Kindergarten & 1 st Grade Week 1, April 2 Feet First Bible Story: Feet First (Jesus Washes the Disciples Feet) John 13:1-17 Bottom Line: I can put others first by serving them. Memory Verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3, NIV Life App: Humility putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated. Children Arrive; Social: (8:45) (10:45) (4:15) (6:15) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. 1. Early Arriver Idea That s Gross! What You Need: Whiteboards, markers With the kids help, make a list of gross foods or foods that make a big mess, such as: spilled salsa, chili with beans, old guacamole, or moldy cheese. Give each kid a whiteboard and some markers. Let kids draw a picture of the worst, grossest food they can think of to clean up. (They can also think of some gross combinations of foods and draw those.) Those are some pretty gross pictures. I wouldn t want to clean up any of that food, and I DEFINITELY wouldn t want to eat it! [Transition] Today in Large Group, we are going to hear about a man who took care of the worst job at a meal, even though He was the most important person. Lead your group to the Large Group area. Story and Worship: (9:00) (11:00) (4:30) (6:30) After large group, gather children in their small groups. Lead them in prayer focusing on The Bottom Line. Groups: (9:35) (11:35) (5:05) (7:05) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. * 1. Humble, Humble, Oops (application activity) What You Need: Humble, Humble, Oops Cards Activity Page, blocks or LEGO s Make sure you have at least one less Not Humble card than the number of kids you have. Shuffle the cards and stack them on the table. Tell kids that the object of the game is to draw Humble cards and avoid Not Humble cards. Have kids take turns choosing a card from the pile. As kids pick cards, read the card and let the kid who chose it decide if it s an example of being humble (putting others first) or not being humble (putting yourself first). If a kid draws a Humble card, let her place her card back in the stack wherever she wants. If a kid draws a Not Humble card, he is out of the game. As kids get out of the game, let them start working on two towers or blocks or LEGOs. One tower can represent the not humble scenarios and the other can represent the humble scenarios. Encourage the kids who are out to be still and quiet; tell them you ll pick the quietest person to put the next LEGO or block on the tower. Play until only one person is left. In these situations, some of the people we heard about made good choices, but some didn t. When we make the humble choice and put others first, we are being like Jesus. [Bottom Line] I can put others first by serving 1
them. When we forget to act in a humble way, we can ask forgiveness for that from our friends and from God and then try again next time. 2. Egg, Egg Verse (memory verse activity) What You Need: Bibles, bin of plastic eggs Find the verse and read it together as a group two or three times. Let each kid choose one egg from the bin. Split kids into three groups, based on the numbers inside of the egg they chose. Assign group one to say the first part of the verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition Assign group two to say the second part of the verse: Or vain conceit. Assign group three to say the third part: Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. You may need to help each group remember their part of the verse. When all three groups have said their portion of the verse two or three times, let kids choose a new egg and mix up the groups. Repeat as time and interest allow. Save the bin and eggs for next week. What does it mean to say Don t do anything out of selfish ambition or vain conceit? (Pause for answers.) What does it mean in humility? (Pause for answers.) What does it mean to Value others more than yourselves? (Pause for answers.) If we follow what God s Word says, we will be more like Jesus. This verse can help us remember that [Bottom Line] I can put others first by serving them. Work on memorizing the verse this week so it can help you remember to do these three things every day. 2
Kindergarten & 1 st Grade Week 2, April 9 Follow the Game Plan Bible Story: Follow the Game Plan (Jesus Praying in the Garden) Matthew 26:36-46 (Supporting: Luke 22:39-46) Bottom Line: I can put others first by letting go of what I want. Memory Verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3, NIV Life App: Humility putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated. Children Arrive; Social: (8:45) (10:45) (4:15) (6:15) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. 1. Early Arriver Idea What You Need: Offering container Collect kids offerings as they arrive. Ask: o What time do you go to bed? o What time do you wake up? o When are you usually the sleepiest during the day? o Have you ever fallen asleep somewhere strange? o Do you ever sleep in the car? Lead your group to the Large Group area. Story and Worship: (9:00) (11:00) (4:30) (6:30) After large group, gather children in their small groups. Lead them in prayer focusing on The Bottom Line. Groups: (9:35) (11:35) (5:05) (7:05) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. * 1. What s That? (application activity / review the Bible story) What You Need: What s That? strips Activity Page, whiteboards, markers Hand out a whiteboards and markers to each kid. Give one Activity Page strip to each kid. Explain that they will be drawing a picture of something that happened in the Bible story. Go around to each kid and whisper/read their sentence to them if they need help reading it. Quietly make sure each kid understands what he needs to draw. Give kids some time draw a picture of their assigned part of the story. When everyone is finished drawing, let each kid show his picture to the group. Ask the other kids to raise their hands and try to guess what s happening in the scene. A lot of things happened in the story we heard today. Jesus knew He was going to suffer and get hurt and be made fun of and get yelled at. All the angels in heaven would have come to save Jesus from dying, but He chose not to call them. Jesus knew that He had to go through with the bad stuff so that we could be saved. In today s story, he showed the disciples that even though they couldn t even stay awake for Him, He was willing to be arrested for them. Jesus gave us the ultimate example that [Bottom Line] I can put others first by letting go of what I want. When we do things for other people, we aren t just being nice; we are being like Jesus. [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about a time someone put your needs ahead of their own.) 3
2. Musical Bibles (memory verse activity) What You Need: Bibles, timer or mobile device Sit together with the group in a circle. Review the verse with the kids by saying it together. Use the phrases from last week (below) to help kids break up the verse into segments and make it easier to memorize. o Do nothing out of selfish ambition o Or vain conceit. o Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. After saying the verse two or three times, set the timer for 30 seconds. Say GO and beginning passing the bible around the circle. When the timer stops, whoever is holding the Bible says one phrase of the verse. You may need to help some kids remember the verse. It is sometimes really hard to do the things this verse asks us to do. Sometimes we just want what we want and we don t care about anything or anyone else. But that attitude does not help us to be more like Jesus. This week, try to remember that [Bottom Line] I can put others first by letting go of what I want. You might find out that putting others first makes you feel even better than getting what you wanted. 4
Kindergarten & 1 st Grade Week 3, April 16 The Comeback Bible Story: The Comeback (Jesus Is Crucified, Buried, and Resurrected) John 18:12 20:23 Bottom Line: I can put others first because Jesus put me first. Memory Verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3, NIV Life App: Humility putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated. Children Arrive; Social: (8:45) (10:45) (4:15) (6:15) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. 1. Early Arriver Idea What You Need: Offering container Collect kids offerings as they arrive. Ask kids about a time they got hurt: o What happened? o Who helped you? o Did you have to get a BAND-AID? A cast? Lead your group to the Large Group area. Story and Worship: (9:00) (11:00) (4:30) (6:30) After large group, gather children in their small groups. Lead them in prayer focusing on The Bottom Line. Groups: (9:35) (11:35) (5:05) (7:05) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. * 1. One Day on the Hill of Calvary (application activity / review the Bible story) What You Need: One Day on the Hill of Calvary Activity Pages, glue sticks, scissors, crayons or colored pencils Give each kid an Activity Page and a pair of scissors. Instruct kids to cut out the various scenes from the story. Provide help as needed and make sure kids don t cut out the strip of blank boxes. (Cut out a set of pictures for yourself to use for the story review.) Give kids a few minutes to color the pictures after they ve been cut out. Hold up the first scene (crown of thorns) and read the caption to the kids. Ask kids to find the first scene in their own pile of pictures and place it over the first blank box in their strip of boxes. Then ask if a volunteer can find the second scene (Jesus on the cross). Instruct kids to all find the second scene and place it over the correct box. Continue with the rest of the pictures. Then let kids glue the scenes onto the strip of boxes in the correct order. KEY: 1. Pilate had a crown of thorns placed on Jesus head. 2. Jesus was hung on a cross and died. 3. Jesus was placed in a tomb with a stone in front of it. 4. Mary found the stone rolled away. 5. Jesus appeared to the disciples. The story we heard today is the most important story in the Bible. It s the reason we are here at church today. When Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, He made it possible for us to go to heaven to live with Him forever. When He died on the cross for us, He showed us that [Bottom Line] I can put others first 5
because Jesus put me first. Easter is the day we celebrate Jesus rising from the dead and showing everyone that He is stronger than anything even death. [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about an Easter tradition you have that helps you remember the sacrifice Jesus made for us.) We should be thankful to Jesus because He went through so much for us. 2. Verse Movements (memory verse activity) What You Need: No supplies needed Review the memory verse (Philippians 2:3) together as a group. Pair kids up, putting a less distractible kid with a kid who tends to zone out. (This will help the kid who gets distracted, by giving him/her a partner to help.) If you have an odd number of kids, pair yourself up with a kid. If the group number is even, use a pair of kids as your puppets while you teach the group the motions/movements for the verse. The motions are based on the NIV translation; adjust as needed if your church uses a different version. o Do nothing out of selfish ambition. (Cross arms horizontally across your body and then draw them apart, like the safe motion in baseball.) o Or vain conceit. (Do the safe motion again and then stand tall with your chest puffed out.) o Rather, in humility. (Bow your head slightly and wave your arm once across the front of your body in a you go first type of motion.) o Value others more than yourselves. (Move yourself behind your partner.) For the last motion, you can say this phrase twice, giving kids a chance to be in each position. As a group, say the verse a few times while doing the motions. Those actions are a great way to remember the verse this week! You can even teach the verse to your mom, dad, aunt, uncle, or brother and sister, and use them as your motions partner! They are also a good reminder to us that it s our actions that matter, not just what we say with our mouths. We need to actually do what this verse is telling us to do be humble and value others more than ourselves. Jesus came to earth to be an example to us of how to live a perfect life. That means that even though He was the most important person who ever lived, He was also the most humble. He put others first in everything He did, including dying on a cross. He showed us that [Bottom Line] I can put others first because Jesus put me first. Remember this week to make sure that your actions show others that you want to put them first. 6
Kindergarten & 1 st Grade Week 4, April 23 Pass It On Bible Story: Pass It On (The Great Commission / Ascension) Matthew 28:16-20 (Supporting: Acts 1:6-11) Bottom Line: I can put others first by doing what Jesus said. Memory Verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3, NIV Life App: Humility putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated. Children Arrive; Social: (8:45) (10:45) (4:15) (6:15) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. 1. Early Arriver Idea What You Need: Offering container Collect kids offerings as they arrive Ask kids what they know about kings, queens, princes, and princesses. What real princes or princesses can they name? What pretend princes or princesses do they know? Lead your group to the Large Group area. Story and Worship: (9:00) (11:00) (4:30) (6:30) After large group, gather children in their small groups. Lead them in prayer focusing on The Bottom Line. Groups: (9:35) (11:35) (5:05) (7:05) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. * 1. A World of Humility (application activity / review the Bible story) What You Need: A World of Humility Activity Pages, crayons, Internet access (optional) Give each kid a copy of the Activity Page. Tell kids that in some other countries, people speak in different languages than we do. Show them the words on the Activity Page and tell them that this is how you say humble in those countries. Type in the foreign words on https://translate.google.com/, if possible, and listen to how they are pronounced. Try to say the words together. Let kids color the map with a different color for each country. The world is filled with all kinds of people that are different from us. People in other parts of the world look different, act different, and speak differently than we do. But Jesus didn t just die for some people or for the people who look and act like we do. Jesus died for everyone and he told us to share His story with the WHOLE world. We can share about Jesus through our actions when we remember that [Bottom Line] I can put others first by doing what Jesus said. God told us to love others and put them first, and He meant everyone in the world. A great way to love others and put them first is by telling them about God s great love for them. [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about a time you shared the gospel with someone or someone shared the gospel with you.) 2. Scoot Along (application activity) What You Need: Towels, masking tape Group kids into pairs. 7
Using the masking tape, make a line on the floor at one end of the room and another one about 15-20 feet away. Have pairs line up together behind the starting line. As it is each pair s turn, have them choose one kid to sit on the towels while the other partner pulls them down to the finish line by holding on to the edge of the towels. On the way back to the start, partners must switch roles. Then let the next pair have a turn with the towel. That looked like it was pretty fun getting pulled around on those towels! Was it more fun to be the one sitting or the one doing the pulling? (Pause.) I think it would be more fun to be pulled than to do all that hard work, but Jesus tells us that we need to be humble sometimes and let others have a chance to go first. When we act in a way that honors God, we will remember that [Bottom Line] I can put others first by doing what Jesus said. As you go through your week, remember that sometimes we need to let others be the ones to go first even if that means we don t get what we want. 8
Kindergarten & 1 st Grade Week 5, April 30 Team Player Bible Story: Team Player (Humility of Jesus) Philippians 2:3-8 Bottom Line: Put others first. Memory Verse: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3, NIV Life App: Humility putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated. Children Arrive; Social: (8:45) (10:45) (4:15) (6:15) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today s story. 1. Early Arriver Idea Boss of Me What You Need: Whiteboards, markers Remind kids about your conversation about bosses and people who are in charge. Hand out the whiteboards and markers and ask kids to draw a picture of a person who is in charge. As they draw, ask them about who and what they re drawing. Ask them about some things their boss would say. Instruct kids to write down something that a boss would say. Suggest they maybe draw a speech bubble on their drawings and write a quote in it. You may need to help younger kids write. People who are in charge can sometimes be bossy and think they are more important than everyone else. [Transition] Today in Large Group, we are going to hear about someone who put himself last, even though He was the boss over everyone. Lead your group to the Large Group area. Story and Worship: (9:00) (11:00) (4:30) (6:30) After large group, gather children in their small groups. Lead them in prayer focusing on The Bottom Line. Groups: (9:35) (11:35) (5:05) (7:05) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions. * 1. On Thin Ice (application activity / review the Bible story) What You Need: On Thin Ice Activity Page, paper plates; two for each kid, masking tape Make a starting line on the floor with masking tape on one end of the room. Approximately 10-15 feet away, make another line for the finish. Give each kid two paper plates. Tell kids to put one plate under each foot and stand at the starting line. Read Philippians 2:3-8 out loud to the group. Ask kids one of the questions from the Activity Page and encourage them to raise their hands to answer. If they answer the question correctly, instruct kids to use the paper plates like ice skates to slide forward based on the number of steps they earned by answering the question correctly. You may need to accept answers that are close, but not quite exact, for younger kids. Continue asking questions until someone reaches the finish line. (Questions 8 and 9 have multiple answers, so you can ask those a few times and instruct kids to answer in a way that hasn t already been answered.) Try to call on a variety of kids throughout the game. If you run out of questions, repeat questions starting from the top of the list. 9
Today s story told us that we should put others ahead of ourselves. Jesus showed us many examples of times He put others first. We can put others first in our own lives by keeping an eye out all week for ways to [Bottom Line] put others first. We can put others first at home, at church, or at school this week it s just a matter of thinking about how we can do what other people need us to do rather than what we want to do. [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about a time when someone put you first.) Putting others first helps us to be more like Jesus. 2. From a Whisper to a Shout (memory verse activity) What You Need: Bibles Look up the verse and say it together. Then, repeat the verse as a group, but this time, instruct kids to shout the words nothing, selfish, value, and others. The third time you say it together, ask kids to whisper the words nothing, selfish, value, and others. The fourth time, instruct kids to clap instead of saying nothing, selfish, value, and others. The fifth time, lead them in stomping their feet instead of saying nothing, selfish, value, and others. If time and interest allow, let kids think up their own actions to do in place of the key words. You guys have done a great job learning the memory verse this month! When we think about this verse, we should think about these important ideas don t be proud; be humble. Being humble means we [Bottom Line] put others first. What are some ways you have put others first this month? (Pause for answers) Those are some really great examples of putting others first. Let s remember to keep up the good work and keep putting others first like Jesus did! 10