4 th /5 th Grade Our Father Bible Verse You are God s children, and you will be given what he has promised. (Galatians 4:7) Teacher Enrichment This lesson is the second in the Teach Us to Pray series which emphasizes the practice of prayer using The Lord s Prayer. Each week will examine a stanza of The Lord s Prayer, what it tells us about God and how it directs our prayer life. Today s lesson explores Our Father. When we begin The Lord s Prayer with the words Our Father we are defining our relationship with God. We are acknowledging God s fatherly love for and unconditional acceptance of us as His children. We are acknowledging that God created us and that He knows what is best for our lives. We are acknowledging that God wants a close and continuing relationship with us just as a father does. Children who know the love of an earthly father can easily comprehend God as their loving Father. For children who do not have a healthy relationship with a father, it can be harder to understand. This lesson will explain that while earthly fathers are human and sometimes make mistakes, God is a perfect father who always listens to us and loves us unconditionally. Just as we strive to tell our earthly fathers how much we love them and are thankful for having them in our lives, we should tell God the same about Him when we pray. As you teach this lesson, be mindful of children who may not have a traditional father in their home. Use inclusive language that considers all father figures grandparents, uncles, step-parents, etc. Be particularly sensitive to children whose father may have passed away. Before Class Begins Place the Sign In sheet and a pen where parents can see it upon arrival.
Place the Joy & Concern cards, Time & Talent cards and pens where students can see them upon arrival. Check that you have supplies for this lesson: Arrival Activity, Our Father Word Search 1 per child Index cards 1 per child Clothes pins 1 per child Our Father Prayer Journal pages 1 set per child Construction paper, markers, crayons Place an arrival activity at each place on the table. Welcome SUPPLIES: Sign In sheet, Joy & Concern cards, Time & Talent cards, Attendance chart, stickers, pens, Our Father Word Search Greet each child individually as they arrive. Introduce yourself by name. Help children find or add their name on the attendance chart. Provide each child with a sticker to place in today s column on the attendance chart. Encourage children to complete a Joy or Concern card if they have a particular joy or concern they would like to express. Collect completed Joy & Concern cards. Encourage children to complete a Time or Talent offering card if they gave their time to God or used their talents to serve God or others during the previous week. Children should keep their own completed Time and Talent cards. If children bring monetary offering, they should keep it with them. Direct children to complete the Our Father Word Search. Encourage conversation among the children and with you! Get to know the children in your classroom by asking about their week including school, activities and families. Introduce new children to each other and encourage friendships. Children s Worship SUPPLIES: Sign In sheet, Joy & Concern cards, Time & Talent cards Arrive at Ruth Hall at 9:20 or 11:05.
Bring the Sign In sheet and completed Joy & Concern cards to Ruth Hall. Hand the Joy & Concern cards to the Children s Worship leader as you arrive. Have children bring their completed Time & Talent cards and any monetary offering. If additional children arrive while in Ruth Hall, have parents complete the Sign In sheet and remind parents that pickup is in Room 110. Encourage children to participate in Children s Worship and provide re-direction if necessary. Assist the Children s Worship leader as needed. At the conclusion of Children s Worship, have children line up and return to Room 110. The Lesson SUPPLIES: Index cards, clothes pins, Our Father Prayer Journal pages, construction paper, markers, crayons God s Love Sticks As you arrive back in the classroom, have the children remain standing and give each child an index card. Tell them to put the index card on their shoulder and hold it there with their hand. SAY: Pretend this card is like a really good friend. They sit on our shoulder and look out for us, they stick with us. But what happens if we aren t holding them there? Have the children remove their hands from the index card and balance the card on their shoulder. SAY: Still there, but maybe a little wobbly. What if we take three big steps forward? Uh oh! All of the children should lose their index cards. Give each child a clothes pin and have them clip the index card to the shoulder of their shirt. SAY: God s love, which is a lot like your parents love, doesn t fall away at the first sign of trouble.
Tell children not to touch the clothes pin or index card. Have them jiggle themselves around and try to get rid of God s love. Give them a chance to wiggle and jiggle. Some will be able to dislodge the clothes pin, though most will not. SAY: It s a lot harder to get rid of the love of God in your life. People give up on us sometimes and go find new friends, and that hurts. But God s love is like a parents love. It stays! Collect clothes pins and index cards. Have children take seats at the tables. Our Father Prayer Journal Pages SAY: In Children s Worship today everyone gave examples of what a father is like and we made a big list. But now I want you to think specifically about God as your Father. A few weeks ago we made prayer journals during Children s Worship. I m going to give you pages you can add to those prayer journals. These pages have prompts for writing about God as your Father. Give each child a set of Our Father Prayer Journal Pages. Allow a few minutes for the children to complete the pages independently. Encourage children to write multiple examples on each page. If any children did not make a Prayer Journal during Fall Kickoff, provide them with one from the box of extras located in the Sunday School cabinet in your classroom. SAY: You can add these pages to your Prayer Journals and use these notes when you pray. Father s Day Cards ASK: When Father s Day comes around, we like to tell our fathers how much we love them and how thankful we are for them. Sometimes we give them cards. What do those cards usually say? Allow children to provide answers e.g. Thank you Dad, why Dad is great, I love you SAY: A prayer can be just like those Father s Day cards. When we pray, we can praise God. We can tell Him how wonderful He is and state all the great qualities He has as our Father. But we shouldn t wait until Father s Day to give God our card. We should say prayers of praise all the time! To help you think of some prayers of praise, we are
going to make Father s Day cards for God. Looking at your Prayer Journal pages for ideas, create a card praising God, Our Father. Give each child a piece of construction paper. Provide markers and crayons for the group. While the children are creating their cards, encourage them to talk about what they are writing. Tips for the Discussion Ask which qualities of God they most appreciate. Which make them happiest? Which are unique to God alone? If a child is writing generic statements such as Thank you or You re great, encourage them to think of specific reasons to praise God. If a child is stuck, have other children help generate ideas. If a child seems reluctant to share, encourage them, but never force an answer. Keep in mind that fathers may be a sensitive topic for some children. Closing Lead the children in a closing prayer. You may say your own prayer, ask one of the children to say a prayer or use the one below. God, Thank you for listening to us when we pray. Thank you for loving us and taking care of us. You are the perfect Father. We love you and praise you! Amen If time remains before parents arrive, encourage children to return to their Our Father Word Search if they did not complete it. Also encourage conversation between children and with you. This is another opportunity to build relationships with the children in your classroom!
Our Father Prayer Journal Pages God, you are the #1 Father. Here s why: Thank you, Father, for loving me. Here s something I m thankful for: Father God, you re a good Father. This is something great you ve done: