1 Christmas Eve Basic Truth: Jesus wants to be my friend forever. Key Question: Why is Jesus special? Bottom Line: Jesus is God s Son. Social (3:15, 4:30, 5:45, 7:00) 3:13 & 5:45 Story Sequence 4:30 & 7:00 Color Code Bible (3:25, 4:40, 5:55, 7:10) All Service Times Bible Presentation in the Sandbox Journaling (3:45, 5:00, 6:15, 7:30) All Service Times Small Group Time Prayer Groups (4:00, 4:15, 6:30, 7:45) 3:13 & 5:45 Birthday Cake Stack 4:30 & 7:00 Christmas Coloring Book All Service Times Dismiss Parent CUE (4:15, 5:30, 6:45, 8:00)
2 Christmas Eve Basic Truth: Jesus wants to be my friend forever. Key Question: Why is Jesus special? Bottom Line: Jesus is God s Son. Social (Introductory Activities, 10 minutes) Let one teacher lead activities in different areas of the room while another teacher greets parents and kids at the door. 3:13 & 5:45 Story Sequence What You Need: December Bible Story Pictures Activity Page, What You Do: Before the Activity: Copy the December Bible Story Pictures Activity Page onto the cardstock (one set of pictures per group) and cut along the dotted lines. During the Activity: Show the children the picture cards from this month. Shuffle the cards and work together to put them in order as you review this month s Bible Truths. What You Say: During the Activity: All month long, we ve been learning about how God sent the most special gift Jesus to us! I have these pictures to review this month s Bible stories. (Hold up cards.) Do you think we could work together to put them in order? Let s give it a try! After the Activity: Great job, everyone! (Point to each picture as you talk about them.) The angel appeared to Mary to tell her she would have a baby. Was she scared at first? (Pause.) Yes! But then she knew that Jesus was the best gift ever! Then Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem, right before Jesus was to be born. But they couldn t find a place to stay. Finally an innkeeper let them stay in his stable and right there, with the animals and all, Jesus was born! That same night, some shepherds were out in the field watching their sheep just like they always did. Then suddenly an angel appeared with a special message! Jesus was here! The shepherds left their sheep behind and ran to find this special baby the best gift ever! I m so thankful for Jesus. Thank You, God, for sending Jesus to us!
3 4:30 & 7:00 Color Code What You Need: No supplies needed What You Do: Before the Activity: Have the children stand in front of you. During the Activity: Call out the children in categories according to their outfits and have that group of children do a movement. For example: Everyone in red shoes jump two times. Everyone in green pants/skirts walk and touch the back wall. After the Activity: Make sure you call out a category that each child fits into. What You Say: Before the Activity: I love seeing all of the Christmas outfits here today! It s fun to get dressed up sometimes! During the Activity: I see so many different kinds of Christmas outfits. If you have on red tops, jump up high TWO times! (Pause.) Great job! Now if you are wearing shiny black shoes, walk fast and touch that wall. (Point.) Awesome! If you have a tie or a bow on, then touch your toes. (Pause.) Nice job! After the Activity: Great job! It s so much fun to come to church on Christmas Eve to celebrate Jesus birthday especially in our pajamas! Let s get ready to hear the entire History of Christms in Large Group today! Bible (Large Group, 20 minutes) After children have participated in Social, gather them for a large group time that includes interactive worship, introductory sketch and Bible Truth. Place your We are in The Sandbox sign on the door as you leave. Travel to the Sandbox.
4 Christmas Eve Basic Truth: Jesus wants to be my friend forever. Key Question: Why is Jesus special? Bottom Line: Jesus is God s Son. Journaling (Small Groups, 15 minutes) Journaling is designed to help preschoolers understand how the Bottom Line applies to them. They ll discuss real-life experiences and share prayer requests. Give each child a cup of Chex cereal to snack on while you take them through the following exercise. What you Need: Paperclip Memory Verse Card in your Bible at John 3:16. Journal and a fun-shaped pen. Reward stamps. SMALL GROUP LEADER (SGL): I can t think of a better way to begin small group time than with telling Jesus happy birthday, even if it is tomorrow. When I count to three, I want all of us to say, Happy birthday, Jesus! Ready? One, two, three! CHILDREN and SGL: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JESUS! SGL: Yay for Christmas! Yay for Jesus birthday! Tomorrow is the BIG day! The day we ve been waiting for! The day when we celebrate how special Jesus is! And why is Jesus special? CHILDREN and SGL: [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son! SGL: YES! [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son! And that s what Christmas is all about. The events of Christmas are special because Jesus is special. One more time: Why is Jesus special? CHILDREN and SGL: [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son! (Open Bible to memory verse card.) SGL: Okay, who wants to try and say our Bible verse for a sticker/hand stamp? (Pause for response.) Let s say it together one time with the motions and then anyone who wants to try and say it by yourself will get one of my stickers/hand stamps. Sound good? Here we go! (Lay Bible down.)
5 CHILDREN and SGL: CHILDREN and SGL: God (point up) loved (hug yourself) the world (raise arms overhead to form a circle) so much (stretch arms out as far as possible) that he gave (place hands together with palms up in front as if offering something) his only (point up) Son (hold arms as if cradling and rocking a baby), John 3:16. (Hold hands open like a book.) (Give each child the opportunity to say the verse on his own. Have your hand stamp ready to give when they say it.) SGL: I am so proud of you! Now you can teach that verse to your family and friends! And don t forget to tell them what the good news is. The good news is [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son and He wants to be your friend forever. Who wants to be your friend forever? CHILDREN and SGL: [Basic Truth] Jesus wants to be my friend forever! (Open prayer journal and hold your fun pen.) SGL: You got it! Now come sit with me because it s time to write in our prayer journal. Today we re going to do something really special since Jesus is special and tomorrow is His birthday. See these birthday stickers? (Hold up stickers.) When I say your name, you get to pick a birthday sticker and put it beside where I write your name in our journal. After you put your sticker in our journal, I want you to say, Happy birthday, Jesus, and then sit down. (Say each child s name as you write it in the journal. Let them pick a sticker and put it by their name. Prompt them to say, Happy birthday, Jesus after they put their sticker by their name.) SGL: I love this! Look what we made! It s like a birthday card for Jesus, from all of us! I ll use it when we talk to God, but before I do, would anyone else like to talk to God? (Give each child who wants to pray the opportunity to do so.) SGL: Now I will pray. Prayer SGL: Merry Christmas Eve, God! Wow! What a special time of year! Thank You for a church that helps us celebrate Your Son, Jesus. Thank You for all of my friends who came today, even if it is a Monday. (Name all the children) and I all want to wish Jesus the happiest birthday and tell Him thank You for wanting to be our friend forever. Thank You for sending Your Son so long ago, God. He is the best gift ever! We love You. In Jesus name, amen.
6 Christmas Eve Basic Truth: Jesus wants to be my friend forever. Key Question: Why is Jesus special? Bottom Line: Jesus is God s Son. Groups (Application Activities, 15 minutes) These activities are designed to help preschoolers understand and remember today s Bible Truth and Bottom Line. 3:13 & 5:45 Birthday Cake Stack What You Need: Several boxes of varying sizes and widths, paint or solid wrapping paper, crepe paper, tape, dot stickers, crayons, and pom-poms or other craft items What You Do: Before the Activity: During the Activity: Gather the children around the cake with the materials provided to decorate the cake. They can decorate each layer with different items. For instance, they could tape strips of crepe paper along the sides to mimic icing or create a garland pattern across the side of the cake with the dot stickers, etc. Encourage the children to be creative but careful with the items provided. Once finished, gather the children around the decorated cake to sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. What You Say: During the Activity: What do these boxes look like? (Pause for responses.) Right now they might look like a tower, but I want us to decorate them to look like a birthday cake. I have lots of different things you can use to decorate our cake. Let s decorate! After the Activity: This cake is too pretty to eat! Well, I guess that wouldn t be a good idea anyway. Let s all gather around the cake. Whose birthday are we celebrating? (Pause for responses.) Jesus! Let s sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. (Sing Happy Birthday to Jesus.) Beautiful singing, friends. I love Christmas because Christmas is about the best gift ever: Jesus. Why is Jesus special? [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son. Happy birthday, Jesus!
7 4:30 & 7:00 Christmas Coloring Book What You Need: Printed coloring booklets, crayons, stickers, standard size stapler, staples What You Do: Before the Activity: Place the crayons and sticker in the center of the tables. During the Activity: Pass out a set of coloring book pages and book cover to each child. Talk about the pictures to review this month s Bible Truths as they color. Then, show them how to fold their cover in half and write their name on the blank line on the front cover. After making sure each child s pictures are in order, go around the table and help them fold their covers over and place the coloring book pages inside. Staple the books along the left edge to secure. What You Say: During the Activity: Today we re going to create a coloring book to help us remember everything we ve learned this month! It s been SO fun to talk about how God sent us the BEST GIFT EVER His Son, Jesus! I want you to color these four pages. Let s talk about each page as you color. (Hold up the picture of the angel and Mary.) Who are the people in this picture and what is happening? (Pause.) Yes! It s the angel and Mary. The angel had a special message for Mary. She was going to have a baby! And not just any baby, it was the best gift ever, Jesus! Jesus was special because He was God s Son! (Hold up the picture of Jesus in a stable.) Oh, I bet you know who this is! Yes! It s baby Jesus! Where was he born? (Pause.) That s right! In a stable. The most special gift ever was born in a stable. God sent Jesus to us that first Christmas! (Hold up the picture of the shepherds.) What do shepherds have to do with the birth of Jesus? (Pause.) That s right! An angel first told the shepherds the news of Jesus birth and they ran to see him right away. They knew this baby was a special gift, God s only Son. (Hold up the picture of the Happy Birthday Jesus! cake.) And tomorrow we celebrate the birth of Jesus! Happy birthday, Jesus! I m SO glad God sent this special gift to us His only Son. I love Christmas and everything that it means. Happy birthday, Jesus!
8 After the Activity: What an awesome month we ve had learning about Jesus the best gift ever! I want you to take your coloring books home to tell your friends and family about how Jesus was born. This will help you remember all the events that led up to His birth. Jesus is the most special gift we will ever receive. I m so glad God chose to send His only Son to us on Christmas. Now, one more time: Why is Jesus special? [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son! Yes! Jesus IS special because [Bottom Line] Jesus is God s Son. Great job, everyone. I hope you have a great holiday with your family. Merry Christmas Eve! All Service Times Get Ready to Dismiss
December Bible Story Pictures Color Story Sequence December Week 4 Copy on white cardstock and cut along the dotted lines. One set per group. CURRICULUM FOR 3- to 5- YEAR OLDS 2016 The rethink Group. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com
Jesus is Born in a Stable Luke 2:1-7 Shepherds Luke 2:6-18 Happy Birthday Jesus! The Angel and Mary Luke 1:26-33, 38, 46 Coloring Book Pages Christmas Coloring Book December Week 4 Copy on white copy paper and cut along dotted line. Fold along solid lines. One of page per child. CURRICULUM FOR 3- to 5- YEAR OLDS 2016 The rethink Group. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com
The Christmas Story By The Christmas Story By Coloring Book Cover Christmas Coloring Book December Week 4 Copy on colored cardstock and cut along dotted lines. Fold along solid line. One half page (cover) per child. CURRICULUM FOR 3- to 5- YEAR OLDS 2016 The rethink Group. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com
DECEMBER 2018 DECEMBER 2018 MEMORY VERSE God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son. JOHN 3:16, GNT MEMORY VERSE God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son. JOHN 3:16, GNT DECEMBER 2018 DECEMBER 2018 MEMORY VERSE God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son. JOHN 3:16, GNT MEMORY VERSE God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son. JOHN 3:16, GNT
God loved (Hug yourself) the world (Raise arms overhead to form a circle) so much (Stretch arms out as far as possible) that He gave (Place hands together with palms up in front as if offering something) His only Son. (Hold arms as if cradling and rocking a baby) John 3:16 (Hold hands open like a book) God loved (Hug yourself) the world (Raise arms overhead to form a circle) so much (Stretch arms out as far as possible) that He gave (Place hands together with palms up in front as if offering something) His only Son. (Hold arms as if cradling and rocking a baby) John 3:16 (Hold hands open like a book) 2018 Orange. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com 2018 Orange. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com God loved (Hug yourself) the world (Raise arms overhead to form a circle) so much (Stretch arms out as far as possible) that He gave (Place hands together with palms up in front as if offering something) His only Son. (Hold arms as if cradling and rocking a baby) John 3:16 (Hold hands open like a book) God loved (Hug yourself) the world (Raise arms overhead to form a circle) so much (Stretch arms out as far as possible) that He gave (Place hands together with palms up in front as if offering something) His only Son. (Hold arms as if cradling and rocking a baby) John 3:16 (Hold hands open like a book) 2018 Orange. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com 2018 Orange. All rights reserved. www.thinkorange.com