Christmas Luke 2:8 20 Week 1 REMEMBER VERSE For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son. John 3:16 Ponder Point: Jesus is Born SERVICE SCHEDULE Opening Activity Stations 20 25 minutes Explore Welcome & Engage 5 10 minutes Discover Large Group 15 20 minutes Small Group Respond Review/Bless/Connect 20 25 minutes While the shepherds were watching their sheep at night, the sky lit up and an angel of the Lord appeared to them. The shepherds were terrified. The angel told them not to be afraid because he brought good news. The Savior had been born. The shepherds were amazed and went to see the baby Jesus for themselves. After the shepherds had seen Him, they told everyone what they had seen. The Promise they had been waiting for was finally here. 1
Lesson Overview: Luke 2:8-20 Experience Time Summary Supplies/Prepare 10 15 min. EXPLORE Welcome & Engage Exploration stations create space intended to transition children to lead them from the external world into an environment where they can commune with God, just as they are with all that they are. Activity 1: Nativity Scene Nativity Scene of your choice DISCOVER Large Group RESPOND: Review/ Bless/Connect 20 25 min. 15 20 min. Facilitate interactive games, songs, and large muscle activities, allowing children to participate in discovering God s Word. Storytelling, discussion and interaction with others, and a time to respond to God in worship through creative expression. Bless the children that they may experience God fully and be a blessing to others. Worship songs The Big God Story (Optional) Hamilton the Hedgehog (Optional prop: Sheep) Mail Time/Remember Verse Large muscle activity Snack/Big God Story Review/Blessing Connect: Activity 1: Baby Jesus Ornament small paper plate baby Jesus template hole punch string or pipe cleaner Bible verse label Hamilton s Box of Fun This is a recurring activity that can be utilized at the end of the service until parents arrive for pick up. Activity 2: Christmas ball toss foam balls containers of various sizes Christmas wrapping paper Hamilton s Box of Fun: Family First Parent Resource 2
Activity Stations: 20-25 min. Clean up: A CD with clean up music will be played. At this time, please encourage and assist the kids with clean up. Once the kids are finished, please guide them to their color blanket or Explore table. Explore: 5-10 min. Activity 1: Nativity Scene Nativity Scene of your choice ENGAGE Kids love to play with Nativity Scenes. This is a great opportunity to interact with your kids about the Christmas Story. Help them talk about the story, characters, how Christmas makes them feel, the best part, Jesus is Born! Move to Large Group: Be sure to model for the kid s large group behavior. Please participate in all aspects of today s large group time Large Group Discover: 15-20 min. Children move into a large group setting and participate in reciting God s Word, corporate worship, and large muscle activities. Ponder Point Jesus Is Born Week 1 Hi, kids! Welcome! I am so excited to be here with you today. Let s all celebrate God by singing and dancing together! (Play the wiggles song or another intro song as kids join you in large group.) Wow! That was great! Now, everyone, take a seat Let s go over today s rules so we can have fun and be safe as we celebrate God! Be kind and be safe! Here is our special line, the teacher stays on this side of the line and the kids stay on that side of the line. Jesus made our hands to be kind to our friends, show me your hands (have kids wave their hands). Remember we can use our hands to clap and have fun, but never to hit or hurt our friends. Show me your feet (have kids stomp their feet). We can use our feet to dance and have fun, but we never use our 3
December 19-20, 2015 feet to kick or hurt our friends or our church. Another way we can be kind is when teacher is speaking, you are listening. Show me your ears (have kids wiggle their ears). We can listen with our ears and zip our lips when I m talking. Add any other rules that specifically work for your room. Preschoolers do better when they know their expectations. Do you know who else likes to be a part of The Big God Story? That s right! Hamilton the Hedgehog! Shall we call him and ask him to join us? (The children will answer.) On the count of three, let s call him together. Are you ready? One, two, three. Hamilton, where are you? (Encourage kids to call for Hamilton.) Hmm I wonder what he is doing. Let s try again. Hamilton, where are you? ( walk the puppet out of his house.) Hamilton s Prop (Optional): Sheep Hi, Hamilton! Hamilton, what do you have? (Have Hamilton whisper in the Storyteller s ear.) Interact with Hamilton about the item brought with him today (sheep). Use Hamilton to transition to Mail Time. He can help you get the mail, or he could choose a volunteer to help retrieve the mail. Mail Time: Each week children will receive mail in the mailbox placed in the large group area of your classroom. Written on the mail is the month s Remember Verse from the Bible. It s important for children to associate the message written on the mail as words from the Bible, so be sure to have a Bible visible for reference. Remember Verse Motions For God: Point up to God so loved: hug yourself the world then spread arms out in front of yourself He gave his only Son: rock a baby John 3:16 Remember Verse Bible (your personal or a children s Bible) Mailbox SET UP Place today s Remember Verse inside of the mailbox. You can also use Hamilton to retrieve your mail for the morning. ENGAGE Use this time to get excited and enthusiastic about sharing God s Word with your group of kids. Make a big deal out of going to the mailbox to open the mail and retrieve the Remember Verse. Make sure to tell the kids that this Remember Verse comes from the Bible. Realize children may not totally understand the meaning of this scripture, but they are beginning the practice of hiding God s Word in their hearts. Now, lead the large group in reciting the Remember Verse several times together using a variety of engaging methods (motions, high voice, low voice, squeaky voice). You might want to ask your group to stand up. Using the hand motions (above in the text box), go over the verse two or three times with the kids. Get excited! Treat this as a celebration an exciting time of introducing your children to God s Word. Applaud them for a job well done! 4
The Big God Story (Optional): The following supplies will be provided if your class will be doing a large group story time. Jesus Is Born Week 1 Luke 2:8-20 Beginner Bible Felt Board and story pieces I think we are ready to ask God to help us learn today. (Lead the kids in a Prayer of Release as you prepare to hear God s Word.) Prayer of Release A Prayer of Release is a prayer asking God to remove any distractions that would get in the way of hearing from and responding to Him. As we pray, we dedicate this time to the Lord and quiet ourselves, so that we might hear specifically from Him. In this way, we are consciously laying aside our worries, successes, and requests for the moment. We ask to be filled with knowledge and understanding from Him, giving God His rightful role as teacher. Give the kids a few seconds, as it feels appropriate, of silence. (A few seconds of quiet can also help settle your group.) Mary and Joseph were going to have a baby boy. (Stable felt piece on board.) His name is Jesus. Jesus is God s Son. He is the special Promise that God had been telling His people about for a long time. Well, the night Jesus was born, there were lots and lots of beautiful stars in the sky. (Star felt piece on board.) And there were shepherds out in the fields taking care of their sheep. (Shepherd felt piece on board.) Friends, do you know what a shepherd is? A shepherd is someone who takes care of sheep. (Sheep felt piece on board.) Shepherds make sure that the sheep stay safe and that they get enough food to eat. Well, the night Jesus was born, there were shepherds watching their sheep eat grass. All of a sudden, there was a big light in the sky. It was very, very bright! The shepherds looked up and saw an angel. (Angel felt piece on board.) The shepherds were so scared. The angel of the Lord said, Do not be afraid! I bring you good news of great joy. It is for all the people! Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you. He is Jesus Christ, the Lord. The shepherds were not afraid anymore; they were so happy. The Promise they had been waiting for had come! Jesus was born. The angel told the shepherds to go and see the baby Jesus. They were so excited. But where could they find Jesus? The angel told them to look for a baby wrapped up in cloths and lying in a manger. A manger is a box where you can put food for the animals to eat. (Manger felt piece on board near stable.) Then the shepherds looked up in the sky, and it was filled with beautiful angels. They were singing a praise song to God because they were also glad that Jesus was born! (Multiple angels felt piece on board.) When the angels left, the shepherds went out to look for the baby Jesus. They did just what the angels told them to do and guess what! They found Him. He was lying in a manger wrapped in cloths, just like the angels said. (Baby Jesus felt piece on board.) Mary and Joseph were there too. (Mary and Joseph felt piece on board.) The shepherds were so excited to see baby Jesus. They went and told everyone: Jesus is born! Jesus is here! They wanted to tell everyone the good news! People were so happy. God s special Promise had finally come. Jesus was born! 5
Worship Songs: Choose one or two worship songs to sing during large group. Large Muscle Activity: Choose a large muscle activity for your classroom. Some hints for introducing the large group activity: Have everyone sit down and get ready to listen to the rules of the activity. (Try whispering as you sit down to help kids concentrate.) Before you have kids start the activity, explain and model what the kids are to do for the activity. Show the item you will be using (scarves, bean bags, etc.) Keep kids sitting while you pass out item, as they get the item (scarf, etc.) they can stand up. Start activity. When you are finished with the activity, have kids sit down again and collect items. (This will help with kids crowding and running into each other.) Following are suggestions for large group activities either in your classroom or in a large group programming area. Scarves: Give each child a scarf and let them wave it to the music or a game of Slow and Fast (found on Rhythms on Parade by Hap Palmer). A few other fun songs from Hap Palmer: Rock and Roll Freeze Dance, Jack in the Box (kids pretend to be a different animal as they jump out of the jack in the box.) Paint the walls: Preschoolers love to paint! Give kids a paintbrush and some imaginary paint and they love to paint or clean the walls. Use sponge or large paint brushes, use a couple of buckets (no water or paint necessary) and tell the kids that they can paint or clean the walls anywhere they want to in the large group area. Parachute: A variety of items can go on your parachute (often to match your curriculum). Dismiss the kids to their groups/rooms for Small Group Respond. 6
Small Group Respond: 20-25 min. Snack/Bible Story Review Questions (per small group) The Big God Story Review Pages Hand Sanitizer, Graham crackers Settle your kids back on the small group blanket; use hand sanitizer and pass out crackers. Say a prayer of thanks before eating. Read the Review Pages provided in your small group bin. Discuss the following questions with the children. Questions are meant to prompt further conversation about what children have been experiencing. They also invite children to ponder this truth and dwell with the wonder of God. While the shepherds were watching their sheep at night, the sky lit up and an angel of the Lord appeared to them. The shepherds were terrified. The angel told them not to be afraid because he brought good news. The Savior had been born. The shepherds were amazed and went and to see the baby Jesus for themselves. After the shepherds had seen Him, they told everyone what they had seen. The Promise they had been waiting for was finally here. What special baby was born in this story? Who were in the fields watching their sheep when a big light appeared in the sky? What did the shepherds see when they looked at the light, a car or an angel? Did the shepherds keep quiet about what they saw or did they want to tell everyone the good news? Who can me tell the good news that Jesus is born? Bless: Open a Bible and use the provided Blessing Card: Children, let us give glory to God for the special gift He gave us, Jesus. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. Luke 2:14 When Reviewing the Story: While using the Review pages, discuss what happened in the story with your group. Look at the pages and point out a few key sentences. Get your kids talking, too! Ask questions while you look at the pictures. 7
Connect: December 19-20, 2015 Activity 1: Baby Jesus Ornament small paper plate baby Jesus template hole punch string or pipe cleaner Bible verse label PREPARE Cut paper plates in half (one half for each child). Punch hole in paper plate. ENGAGE We are going to wrap a special gift. What gift did God give to us? Right, baby Jesus!! Give each child a baby Jesus face and glue it in the middle (top) of the paper plate (see sample). Next, help them fold over the ends of the paper plate to so it wraps like a blanket and add the sticker to seal the plate together. They can also color the paper plate. Add the string or pipe cleaner to hang the ornament. Activity 2: Christmas Ball Toss foam balls containers of various sizes Christmas wrapping paper PREPARE Wrap various containers in Christmas wrapping paper. ENGAGE Encourage the kids to take turns trying to toss the balls into the containers from different distances. Each time a child hits the target, say together, Merry Christmas. Ongoing Connect Option Hamilton s Box of Fun Hamilton s Box of Fun This is a fun resource to encourage the kids to interact with each other by sharing toys and using their imagination with different objects. This activity can be utilized at the end of the service until parents arrive for pick up. Please return these special activities to Hamilton s Box when you are finished for the day. coloring page (this will match the day s Bible story) miscellaneous activities special books (open the flap books, or music books) 8
SET UP Put a variety of fun objects/toys in the box. Hide the box or basket somewhere in the room. December 19-20, 2015 Please do not allow kids to return to playing with ALL of the toys. As parents arrive to pick up their children, be sure to greet each one and share an encouraging word about your day. The adult in the younger preschool room must match security tags. Our policy is NO TAG NO KID! If someone has lost their tag, they need to go to Guest Central to get issued a new tag. No exceptions! Family First Look Cards Be sure to hand out this week s Family First Look to the parents as they pick up their child. This resource will help parents review this week s lesson with their child and look ahead to next week s lesson. It also has this week s Blessing and the current Remember Verse their kids are learning. Remember Verse Motions For God: Point up to God so loved: hug yourself the world then spread arms out in front of yourself He gave his only Son: rock a baby John 3:16 9