Week 5 TWOs & PK - JULY 29/30th (23.3) Jesus Walked On Water Bible Passage: Matthew 14:22-33 Main Point: Jesus walked on water! He performed miracles to show us He is God s Son. TWOs Memory Verse:...Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God John 20:31 Preschool Memory Verse:...so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God... John 20:31 Leader Preparation Your role as a leader in the classroom is the most important role in the Loop as you are the direct connection to the whole reason we gather - to share the love of Christ with kids at Park! If you are not prepared to lead well in your service, then that affects the experience of the children in your care. To help prepare for this lesson, use the following study guide to set the context for this week s lesson. And don t forget to pray before, during, and after! Jesus had just fed more than 5,000 people on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. After sending away the people and directing His disciples to go back across the sea, Jesus went to a mountain to pray. It was late, and He sought to be alone with His Father. Jesus was preparing to fulfill His Father s plan. Before long, He would die on the cross and rescue people from their sin. While Jesus prayed, the disciples struggled to cross the sea. A storm came and tossed their boat up and down. They didn t make any progress against the waves. Then, in the early morning hours, they saw a figure walking toward them on the water. They thought it was a ghost, but it was Jesus! Peter asked Jesus for permission to come out on the water, and Jesus called to him. Peter walked on the water too until he remembered the storm. Peter took his eyes off of Jesus and he began to sink. Peter cried out to Jesus, Save me! Jesus took Peter by the hand and got in the boat. The wind and waves calmed. Though Peter had doubted, the disciples worshiped Jesus. Clearly He was no ordinary man; this was the Son of God the promised Messiah! Jesus proved that He can be trusted. His miracles, teaching, death, and resurrection showed that He is who He says He is. As you teach preschoolers, encourage them to look to Jesus in faith every day. We can seek Him for our salvation and for help as we live in this world. Even in the midst of fear and doubt, we can hold out our empty hands and cry, Lord, save me! He will answer, and we can respond in worship of our Lord and Savior. 1
Welcome // (15 minutes) Leaders: Pay attention to kids as they enter the room and be sure to greet them with a big smile! Make sure that you make each kid feel special when they arrive each week. Invite them to come sit or play with you. Learn their names and make sure that they know your name! TWOs Before children arrive, set out toys to engage the kids when they are dropped off and turn on background music CD/flash drive. Remember that separation anxiety is common and normal with this age. The best way to combat this is to distract them with fun right away. Consider these activities: One leader singing songs with kids Having bubbles or bubble machine in one corner of the room Blocks or Cars set up and ready to play Playdough at a table Coloring- crayons and paper Preschool Set up the two activities below before children arrive, and turn on background music CD/Flash Drive. Kids can participate in either activity as they enter the room. 1. Activity page What You Need: activity pages, blue & red crayons or markers What You Do: Guide the preschoolers to to color in the shapes with a dot to dot to discover a picture. What You Sa y: What did you discover? A boat! In today s Bible story, Jesus friends were on a boat traveling to the other side of the sea. Suddenly, His friends saw someone on the water! Listen to our Bible story to find out who they saw. 2. Sing Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus What You Need: no supplies What You Do: Lead preschoolers in singing Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus. If you are unfamiliar with the tune, look it up online before the session. Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace. Consider creating motions to go along with the song lyrics. Sing until preschoolers can mostly sing the song on their own with motions (3-4x). What You Say: This song reminds us that life works best when we trust Jesus. In today s Bible story, Jesus allowed Peter to do something very special something people cannot do on their own. But something happened when Peter stopped looking at Jesus and started looking 2
3. Walk Lines around him. Listen to our Bible story to hear what happened when Peter took his eyes off Jesus. What You Need : 3 colors of tape What You Do: Use three different colors of tape to create three lines on the floor. Arrange the lines so they intersect at different points. Make the lines zig-zag, curve, and weave. Challenge a preschooler to walk one foot in front of the other on a certain color line. For younger children, offer guidance when they come to an intersection in the lines. What You Say : Was it hard to stay on the right color line? Which line was the easiest to walk on? Which line was the hardest to walk on? In today s Bible story, Jesus and Peter walked on something, but it was not a line. Listen to our Bible story to find on where Jesus and Peter walked. TRANSITION TO CIRCLE TIME Circle Time // (20-25 minutes) MUSIC While the kids finish playing, get the worship CD/DVD/flash drive ready. Decide which 3 or 4 songs you are going to sing today. Say: It s circle time! Come sit in a circle with us! We re going to sing some fun songs together that worship God! Why do we sing to God? ( Answer: To honor Him with our worship!) TWOs STORYTIME Say: Today s Lesson comes from God s Word, the Bible! Why do we read the Bible? (Answer: To know God s Word in our hearts!). Read the following text while showing the children this week s Bible Story Picture. The text will be printed on Preschool STORYTIME Say: Today s Lesson comes from God s Word, the Bible! Why do we read the Bible? (Answer: To know God s Word in our hearts!). Watch today s teaching video OR read the following text while showing the children this week s Bible Story 3
the back of the picture in your supplies: Jesus had been teaching people by the sea. It was getting late, so He told His friends to get into a boat and go to the other side of the sea. Jesus went up on a mountain to pray by Himself. That evening, the boat was far from the shore when the wind started to blow. Big waves tossed the boat up and down. Jesus was still on the mountain alone. In the middle of the night, Jesus walked on the sea toward His friends. When His friends saw Jesus, they were very afraid! It s a ghost! they cried. Jesus spoke to them right away. Don t be afraid, He said. It s Me! Jesus friend Peter said, Lord, if it really is You, tell me to come to You on the water. So Jesus said, Come! Peter got out of the boat. He started walking on the water toward Jesus. But then Peter saw how windy it was, and he was afraid. Peter began to sink into the water. Lord, save me! Peter cried. Jesus reached out and grabbed Peter. Why didn t you trust Me? Jesus asked. They got into the boat and the wind stopped. Everyone in the boat worshiped Jesus. You really are the Son of God, they said. Christ Connection : Jesus showed that we can trust Him. His life, death, and resurrection showed that Jesus is who He says He is. When we look to Jesus and trust Him, He will save us from our sin. After the story, ask the children the following review questions: SAY: Let s answer important questions about today s story. 1. What did the friends see out on the water in the middle of the night? ( Jesus walking ) Picture: Jesus had been teaching people by the sea. It was getting late, so He told His friends to get into a boat and go to the other side of the sea. Jesus went up on a mountain to pray by Himself. That evening, the boat was far from the shore when the wind started to blow. Big waves tossed the boat up and down. Jesus was still on the mountain alone. In the middle of the night, Jesus walked on the sea toward His friends. When His friends saw Jesus, they were very afraid! It s a ghost! they cried. Jesus spoke to them right away. Don t be afraid, He said. It s Me! Jesus friend Peter said, Lord, if it really is You, tell me to come to You on the water. So Jesus said, Come! Peter got out of the boat. He started walking on the water toward Jesus. But then Peter saw how windy it was, and he was afraid. Peter began to sink into the water. Lord, save me! Peter cried. Jesus reached out and grabbed Peter. Why didn t you trust Me? Jesus asked. They got into the boat and the wind stopped. Everyone in the boat worshiped Jesus. You really are the Son of God, they said. Christ Connection: Jesus showed that we can trust Him. His life, death, and resurrection showed that Jesus is who He says He is. When we look to Jesus and trust Him, He will save us from our sin. After the lesson, ask the children the following review questions: SAY: Let s answer some important questions about today s Bible story: 1. What was Jesus doing while His friends were in the boat? ( praying by Himself on a mountain ) 4
2. Who wanted to walk on the water with Jesus? ( Peter ) 3. When did Peter begin to sink? ( when he saw how windy it was and became afraid ) 2. What did the friends see out on the water in the middle of the night? ( Jesus walking ) 3.Who wanted to walk on the water with Jesus? ( Peter ) 4.When did Peter begin to sink? ( when he saw how windy it was and became afraid ) 5. What did Jesus do when Peter cried, Lord, save me!? ( reached out and grabbed Peter ) MEMORY VERSE SAY: Now, let s practice this month s memory verse that comes from God s word, the Bible! TWOs VERSION Jesus is the Christ (use middle finger to point to the palm of the opposite hand) the Son of God (point up to heaven) John 20:31 (open your hands like a book) PreK VERSION...so that you (point out to a friend) may believe (hands crossed over heart) that Jesus is the Christ (use middle finger to point to the palm of the opposite hand), the Son of God (point up to heaven) John 20:31 (open your hands like a book) OFFERING Pass around the offering bag or bucket to collect any offering for today. Say: Why do we collect offering? (Answer: To pass the blessings God has given us back to His church!) PRAYER & SNACK Say: Why do we pray? (Answer: To open our hearts to God and talk to Him!) Tell the children to close their hands and bow their heads. After praying give each of the children a graham cracker and some water while you review the day s lesson. TRANSITION TO ACTIVITIES 5
Application Activities // (30 minutes) Choose from the following review activities that best fits the age of your class. TWOs 1. Coloring Page What You Need: Coloring page and crayons What You Do: While children are still seated at the table from snack time, start handing out coloring pages and crayons. While children are coloring, review the memory verse and today s Bible story. 2. Make Parachute Waves What You Need: parachute, foam balls What You Do : Invite preschoolers to hold the edges of a parachute. Invite preschoolers to make the parachute wave slowly and quickly. Place foam balls on the parachute. Try keeping the balls on the parachute or bouncing them off. What You Say: The wind made big waves and tossed Jesus friends up and down on the boat. Jesus walked on water toward them in the middle of the big waves. Jesus showed that He is who He says He is. When we look to Jesus and trust Him, He will save us from our sin. Preschool 1. Play out walking on water with a craft What You Need: Jesus and Peter black and white printable, 1 per child; paper plates, utility knife (adult use), crayons, scissors, craft popsicle sticks, glue sticks What You Do: Before the session, cut a long slit across the middle of a paper plate for each preschooler. Lead preschoolers to use blue, gray, and white crayons to color their paper plate to resemble the sea. Provide a Jesus and Peter printable for each preschooler. Use the black and white version if you would like preschoolers to color the Jesus and Peter images. Guide preschoolers to cut out each image and glue it to a craft stick. Show preschoolers how to push the craft stick through the slit in the paper plate and hold it from under the paper plate. Demonstrate how to move the craft stick to make Jesus or Peter walk. Encourage preschoolers to play out the story using their craft. What You Say: Jesus walked on water. Only God s Son could do that! His life, death, and resurrection showed that Jesus is who He says He is. We can trust Jesus. He will never let us down. When we look to Jesus and trust Him, He will save us from our sin. 3. Play Out the Bible Story What You Need: plastic tub, water, towels, people figures, toy boat (optional) What to Do : Place a plastic tub filled with a couple inches of water on a table surrounded by towels. Invite preschoolers to play out the story of Jesus walking on water with people figures. Review the Bible story as preschoolers play. What to Say : Jesus walked on water. Jesus showed that we can trust Him. His life, death, and resurrection showed that Jesus is who He says He is. When we look to Jesus and trust Him, He will save us from our sin. 6
Free Play & Dismissal For the remainder of the time, let kids have free play time. Begin cleaning up the room. And set any take-home creations where you or parents can get them easily at pick-up. TWOs Take Homes Coloring Page ASK ME sticker PreK Take Homes Activity Page ASK ME sticker Walking on water craft Greeter should stand at the door with the attendance sheet. They should check the parents security tag at the door to confirm pick up of the correct child. If parent does not have security tag, greeter should send parent to the check-in desk for approval. Greeter should make sure child is wearing their Ask Me sticker and hand any take home creations to parents. THANK YOU! 7