time. (Make a mark across the circle.) In the beginning of time, God created our universe. (Read Acts 17:24.) We have the privilege of worshiping the great God who made Heaven and earth. His power is beyond our understanding. He had no beginning. He was there in eternity before starting the process of time.

11 Lesson 1 Begin with a Capital! 11 Someday, time will end. (Make another mark across the circle.) Time is just a small section of eternity. God s Word teaches us, Revelation 10:6, that time will be no more. It will end. One day will be the last for our universe. Things will change. This little section between these lines is the time in which we live. It is only by accepting God s provisions for eternal life that we can hope to enjoy Heaven with God someday. We do not understand what eternity will be like, but we can trust God with it. Jesus, God s Son, came to earth to live and die as the substitute payment for our sins. When you accept Him as your own Savior, you receive forgiveness of sin and eternal life. Then you will live forever with God in eternity. Those who do not trust Jesus for salvation will live forever in a place of torment called hell. Eternity will be the same never ending but it will be a terrible experience to exist with the devil eternally. Are you ready for eternity? If you want to know more about it, please let me know. Have a brief prayer to praise God for His greatness. BIBLE STORY q Materials Needed: Bible, Visuals , light blue paper (Let learners add figures to a 5' strip of light blue paper about 10'' wide as they find events of creation described in Scripture.) To involve the class in active learning to discover God s great gift of creation and how He gave it, form eight groups to research Genesis 1. One person can be a group. For a class with fewer than eight students, combine some of the Scripture passages to complete the project. Assign each group one of the following passages from Genesis 1: verses 1, 2 verses 3-5 verses 6-8 verses 9-13 verses verses verses 24, 25 verses Say: Read your assigned verses and decide how to dramatize them. You may use sound effects and action to show what it would have been like to see God create all the things He made. Take two minutes to read and think about how you will show the action. Then we will perform Genesis 1. Allow interaction of the learners in each group as they plan how to portray the creation described in their assignment. Noise of this kind is a healthy sign of learning happening. After two minutes, flash the lights off and on to signal everyone to come back to the large group. Read in the beginning God from Genesis 1:1. Then wait for group one to dramatize the rest of verse 1 and verse 2. After the group performs the Scripture verses, compliment them on their creativity with the assignment. Let group two follow with their interpretation of God creating light the first day. Continue with the other groups in proper order through the chapter. Learners will remember much more from actively participating in this way. Ask: How did you feel as you dramatized the creation story in Genesis 1? (Allow learners to share their feelings: it made me think about the greatness of God to only speak and everything was there; it is difficult to imagine the power of God that makes Him able to do such great work.) What kind of order did God use in creation? (Let learners refer to their Bibles again to see the progression of creative work. God prepared the earth for habitation and provided food to sustain life before creating animals and people.) (Have the strip of paper attached to the wall at eye level of seated learners. Give visual figures 1-1 through 1-6 to different learners to attach to the strip in the order of God s creation week. Ahead of time print lettering for the days of creation at the bottom of the strip.) Say: As you put your visual on the picture strip, tell us what God created on that day. (The first child might say, On the first day God said, Let there be light: and there was light. He divided the light from the darkness to make day and night. Ask other learners to follow that pattern for presenting what God made on the different days of creation.) Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four What would you say to someone who says all this happened by chance that the earth and everything came together without God? (I would say God spoke, and things came to be. Everything exists because God created the original in the beginning of time. Things are too complex to have happened by accident. God designed and made everything work just right so that we still have a world today.) RESPONDING TO GOD S WORD What are the first words in the Bible? ( In the beginning God created. ) Do you believe the Bible? Can we trust what the Bible teaches us? We cannot understand the great power God has to create the universe from nothing, but we can believe that God spoke it into existence. The Bible teaches it, and that settles it. We have the wonderful privilege to live in God s amazing world. The more we learn about the awesome design God made for everything, the stronger we believe that it could not have just happened without God. We can trust the biblical account of God s creation work. For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible (Colossians 1:16).

12 12 Begin with a Capital! Lesson 1 Creation was God s capital letter at the beginning of time and our world. His power is great to keep all creation going in an orderly dependable way. BIBLE INSIGHT q Materials Needed: chalkboard, chalk, eraser For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible (Colossians 1:16). Before class, letter the words of Colossians 1:16 on the board. Read the words together now. Then talk about the meaning. To whom does the verse refer as being the Creator? (Colossians 1:10 introduces the Lord Jesus as the subject of this passage of Scripture. He was with God in eternity before creation.) How many things did Jesus create? (All things.) Where are the things He created? (In Heaven, outer space and in earth.) Can we see everything Jesus created? (Some things are visible, and some are invisible.) Name a visible thing God created. What is something that is invisible? (The ozone layer in our atmosphere is high above the earth and protects us from harmful rays of the sun. If it disappeared, the sun would destroy life on earth.) Point to the individual words again as you say the words slowly to associate the meaning just discussed. Erase key words. Say the verse together. Erase more words. Keep repeating and erasing words until the group can say the verse without any help. Encourage individual learners to say the verse. Allow time for learners to work individually on the second page. Encourage using the Bible to search Genesis 1 for any help needed. Check answers when they complete the assignment. After working on the Bible Insight verse earlier, learners may be able to fill in the missing words on the third page without looking at the printed verse. Say the words together two or three times to make sure everyone knows them before writing answers. Provide markers or colored pencils for coloring the design background. Invite volunteers to read paragraphs on the fourth page. The scientific data about God s dependable world proves there was a great God who created it all. His power is so great that He spoke the universe into existence. Make and Take q Materials Needed: Make and Take Lesson 1, pencils, crayons, stickers Learning by doing is the purpose of a take-home lesson reminder children make from projects in this curriculum book. Color the background and add stickers to make a sample before class time to show learners the finished poster for Lesson 1. Saying Good-bye Learner s Manual q Materials Needed: learners manuals, Bibles, pencils Children learn best through active involvement. The learner s manual activities provide an opportunity to participate in the lesson through reading, thinking and doing. The material is not busywork but further learning experiences. Use the personal page All About Me! during Early Time Activities. See the suggestion in that section of the lesson. Give each learner the four page section of the learner s manual for Lesson 1. Invite volunteers to read sections of the Bible story. (Some learners may not want to read aloud; some may not read as well as others. Accept each child with his abilities, or lack of them, and encourage him to do his best. Avoid embarrassing a child who may prefer not to read.) q Materials Needed: take-home papers, children s things Ask: How did our universe come into existence? (God spoke, and it was there.) How could He do that? (Because He has all power.) How could such a complex object as our universe have come into being? (Only God could create the cosmos and make it function so orderly; the Master Designer of the universe planned and set the pattern to continue for all time.) Invite children who have a small pet or special plant to bring it to share next week as you learn about God s creation of plants and animals. Specify that a pet must be in an appropriate container in which it can stay during the time away from home.