Welcome [jumonville.org]
Preschool
Welcome
Welcome to “A love that never ends!” This Bible study is an opportunity for camp staff and preschool campers to come together for a week of learning about God’s love. Each day of this preschool study uses a concrete and visual method for teaching young campers about the extraordinary love of God and how we share it with others. The materials contained in this study can also be used to work with elementary aged campers with special needs. Through exploring the stories of Abraham, Moses and the Israelites, Ruth, Jonah, and Jeremiah, campers and staff will get the chance to walk together to learn what it means to love God and love their neighbors.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
Learn the basic stories of Old Testament people who deeply loved God.
Explore how the stories of the Old Testament set an example for how we should love God and one another.
Practice talking about love and how we love God with family members, church members, and friends.
Working with preschool campers
Preschool campers are at an age where learning is a way of life. As they go about their day, preschoolers absorb incredible amounts of information about the world around them. All the new information often triggers their innate sense of curiosity, and makes the camp counselor’s role fun and exciting!
Campers between the ages of three and five have active minds and bodies. Within the camp context it is important to keep them busy. While planning and implementing preschool programming, be sure to plan for short attention spans by making your sessions engaging and interactive. This curriculum provides material that will engage preschool minds so they are not only learning about the stories for the day, but so they are also learning about the world around them by using sensory, math, science, and language arts activities. Within the three- to five-year-old age range you are likely going to have a wide variety of abilities and knowledge. Do what you can to challenge older campers in the group. The combination of all these activities will certainly keep their active minds and bodies busy!
When working with preschool campers, use an excited tone of voice that emulates a spirit of curiosity, but does not belittle or speak down to these young campers. When instructing these children, be sure to give simple one-step directions and a little bit of extra time to perform them. Too many directions in one sentence quickly become confusing and hard to complete.
Preschool campers tend to be very visual and very concrete in their learning. It is a good practice to be intentional about using a story Bible whenever possible. If a story Bible is not available, create a set of stick puppets for camp staff to use as the story is being read from a regular Bible. A simple Internet search for “Bible stick puppets” will provide many resources for creating this tool. Additionally, be intentional about using varying vocal inflection throughout your reading of stories. This will help engage young campers, and will provide them with context to sort through the facts of the story.
Tips
Give each camper a designated space. Preschool age children do not always sit well, as their busy bodies have a lot of energy to expend. To make Bible study time go smoothly, consider giving each camper a poly-vinyl spot, carpet square, or some other designated personal space on which to sit while singing songs, reading stories, or doing
activities that do not require much moving around during group activities. This personal space will help them feel comfortable each day when you gather, and may even help reduce any anxiety they are experiencing over the unknown. Additionally, having a regular space for them to return to for activities will contribute to the structure and routine of their day.
Have a set routine. Preschool age campers are still at an age where they may experience separation anxiety. Camp staff can assist with easing this anxiety by having a set routine that is followed each day of camp. It is helpful to start each session in the same location, by singing one to three songs that campers have become familiar with throughout their time at camp. Singing songs at the beginning of the session will build up comfort with camp staff, and allow for parents to sing with their children before discreetly slipping away to where they need to go. While setting the routine for preschool campers, it is also important to remember to build in time for bathroom breaks, hand washing, and snacks. When working with this age group, these tasks can take longer than one would generally think.
Make everything a learning experience. Never underestimate what and how much information a preschooler can absorb. Though concepts in preschool curriculum may seem basic, these campers are learning new things from everything they encounter at camp. That puts a significant amount of responsibility on counselors and other adults who are called to model behaviors and nurture learning. Throughout your interactions and conversations with preschool campers, be sure to constantly exercise their minds. Frequently ask questions about the surrounding environment. Encourage them to count things, and prompt them to identify shapes, colors, numbers, letters, animals, and so on. Additionally, don’t be afraid to respond to campers’ questions by asking them what they think the answer might be before you give them your answer (for example, “What do you think that item is?” or “How do you think it does that?”).
Remember that campers in this age group are also likely preparing to enter the school system—it’s okay to gently ask them to raise their hands or wait for their turn before they give their answers.
Plan and prepare transitions. Sometimes it can be difficult to move preschool campers from one activity to another—be sure to plan for this. If campers are doing an activity on their own (free play, coloring, etc.), be sure to give them frequent
time warnings. Let them know when they have five minutes left, then three minutes, then one minute before it is time to clean up or move on.
Affirm, affirm, affirm. This age group is at a crucial time of learning social skills. Encourage using good manners when speaking to others, and then affirm campers when those interactions happen. Be sure to affirm things that we adults tend to consider small things, such as attentive listening, following directions, and things pertaining to camper abilities. When giving affirmation it is important to be specific in saying what you are affirming. “Good job” is very different from “good job following my directions.” Affirmation increases the likelihood that positive interactions and behaviors will happen time and again.
Provide sensory experiences. Preschool campers learn through using all of their senses. Each day’s Send section provides a sensory experience for campers to participate in. To set up the sensory areas, simply purchase a small, hard-sided children’s pool or a large tub, and fill it with the suggested items for each day. If your camp naturally has areas that provide each of the sensory experiences, bring campers to those areas to play. Sensory experiences should be free-play time so that campers can guide their own learning. Camp staff should always play with the children during these experiences, and may want to ask some probing questions as children play in order to help tie the story for the day to the sensory experience.
Grown-up & me. Preschool campers love to work with grown-ups, and the camp setting is perfect for having discussions about faith with the grown-ups in their lives. Each day of this study provides instructions to guide campers and grown-ups, as they will work together to create a magnetic storyboard to take home from camp. By the end of the week, campers and their grown-ups will have a total of five different activities and stories to play with on their storyboard, which is much like a felt-board used in many preschool classrooms. Your camp may choose to supply a metal cookie sheet to be used as a storyboard for each camper. These can be purchased at many dollar stores. Additionally your camp may choose to encourage campers to play with their stories at home on their refrigerators.
This storyboard tool will help campers continue to talk about the things they learned at camp once they have headed home. These daily activities will provide opportunities for parents, grandparents, or guardians to talk with their preschool campers
about the theme for the day, and how they can share God’s love with others in their family. Each day also provides a few questions or discussion topics for grown-ups and preschool campers to talk about as they are working on their storyboard. As a facilitator, it is important that you walk alongside these important grown-ups, as they will guide the faith of their young campers upon returning home.
To increase camper excitement about playing with their storyboards, you may want to make your own storyboard and include it in the Bible study for each day.
Family orientation event
Use the following ideas and activities for an orientation event that serves as a kick-off to the week of camp, VBS, or day camp. This orientation is an important time, as it leaves a first impression for campers and parents. Orientation is a time for campers to get to know the staff and volunteers they will be working with throughout the week, and it is also a time for them to get a sneak peek at what they’ll be talking about as they navigate “A love that never ends.” As people are gathering for the orientation event, remember that hospitality is a key part of making the first impression even though you may be visiting their congregation. Be intentional about asking names of those who are gathering, in addition to introducing yourself.
Opening worship
Once most families have gathered, transition into a time of worship. Take the time to introduce yourselves as camp staff. From there, teach a few songs that campers will be singing throughout the week, then say a prayer of thanksgiving for those who have gathered and for the week ahead. Use a skit to introduce the theme of “A love that never ends.” This can be an original skit, or you may choose to use a skit from the “Large group worship” section of this curriculum. Be sure to close the skit by reading Deuteronomy 6:5. After the skit, say the Lord’s Prayer with the group and then sing one more song before giving them instructions on the orientation stations.
Orientation stations
Stations should be set up throughout the space that will be primarily used during the week. Families should be able to freely roam about these stations to gather information about the week ahead. Each station should provide an introduction to each day’s theme written on a large sign or tabletent, in addition to an activity for campers to do with their families. Information to go on each sign or table-tent can be taken from the “Introduction to the theme” section of this curriculum. Suggested activities to go along with each theme are listed below, in addition to discussion starters for parents and campers to talk through as they are doing activities at each station. You’ll want to make sure these questions are also on your signs or table-tents. If you have a small group, you may wish to condense these stations. Plan for families to spend about 10 minutes at each station.
Suggested activities for each station are as follows:
Abraham: Registration & expectations
This station should be a place for both you and the parents to gather necessary information from each other. You’ll want to be sure to have a daily schedule available. Include notes about any special things parents will need to know for each day.
This may include notes about snack menu items in case of food allergies, or even notes about clothing that will be appropriate for certain activities that are being done. In addition, you’ll want to have a handout of expectations and rules available for parents to talk through/clarify with their campers. This station should either have a table covered in butcher paper or should have a piece of butcher paper and some writing utensils nearby.
Station discussion starters follow.
God promised Abraham that he would have many descendants. In return, Abraham and his descendants would have the opportunity to love God through following the laws, rules, and expectations of God. Talk through and discuss the expectations for the week. What expectations do you have of staff, volunteers, and friends? Write those expectations on the butcher paper.
Israel: Snack
Have some kind of snack available for campers and their families to construct together. Examples would include decorating cupcakes, mixing their own trail mix, making fruit kebabs, or building ice cream sundaes. Be sure to have a place for families to sit and enjoy their snack as they read about Israel and discuss.
Station discussion starters follow.
In the story of Moses and the Israelites, God provides water in the desert. God provided what the Israelites desperately needed, so their needs were taken care of and they could live in God’s abundance. What are some things God provides in abundance to your family?
As God’s people we get to live in God’s abundance. This means we share God’s love with others through sharing that which God provides for us. How do you share the things you have an abundance of with other children of God?
Ruth: Game
Choose an active, family-friendly game or two for campers to play with their families. This can be taken from the “Games” section of this curriculum. Encourage parents to play along with their kids.
Station discussion starter follows.
The story of Ruth and Naomi is a story about the strong love between family members. What did you love about playing the game with your family?
Jonah: Craft
Choose an easy craft from the “Crafts” section of this curriculum. Be sure to have all materials available, or at least have materials available for families to take home if they are unable to finish their craft.
Station discussion starters follow.
The story of Jonah is a story that tells us about how God forgives us. What does it mean to forgive?
As God’s people, we are called to forgive each other. What does it look like when we forgive someone? How do we treat them?
Jeremiah: Name tags
Have materials available for campers to make a name tag to use throughout the week. This name tag should be reusable and left in the same place at the close of each day, so campers know where to find it when they arrive again the next day.
Station discussion starters follow.
In the story of Jeremiah’s call, God told Jeremiah that he had been chosen to share the story of God’s love with all people before he was even born. We have been given that same call, and before we were born, our parents likely worked to choose a name for us. How was your name chosen?
After God tells Jeremiah what he’s supposed to do, Jeremiah claims he is too young. How can young people share God’s love with others?
Daily rhymes & stories
Preschool campers love storyboards and rhymes. Throughout the week, campers will have the opportunity to make a take-home storyboard with the special grown-ups they have at camp. The following short stories and rhymes are to be used for the “Grown-up & me” activities, and they can also be worked into your daily study. Giving campers a preview of each rhyme or story will help them get excited about creating their own storyboards. For instructions on how to create your storyboard, please refer to the “Grown-up & me” activities for each day. Also note that links to printouts for creating a storyboard can be found on the curriculum website.
Day 1: Abraham (God promises)
Instructions: Add the appropriate piece for each verse of the rhyme.
God gives us promises to show us lots of love, God gives us promises from heaven above. (heart)
God gave to Abraham a promise of life, God promised a family to Abe and his wife. (Abraham and Sarah)
As many family as stars in the sky, Abraham and Sarah thought, “my oh my!” (stars)
God promised Abe’s family a special space, Some land for them to have as their own place. (tent)
God promised to love Abraham’s family too, A promise to love, no matter what they do. (heart)
God promises to love both you and me, God promises to love us all for free. (two stick figures)
God’s love fills us up in many ways, So we can freely love others for all of our days. (heart in-between stick figures)
Day 2: Israel (God provides)
Instructions: Read the story of Moses and the Israelites in the desert. For each line, add the appropriate piece to the storyboard.
1. Moses lived a very long time ago. (Moses)
2. God loved Moses very much, and Moses loved God very much. (heart)
3. One day, God asked Moses to take on a big job. God asked Moses to lead the Israelites to safety. They were God’s people, and they were not being taken care of where they were living. God promised to take care of Moses and the Israelites. (Israelites)
4. Moses agreed to lead the Israelites, and he was able to save them from their unsafe place.
5. Together Moses and the Israelites ended up going on some big adventures and walking for a long, long time. After a while they were tired and very, very thirsty, but there was NO water around! This made them angry with Moses. (Separate Moses and the Israelites)
6. Moses prayed to God to ask for help. God told Moses to that he needed to take a few of the Israelites to a rock. (Put Moses and Israelites together, add the rock)
7. When they found the rock, God told Moses to take his walking stick and use it to hit the rock. (Add the walking stick hitting the rock)
8. When he did this, water came rushing out of the rock! (water spout)
9. God provided for the Israelites, and they celebrated through drinking the water and sharing it with each other.
Day 3: Ruth (God gives us family)
Instructions: Sing the words of the song to the tune of “The Wheels on the Bus.” Sing the chorus between each verse. Work together to choose which figure will be added to the board each time, and then add the heart for the last verse.
Verse 1: Who is in God’s family, family, family?
Who is in God’s family? Children of God.
Verse 2: There are little ones like me, ones like me, ones like me.
There are little ones like me. Children of God.
Verse 3: Some of God’s children are very tall, very tall, very tall.
Some of God’s children are very tall. Children of God.
Verse 4: God’s family has both boys and girls, boys and girls, boys and girls.
God’s family has both boys and girls. Children of God.
Verse 5: All God’s children are sisters and brothers, sisters and brothers, sisters and brothers. All God’s children are sisters and brothers. Children of God.
Verse 6: In God’s family there’s lots of love, lots of love, lots of love.
In God’s family there’s lots of love. Children of God.
Day 4: Jonah (God forgives)
Instructions: Read the story about forgiveness as follows. Let campers decide which figures to put on the storyboard. When the word forgive comes up, place the heart on the storyboard.
One day Adalie went outside to play basketball with her friend Tucker. Tucker was her best friend. They were so happy to play together! While they were playing basketball, Adalie fell. Tucker turned and laughed at her, because he thought Adalie fell on purpose, just to be funny. This made Adalie sad; it hurt her feelings, so she went inside.
When she went inside, Adalie found her dad to tell him what happened. After Adalie was finished telling her story, Dad said, “Tucker is your best friend. Do you think he would laugh at you if he knew your fall was an accident?”
“I don’t know,” said Adalie.
“Well I don’t think he would. Tucker is usually a pretty good friend. How about you and I go talk to him?” Dad said.
Adalie sighed. “Okay. But I’m really mad at him.” Adalie and her dad went outside and found Tucker sitting under the basketball hoop.
Tucker quickly said, “I’m sorry, Adalie. I thought you were trying to be funny when you fell. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”
“Well you did! And now I’m mad!” said Adalie. “Adalie.” Her dad said gently. “That is not how we treat our friends when they apologize. I think you might need to forgive Tucker.” “Forgive?” Adalie said.
“Yes. When we forgive someone, we throw away our anger and we remember how much we love that person,” said her dad.
“But Tucker really hurt my feelings!” said Adalie.
“Sometimes our feelings really do get hurt. But when we forgive, we are really giving a present to the person we are forgiving: that present is LOVE. God forgives us, and so part of what we do is we forgive others.” her dad said.
With that, Adalie took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tried to remember all of her favorite things about her best friend Tucker. When she opened them again, she could feel that her anger had disappeared and she had forgiven Tucker.
Day 5: Jeremiah (Share God’s love)
Instructions: Start with the smallest heart, and then add the next biggest heart at the beginning of each verse. When hearts are added, feel free to make them dance and do goofy things.
Verse 1: One little heart, that’s what I see. God’s love is for you and me.
When we share it, we’ll see something new, Because God’s love grows, so we have two!
Verse 2: Two little hearts, that’s what I see. God’s love is for you and me.
When we share it, it’s exciting you see,
It grows and grows, and then becomes three!
Verse 3: Three little hearts, that’s what I see. God’s love is for you and me.
We share it with the rich, and also the poor. Then before we know it, God’s love is four!
Verse 4: Four little hearts, that’s what I see. God’s love is for you and me.
We love each other, and all who are alive. Because God’s love grows, so now we see five!
Verse 5: Five little hearts, that’s what I see. God’s love is for you and me.
When we love our neighbors, God’s love just grows.
It gets so big, and joy overflows!
Grown-up & me activities
Preschool campers often come to camp or day camp along with a grown-up, whether it be a parent, grandparent, babysitter, or family friend. “Grown-up & me” activities are designed to encourage conversations between preschool campers and the adults in their lives. Each day’s activity is accompanied by a few discussion questions for adults and preschool campers to talk about as they work. Encourage grown-ups to answer the questions as well as the preschool campers. Together they will work on creating magnetic story pieces accompanied with rhymes and stories that review the themes from the daily Bible stories. These pieces can be attached to a refrigerator (or other magnetic surface) at home. Campers will be able to share what they learned at camp. Words to accompany the stories and rhymes are in the “Daily rhymes & stories” section of this curriculum.
Day 1: Abraham
Materials: Felt, glitter, fun foam, craft eyes, scissors, crayons/markers/colored pencils, glue, stencils (stick person, heart, star), printouts (Abraham/ Sarah, tent), magnetic strips, zipping sandwich baggies
Optional: Contact paper or laminator
Monday’s study is about the promises God made to Abraham and Sarah. Families will create the pieces to go along with the rhyme for the day.
Families will create the following figures.
Abraham/Sarah
Three hearts
Two stick figures
Tent
Five stars
Families can cut out the stars and hearts from the felt, then spread some glue and glitter on those basic shapes to create a sparkling effect. If you had star buttons or beads in your sensory area for today, you may simply want to stick a magnetic strip on to one of those. From there, families can work on tracing and cutting out their two stick figures from the fun foam, in addition to coloring the Abraham/Sarah figures and the tent. Once the two paper figures are colored, they can be cut out and laminated. Upon finishing all of the pieces, families will need to attach a magnetic strip to the back of all their pieces. All pieces can be placed in a sandwich bag for safekeeping and storage.
Discussion questions follow.
What did God promise Abraham and Sarah?
What does it mean when we make a promise?
One of the promises we make is to love God. How do we show that we love God? (By loving others.)
Who is someone you love? Why do you love that person?
Day 2: Israel
Materials: Scissors, felt, stencils (heart, staff, water spout), printouts (Moses, Israelites), small rocks, magnetic strips, zipping sandwich baggies, printed card with the rhyme for the day
Optional: Contact paper or laminator
On Tuesday families will create pieces so that they can retell the story of Moses and the Israelites.
Families will create the following:
Moses
Israelites
A staff
A rock
A water spout
A heart
As with Monday, they will need to cut out the basic shapes from felt, then color and cut out the Moses and Israelites pieces. Each family will also get to choose a rock that will work well with their storyboard. All pieces will need to have magnetic strips attached to the back.
Discussion questions follow.
Today’s story is about a time when God gave people the things that they needed. Can you think of anything we need?
What are some things that you think God has provided for us?
What should we do when God provides for us? (Share it with others as a way of sharing God’s love.)
Day 3: Ruth
Materials: Fun foam (variety of colors), fun foam letters, stick people stencil, scissors, glue (white or hot), yarn, magnetic strips, craft eyes, zipping sandwich baggies, printed card with rhyme for the day
On Wednesday preschool campers and their grown-ups will work together to create a variety of stick people figures for the “Who is in God’s Family?” song. Families will need to create the following figures.
A family piece
A small person
A tall person
Two boys
Two girls
One heart
Families will need to create a title piece for their storyboard by cutting out a shape and gluing the letters to spell family on their shape. They will then have the opportunity to work together to creatively construct their stick figure people by using a variety of colors, hairstyles (yarn), and facial expressions. Be sure to remind families to stick magnetic strips to the back of all their pieces.
Discussion questions follow.
How did Ruth and Naomi know each other? (They were family.)
God shows us love by giving us family. What things can we do to share God’s love with our family?
God’s family is much bigger than just our family. Who is in God’s family?
Day 4: Jonah
Materials: Story printouts, felt, scissors, crayons/ colored pencils/markers, magnetic strips
Optional: Contact paper or laminator, printed card with the rhyme for the day
Thursday’s story is a story about a little girl named Adalie and her best friend Tucker. Together the two learn about forgiveness. Families will need to create the following figures.
Adalie
Tucker
Dad
Basketball
Heart
Nearly all figures from today’s story are simply to be cut out and colored. Families may use felt to create a heart. All pieces will need a magnetic strip to go on the back.
Discussion questions follow.
What does it mean when we forgive someone?
Who gave forgiveness in the story today?
What does it look like when we forgive someone? How do we act?
Day 5: Jeremiah
Materials: Fun foam, scissors, glue, sequins, glitter, magnetic strips, craft eyes, pipe cleaners, zipping sandwich baggies, 1 metal cookie sheet per camper/grown-up group (consider purchasing these from a dollar store), permanent markers, printed cards with the rhyme for the day.
On the final day of camp, grown-ups and campers will create a set of five different hearts of different sizes, styles, and colors. Their hearts should have multiple layers, along with a different look to each one. The hearts are the characters for the story of the day, so each heart can have eyes, arms, and legs. As with the other days, campers and grown-ups should be sure to stick magnetic strips to the back of each of their hearts, and place them in a sandwich baggie along with the rhyme card.
Since this is the final day of the “Grown-up & me” project, campers can be given the cookie sheets that will serve as the board for their storyboards. They may wish to decorate their storyboard using permanent markers. If you do not wish to supply cookie sheets, you can encourage campers to play with their story activities on their refrigerators at home. Make sure to send campers off with an excitement about sharing these stories and activities once they get home.
Discussion questions follow.
This week we have learned that God loves us very much. What do we get to do with all that love? (We share it.)
What are some ways your family tells others about God’s love?
Who are some people you would like to share God’s love with? How will you do that?
DAY 1: Abraham
Focus question
What does God promise?
Theme statement
God promises to love us, and we promise to love God and others.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
learn about Abraham and Sarah.
learn about promises.
explore how God made a promise to love all people.
love God and love others.
Bible text
Genesis 17:1-8 (Covenant with Abraham)
Materials
Children’s story Bible, three paper hearts (small, medium, large), star cutouts (enough for about 4 per camper), sock or paper bag puppets, black construction paper, star stickers, pencils, star-shaped buttons or beads, rice or unpopped popcorn
Gather
BIG love!
Move to a large and open space to stand in a circle with campers. Explain to them that today you are going to talk about how much God loves us. Show the group each of the three different sized hearts. Ask them what a heart symbol stands for, and what the different sizes mean to them. Hold them up one at a time and talk about them: the small heart means we love something just a little bit, the medium heart means we love something more, and the big heart means we love something a whole lot!
Go around the circle and ask campers how much they love something. When you call their name and ask them a question, they get to walk or run over to the hearts to point to how much they love what you asked them about.
How much do you love . . .
your shoes
cats
your family
sleeping
playing outside
pizza
playing games
eating soup
taking a bath
fish
watching football
hot dogs
Once all campers have had a turn (or two), ask them about how much they think God loves us. Explain that there is probably not a heart big enough to show that, but together you are going to do your best to try.
Rearrange the circle of campers so they are formed into a heart shape and standing shoulder to shoulder.
Tell them that when you say, “God loves us THIS much!” everybody should take 1 big step backward.
For each step the group takes, the heart should get bigger—comment on this to point it out. Continually ask if they think this much love is the right amount to show how much God loves us.
Keep taking steps back until campers are fairly spread out.
Remind campers that God loves us even more than the giant heart you just made together.
Word
Sorting through the facts: Abraham Introduce the story of Abraham by telling campers they will be learning about a man who God loved very much. We know that God loved Abraham and his wife Sarah, because God made them a big and important promise. Engage campers in a discussion about promises, asking if they can tell you what it means when we make a promise or if they can provide you with examples of a promise they have made before. Eventually explain that a promise is something we say we will do, but then we have to be very, very sure that we actually do it.
Read the story of God’s covenant with Abraham from a story Bible. Read both the stories from Genesis 15:1-5 and Genesis 17:1-8. If the story Bible you have uses the word covenant, explain to campers that covenant is another word for promise. If the story Bible you are working with does not use the word covenant, briefly take a moment to introduce that word to campers. The covenant between God and Abraham is just one of many, many promises God has made to people.
After reading Genesis 15:1-5 from the story Bible, discuss the following:
Who was in this story? (Abram, Sarai, God.)
God made a promise to Abram and Sarai. Do you remember what that promise was? (A large family.)
What did God tell Abram to look at to give him an idea of just how many family members they will have? (All the stars in the sky.)
How many stars do you think are in the sky?
Explain to campers that after God made this promise to Abram and Sarai, they had to wait a very, very long time. In fact the amount of time they had to wait made them think that God had not made a real promise. Take this time to review what a promise is. Ask campers if they have ever had to wait a long time for someone’s promise to happen; encourage them to explain what that felt like.
Preface the next reading by telling campers that Abram and Sarai had been waiting a long time at the place the next story begins. Read Genesis 17:1-8 from the story Bible. Ask campers the following:
Who was in the story this time? (Abraham and Sarah. God changed their names.)
How old was Abraham? (Ninety-nine years old.)
When God talked to Abraham this time, he made a couple more promises. What were they? (1. For many family members, 2. That they would become nations, 3. That they would have their own place to live: Canaan.)
What did Abraham need to do to as his part of the promise? (Love God.)
Why do you think God made these promises to Abraham and his family? (God loved Abraham.)
Take some time to discuss those promises with campers. Explain that when God made Abraham these promises, he also told Abraham these things would belong to all of Abraham’s family members too. This meant all of his kids, all of his grandkids, all of his great-grandkids, and beyond.
Written in the stars
Distribute a piece of black construction paper to each camper. Have campers use a pencil to write their name in large letters on their piece of paper. Some campers may need help with this; it might be helpful for you to spell their names out with dotted or dashed lines for them to trace. Give each camper a sheet or two of star stickers, and tell them to stick stars on the letters of their names.
They should stick enough stickers on the lines/letters so they can see their name spelled out in the stars.
Because God promised Abraham that all of his family members would be loved, we too are very much loved by God.
Send
All the generations
Hide star cutouts throughout a large area at camp. Tell campers their job is to work together to find all of the stars. After all the stars have been found, gather campers back together to count how many stars they found. Go through campers one by one and have them count out loud. As you are going through the campers, make sure you are working to gather a total number of stars. After all stars have been counted, share in amazement how many stars the campers found together. If the stars are printed on different colored paper, you can give campers an added challenge of sorting the stars by color or design.
Review what the stars meant to Abraham in God’s promise. Talk about how even today we are part of Abraham’s family, which means that God’s promises are still for us. That means God loves us very much, and we hold up our end of the promise by loving God and loving other people.
Sensory experience: Stars in rice or corn seeds
Put an abundance of popcorn seeds or rice in your sensory area and mix in star-shaped beads or buttons. You may also want to consider giving campers some small containers, cups, or shovels. Allow campers to freely play and learn in their sensory area.
Repeat-after-me prayer
Invite campers to repeat each line after you.
Dear God,
Thank you for all your love. Thank you for your promise, to love Abraham and us.
Help us remember to love you, and to love others.
Amen.
Resources
Crafts
Star ornament
Materials: Four narrow tongue depressors per camper, a variety of different shaped sequins, glue, ribbon or yarn
Glue the four tongue depressors together so they are arranged like an asterisk or star—the sticks will need to be stacked on top of one another. You may want to make a sample beforehand to hold up for preschool campers to look at as they arrange their own sticks. Glue all the sticks together at the center where they meet. Lightly spread glue onto each branch of the star, and then place sequins over the glue to completely cover the sticks. Once the stars have dried, tie a piece of ribbon or yarn to one of the branches of the stick to create a hanger for the ornament.
“I spy” sensory bottles
Materials: Empty plastic water/soda/juice bottles with lids, water, food coloring, superglue or hot glue, star sequins, glitter, other sequins, small fuzz balls, beads
Optional: A small card with a set of directions explaining the theme for the day and listing the items in the “I spy” bottle
The bottles can be made into an interactive game by challenging campers to find a specific thing from the list in their bottle. The special goal of the game is to spy the stars that are like Abraham’s descendants.
Give each camper a bottle and lid, and help them fill it about halfway full with water. Spread collections of sequins, glitter, fuzz balls, and beads out around your workspace, keeping star sequins set aside. Have campers move through the workspace to put a mixture of different items in their bottles. After they have placed all the items in their bottles they would like, give them each 5-10 star sequins to add to their bottle. Assist campers in filling up the rest of the bottle with water then, putting in a few drops of food coloring. Be sure not to put too much food coloring into the bottle as it may darken the water too much. Screw the lid on the bottle and have campers shake their bottle until the food coloring is evenly mixed around. Use superglue to glue the lids on the bottles for campers.
Games
Star jumping
Materials: Card stock, scissors
Cut out two large stars from a piece of card stock and place them on the ground about 2 feet apart. Have campers form a line behind the two stars and instruct them to jump from one star to the other. After all campers in the line have gone through, add about 1 to 2 feet of distance between the stars. Have campers jump from one star to the other again. Repeat this process adding more distance with each round.
Count the stars
Materials: Large rope, index cards, marker, star stickers
Preparation: Create 2 sets of index cards. One set should consist of 10 cards with the numerals 1-10 written on them (one number each card), then the other set should have star stickers on them (1 star through 10 stars).
Create a play area using a large rope. Scatter the numeral cards on the ground around the playing space, and then line campers up at the entrance of your play area. Give each camper a card with stars, and ask them to count how many stars they have. When it is their turn to enter the play area, they need to go find the card with the matching number written on it, pick up the card, then run with both cards back out of play area. Play this game a few times to give campers practice with different numbers. For older preschool groups, add the extra challenge of timing the group as they all gather their cards.
Optional: Tape the numeral cards to sticks and stick them in the ground. Clip a clothespin to each and have campers clip their cards on to the numeral cards before running out of the circle.
DAY 2: Israel
Focus question
How does God care for us?
Theme statement
God loves us so much that God provides us with the things we need, so that we can share those things with others.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
learn about Moses and the Israelites.
learn how God gives us the things we need.
explore the difference between needs and wants.
share the things God provides for us.
Bible text
Exodus 17:1-7 (Water in the wilderness)
Materials
Children’s story Bible, magnifying glasses, puppet, magazines, children’s scissors, two buckets (one labeled wants, one labeled needs), craft pompoms, clothespins (one per camper), egg cartons (one for every 2-3 campers)
Gather
Nature’s needs
Distribute magnifying glasses to campers and take them on a walk through camp. Tell them to be on the lookout for something that’s alive. If they see something that is living, they get to tell you to stop. Then they can show you what they found and will have a chance to investigate it with their magnifying glasses. Engage campers in conversation about what those living things need to live. Use a few prompting questions to get them thinking:
What is this?
How do we know it is alive?
What do you think it eats?
Where do you think it lives?
Does it need others like it?
This walk is an excellent time to get campers curious about the outdoors. If campers in your group seem to really dive in to exploring, then feel free to spend a little extra time investing in their curiosity.
My friend
Take some time to introduce campers to your friend, , the puppet. Give your puppet a name, a personality, and maybe even a fun voice to build up a relationship between the campers and your friend. Have a conversation with your puppet in which you introduce campers to him/her; then have the puppet ask a few personal questions about some of the campers. At a certain point, have your puppet start to get a little nervous or sad about ending the conversation and having to leave. Ask your puppet what’s wrong and what the sadness is about. Your puppet then reveals that he/she is nervous about going home, because there are just some things that he/she really needs right now. Offer your friend some help that will come from both you and the campers.
The puppet will then begin to list off some things he/she is worried about. You will engage campers to figure out what they can give to your puppet for each situation. Rather than just finding a general thing, have campers be specific about what things can be provided:
The puppet is thirsty.
The puppet is hungry.
The puppet is cold—especially at night.
The puppet has no shoes to wear.
The puppet has no place to sleep at night.
After campers have offered up specific solutions to each of these things, have your friend give them a big, big thank you before he/she leaves.
Word
Sorting through the facts: Israel
Tell campers that the things your friend talked about really reminded you of today’s story, which is about a man named Moses and a group of people who were known as the Israelites. Explain that the Israelites were people whom God loved very much. He loved them so much that he sent Moses to free them from an unsafe place. After they left that place, they were left to wander in the
desert for a very, very long time. Today’s story is about something that happened when they were wandering.
Read the story of Moses and the Israelites (Exodus 17:1-7) from your story Bible.
Who was in this story? (Moses, God, the Israelites.)
The Israelites were really mad at Moses. Why do you think they were mad? (They were really thirsty.)
What feelings were they experiencing?
God told Moses to do something. What did God tell Moses to do?
What happened when Moses did what God instructed him to do? (Water came out a rock.)
Take a break in conversation here to ask campers if they have any questions about what happened with Moses. If they come up with no questions, engage them in conversation about where water comes from—as it certainly does not come from rocks.
Tell campers that the story of Moses and the Israelites is a story about how God gives us the things we really need. God takes care of us, just like the campers were able to take care of the puppet at the beginning of the session. Guide campers in a conversation that helps them point out the things that God provides for them.
Want it? Need it?
Give each camper a magazine or two and give them about 5-10 minutes to page through their magazine to cut out any 3-5 pictures. Gather in a circle around the two wants/needs buckets.
Explain to campers that God provides us with the things we need. Sometimes we have to be careful to make sure that we are not mixing up the things we need with the things we want. God does not always give us the things we want.
Go around the circle and have campers hold up some of the pictures they found. Ask them why they cut that picture out, and then guide campers to look at what is being shown in the picture. As the leader, you might need to point this out to campers or get creative with your explanation.
Work with campers to determine if the thing that is in the picture is something that people generally want, or is it something that people need to be able to live? Once the group has come to a determination, have the camper who cut out the picture put it in the appropriate bucket. Go on to the next person so everyone in the group gets to share at least once.
After going through the circle, walk to the center of the circle to pick up the needs bucket. Hold up and show the items that were placed in there one by one. Highlight that when we talk about how God gives us the things we need, we mean that God gives us love, food, shelter, water, clothing.
Make a list of these items so campers can see them.
Send
Share it!
Explain to campers that God provides us with the things we need out of love. Many times God even provides us with way more than we need. When water came out of the rock, it is possible there was more than what the Israelites really needed. Ask campers what they think the Israelites should have done with all of the extra water. Eventually lead them to a discussion about sharing things when we have extra. When we share these things, it is a way of sharing God’s love with other people.
Put campers into groups of 2-3, and then give each group an egg carton. Each cup of the egg carton should have a number written on the bottom (1-12). Distribute 1 clothespin to each camper, along with a cup of pompoms for each group. Tell campers to pretend the pompoms in the cup are the extra water that came from the rock. Together the groups will need to share the extra water by placing the correct number of pompoms in each cup of the egg carton. Instead of using their hands to count out the pompoms, campers will need to use their clothespins to pinch the pompoms and drop them into the egg carton cups.
Sensory experience: Water and rocks
Fill your sensory area with water and an abundance of rocks. Include some cups and other containers that hold water. As campers play, encourage them to think about what it might have been like to see water come out of the rock.
Repeat-after-me prayer
Invite campers to repeat each line after you.
Dear God,
Thank you for loving us,
and for giving us the things we need.
Help us remember,
to share the things you give us,
when we have extra.
Amen.
Resources
Crafts
Rocks and water mobile
Materials: Scissors, stick (1 to 2 feet [.3 to .6 meters] long), dark blue construction paper, light blue construction paper, 4 rocks, yarn or ribbon
Preparation: Draw or print classic water droplet shapes on the construction paper, then put two slits in each drop.
Provide campers with a few pages of the water droplet papers and instruct them to cut them out. Preschool campers come with a variety of cutting abilities, so cutting out a series of drops will likely take quite a while. Once water droplets are cut out, give campers 3-4 cuts of ribbon that vary in length. Show them how to string the ribbon through the two slits you have cut through the droplets. They should be sure to leave enough room on each end of the ribbon so they will be able to tie things to the ends of their droplet strings. If your camp has an area with a large variety of sticks and rocks, walk with campers as they work to find a stick that will serve as the base of their mobile. Preschool campers will likely need guidance in finding a stick that is of appropriate width and length. Assist campers with tying their droplet strings on to their sticks, and then once again walk with them to pick out 3-4 rocks. Help them tie their rocks on to the bottom of their droplet strings. If necessary, add a few extra knots to the ribbon or yarn going around the rocks. Tie a long cut of ribbon to both ends of the stick to serve as a hanger for the mobile.
Paint with nature
Materials: Gray, blue, and brown paint, markers, rocks, twigs, construction paper, paint cups or trays, towels or buckets of water nearby
Preparation: For each camper, write or print the words “God Provides” on the construction paper using dotted or dashed letters for tracing.
Distribute a piece of construction paper to each camper, and have each trace the letters to spell “God Provides.” Direct campers to take a rock and dip it in the gray paint, and then use it to paint a large rock on their paper. Instruct them to dip the entire twig in the brown paint, and then lay it on the paper somewhere near the painting of the rock. Have campers use their fingers to paint water flowing from the rock.
Games
Wandering, wandering, water!
Materials: Cup, water
Have campers sit in a circle and ask for one camper to be Moses. Give Moses a cup that is about half full of water. Have him/her walk around the outside of the circle and sprinkle a few drops on people, saying: “wandering, wandering, wandering, etc.” When Moses is ready, he/she may dump the remaining water in the cup on someone and yell: “WATER!” The person Moses dumped the water on then chases Moses around the circle. Moses is safe when he/she sits in the vacated spot.
Water race
Materials: Large bucket, two smaller buckets, water, cups, bowls, spoons
Set out a large bucket filled with water in addition to two smaller buckets. Give campers a mixture of cups, bowls, and spoons. Tell campers you will time them to see how long it takes them to get all of the water from the big bucket into their two smaller buckets. Challenge them to do this as fast as possible. For an older group, you may want to consider dividing campers in to two teams and letting them race to see whose bucket has more water after a certain amount of time.
DAY 3: Ruth
Focus question
Who’s in God’s family?
Theme statement
We are all God’s children.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
learn about Ruth and Naomi.
discover that God’s family is bigger than we think.
consider how our family takes care of us, and how we take care of our family.
love our family.
Bible text
Ruth 1:1-18 (Ruth and Naomi)
Materials
Children’s story Bible, deck of cards, paper, crayons/markers/colored pencils, brown paper lunch bags, index cards
Optional: Chenille craft stems, glue, construction paper, feathers, craft eyes, scissors
Gather
Family traits
Start this activity by handing a card out to each camper and telling them to take a look at their card. For a smaller group, remove all cards that are 6 or greater. The goal for campers is to match a different trait on their cards for each round. Once they find people who have matching traits, those people are their family. Families will need to do whatever they can to stay together once they find each other. You will lead three rounds of this game. Collect the cards after each round, shuffle them, and then redistribute the cards to campers.
Round 1: Tell campers to find people who have the same colored card as they do.
Round 2: Tell campers to find people who have the same suit (or shape) on their card.
Round 3: Tell campers to find people who have the same number on their card.
My family portrait
Give each camper a piece of paper and some coloring utensils. Describe to campers how you would like for them to create the most beautiful piece of art ever seen. Their piece of art is to be a family portrait that shows all of the members of their family, including pets.
Give campers about 5 minutes to work on this project. If they tell you they are finished, you may want to encourage them to add a little more detail or background to their photo. Allow for campers to have extra time if they need it.
Once all campers have finished their drawings, have each camper share their family portrait with the entire group. Encourage campers to tell you about the members of their family including their interests. Some campers may need prompting to share this information.
Ask campers to tell you what it means to be a family. Work to gather a sense of their understanding of what makes a family.
Word
Sorting through the facts: Ruth
Share with campers that today’s Bible story is a story about what it means to be a family. Ruth was Naomi’s daughter-in-law, which meant that she was married to Naomi’s son. Naomi was not Ruth’s mom.
Read the story of Ruth and Naomi (Ruth 1:1-18) from a story Bible, and then discuss the following:
Who was in this story? (Naomi, Ruth, Orpah.)
Ruth, Orpah, and Naomi were on a long journey together. What happened that was maybe a little bit of a surprise to Ruth and Orpah? (Naomi told them to turn back to go live with their own mothers.)
Ruth and Orpah were both Naomi’s daughtersin-law. Who ended up staying with Naomi? (Ruth.)
Why do you think Ruth stayed with Naomi?
Explain to campers that Ruth and Naomi were a family. Even though Naomi was not Ruth’s mom and the two of them were not sisters, they were still a family. They were part of God’s family.
Explain to campers that God’s family is much bigger than our own families. Our families are all part of God’s family, and we are all brothers and sisters in God’s family. Allow campers some time to discuss this and answer any questions they come up with in regard to who is part of God’s family.
Are you in my family?
Give each camper a paper bag along with some crayons or markers. Show them how to make a paper-bag puppet by coloring a face on the bottom of the paper bag. Give them time to construct their puppets based on how many supplies you have to offer. You may want to offer them craft eyes, construction paper, feathers, or chenille craft stems to make their puppets.
After campers have created their paper bag puppets, have them gather together in a circle with their puppets. Go around the circle to have each person turn to their neighbor and use their puppet to say, “Are you in my family?” The person who they asked will then use their puppet to respond, “I’m in your family!” before turning to the person on the other side of them to ask them, “Are you in my family?” This will continue around the circle until all campers have gotten to say they are all part of God’s family. After establishing that all of the puppets and friends in the circle are part of God’s family, take the opportunity to once again describe to campers who is part of God’s family. Let them know that everyone is a brother or sister for us, even if they are not part of our own families, as we understand them. God’s family is bigger than what we usually think about!
Families who care
Part of being in God’s family means that we take care of one another. Ruth and Naomi probably took care of each other even after they had arrived in Bethlehem. Engage campers in a discussion about what it means to take care of our family members. What does it look like? What do their families do to take care of them?
Explain that God gives us a big family of people to care for. When we care for them, we are showing our love for God.
Work with campers to make a plan on how they can show their family at camp that they care. This plan should be something simple, such as approaching people to give them a hug or giving them a high five. Let campers be creative as they decide what to do. Walk campers through camp to interact with other groups of people so they can practice caring for other members of God’s family.
Send
Family member memory
Start by writing each camper’s name on two index cards. Form groups of 6-8 campers, and divide the index cards equally by group. You’ll want to make sure that each group of cards consists of matching pairs. Lay the cards face down in different areas, and then have the groups form circles around their set of cards.
When campers sit down, they should be looking at a series of blank index cards with the names face down. Tell campers that on the other side of the cards they will find names of some of their brothers and sisters in God’s family. Their job is to find the matches of names within their set of cards.
Each camper will take their turn by flipping over two cards. If the names on the cards match, then they get to keep those cards. If the names on the cards do not match, then they will flip the cards over again. Campers will play until all of their matches have been made. If time allows, you may have groups of campers rotate to different sets of cards.
Sensory experience: Soapy water and dolls
Fill the sensory table/tub with soapy water so there are plenty of bubbles. Also include some dolls or plastic animals, along with some washcloths. Allow campers to freely play in the water and bubbles to bathe, care for, and love the dolls and plastic animals as if they were family.
Repeat-after-me prayer
Invite campers to repeat each line after you.
Dear God,
Thank you for family.
Thank you for Ruth and Naomi,
because they show us how to care for each other.
Help us remember, that your family is BIG,
and we are all part of it. Amen.
Resources
Crafts
Woven place mats
Materials: 12 x 18 inch [30.5 x 46 centimeter] construction paper, scissors, variety of ribbon design (1 inch [2.5 centimeters] wide), contact paper or laminator
Preparation: Fold the construction paper in half, then go to the center of the fold and cut up toward the edge of the paper until you are about 1 inch [2.5 cm] away from the edge. Repeat this on both sides of the original center cut, being sure to stop about 1 inch away from the sides of the paper. Cut strips of ribbon to about 12 inches [30.5 cm] long.
Distribute a cut piece of paper to each camper along with an ample supply of ribbon strips. Show campers how to weave their first strip through the construction paper by going under the first strip of paper, then over the next. For their second strip of ribbon, they will need to start by going over the first strip of construction paper. Repeat this pattern until there is no more room to add ribbon.
Once the weaving is finished, cover the weaving with contact paper to seal the ends of the ribbon and make the weaving useful as a place mat.
Explain to campers that just like the ribbons and paper are woven together, we are woven together with our families. Encourage campers to take their weavings home to use as a place mat at their family’s table.
Note: Weaving requires some relatively advanced fine motor and sequencing skills for preschool aged children. Most three to five year olds will be able to do this craft, but may need some guidance at first. Be sure to allow enough time for this craft.
Family picture frames
Materials: Poster board, tissue paper scraps, glue, paintbrushes, markers, adhesive magnetic strips
Preparation: Cut picture frames out of the poster board so they measure about 1-1 ½ inches [2.5-3.8 cm] wide all the way around.
Provide each camper with a picture frame and supply each with a cup of glue and a paintbrush.
Assist campers in writing the word family on their picture frame. Instruct campers to use their paintbrush to put glue on their frame, then crumple up the tissue paper scraps and push them on to their glue. This will give their picture frames a three-dimensional effect. Remind campers to not cover up the word family on their frame. When the frame is covered with tissue paper, attach the adhesive magnetic strips.
Games
Find my family
Materials: Parachute
Evenly distribute campers around a large parachute. Choose 1 camper to crawl on top of the parachute and close her/his eyes, then have 2-3 other campers volunteer to pretend to be the first camper’s family and instruct them to crawl under the parachute. Immediately after they are under, instruct the rest of the campers who are lined up around the parachute to begin to make medium sized waves. After waves have begun, the campers who are under the parachute are to crawl around, while the camper who is on top of the parachute is to crawl around until she/he has touched all of the family members who were sent under the parachute. Give campers the chance to be in multiple roles throughout your play session.
Gather them, sort them
Materials: Four hula hoops, bucket or basket, 4 different colored balls
Lay out four hula hoops in the four corners of your play area. Place a bucket or basket containing sets of 4 different colored balls in the center of the play area (you’ll want about 20 balls total).
For round 1 of the game, campers need to work together to sort all of the balls by color. Each hula hoop in the corner should hold a different color.
For round 2 of the game, campers should work together to gather all of the balls in the center bucket again.
Round 3: Place a numeral card from Monday’s “Count the Stars” game in each hoop and have
campers work together to put the correct number of balls in each hoop.
Round 4: Gather the balls again.
Round 5: Place a star card from Monday’s “Count the Stars” game in each hoop and have campers work together to put the correct number of balls in each hoop.
Round 6: Gather the balls.
DAY 4: Jonah
Focus question
What is forgiveness?
Theme statement
Forgiveness is a gift God gives us when we do wrong, and it is something we give to others as well.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
learn about Jonah and his story—beyond the big fish.
discuss what it means to forgive.
forgive others when we are angry.
Bible text
Jonah 4:1-11 (Jonah and God)
Materials
Children’s story Bible, Big Fish stick puppet, fish cutouts with questions, sidewalk chalk, hula hoops, bucket of water, sand, clothespins, plastic fish or fish cutouts
Gather
Big Fish—What do you remember?
Prior to the beginning of the session, decide on a name for your large fish stick puppet. Tell campers that since it is Thursday, you thought it would be a good idea to take some time to think about all the things we have learned at camp so far. In order to help them remember, tell campers you have brought along a friend for the day who has a good memory. Introduce them to your Big Fish, and allow them to ask your friend some questions in order to get to know him or her better.
Use the Big Fish to ask campers some prompting questions to help them remember what things have been talked about in the previous days of Bible study. Go day by day, and have Big Fish ask campers to tell him/her the following:
What or who did they talk about?
What is something they made with their grownup(s)?
What is a song they have learned?
What has been their favorite thing so far?
What is something that happened during worship or a campfire?
What are they still excited to get to do?
Allow campers some time to tell Big Fish all about their week at camp. Once their responses have slowed down, have Big Fish introduce the next activity.
Gone fishin’
Prior to starting the day’s Bible study, hide some fish cutouts around your study space. Hide enough fish so there are enough for each camper to find just one. Be sure to hide the fish in places that are challenging enough for the campers in your group. Each fish should have one of the three following questions/statements written on the back:
Tell us about a time when you did not follow directions.
What is something that makes you angry?
What is something that could happen if we do not listen and follow directions?
Once the fish are hidden and campers have gathered and sung some opening songs, tell them you have hidden some fish all through their study space. Instruct campers that they will need to go fishin’ to find just one fish. Most campers will remain seated, and you will choose 2-3 campers to have their turn at fishing. Those who are not fishing are welcome to watch those who are, and to give them clues if they have already seen a fish hiding somewhere. Once a camper has found a fish, they can bring it back to the gathering space and choose who gets to go fishing next. Campers will need to hang on to their fish while they wait for others to go fishing.
Once all campers have gotten a chance to find a fish, have them sit down with their fish. Call campers up to you one by one so you can read them the question that is on the back of their fish. Each camper should tell the rest of the group the answer to the question. If you have a large group, you will want to call campers up 2 to 3 at a time.
Word
Sorting through the facts: Jonah
Tell campers that today’s lesson tells us about a time when people were not following God’s directions. God was upset with them, so he told a man named Jonah to go talk to the people. Read the story of Jonah from a story Bible, or summarize the story for campers, being sure to include highlights from Jonah, chapter 4, verses 1-11.
Who was in this story? (Jonah, God, the big fish.)
Why did God want Jonah to go to Nineveh? (To tell people to behave.)
Did Jonah go straight to Nineveh? What happened? (He was swallowed by a big fish and ended up in Nineveh.)
How do you think God felt about the people in Nineveh and their bad behavior? (God was really mad.)
Take some time to talk in depth about how God might have felt about the people in Nineveh because of their bad behavior. Explain to campers that God told Jonah that if the people of Nineveh didn’t change their behavior, the city would be destroyed.
When Jonah got to Nineveh and told the people that they needed to behave, did they listen to him? (Yes.)
Did God end up destroying the city? (No.)
Does anybody know which word we use to talk about what God did for the people of Nineveh? (God forgave them.)
Nature’s building blocks
To help campers review the story of Jonah, take them outside to a place that has multiple natural features to it (rocks, sand, grass, twigs, leaves, etc.). Tell them they are going to work together to build the story of Jonah using the things they see around them. The things in nature are going to serve as their building blocks. If you have an older group, give them each a step in the story to build. Remember that younger campers may need to be given something specific within a scene to build. A smaller group can work on each step together before moving on to the next. Have campers build these scenes:
God told Jonah to go to Nineveh.
Jonah goes somewhere else on a boat.
A storm comes and knocks Jonah out of the boat.
A big fish swallows Jonah and swims to Nineveh.
Jonah tells the people in Nineveh to start behaving.
The people start to live how God wants them to act.
God forgives the people of Nineveh.
Feelings and faces
Ask campers if they know what it means to forgive someone. Maybe even consider having them think of a time when they forgave someone, or a time when someone forgave them. Tell campers that forgiveness often comes after someone has made us sad or angry. Explain how forgiveness happens when we erase our feelings of anger or sadness and remember how much we love people. God forgave the people of Nineveh, and God forgave Jonah for not going to Nineveh right away.
Talk about how we often know how people are feeling based on their facial expressions. Explain to campers that they are going to show how the people in the Jonah’s story were feeling by making their own facial expressions. As you read each statement, campers will need to use their bodies to act out the feelings, faces, and actions of each:
When God saw that the people of Nineveh were not behaving, God was angry.
When God told him to go to Nineveh, Jonah was annoyed.
When Jonah was in the whale, he was scared.
When we do something that upsets our friends, they feel sad.
Take a brief moment to affirm the campers in their acting the feelings and actions out. Review the feelings and faces covered so far and ask campers if they enjoy those feelings when they come up.
Talk about how the feelings of everyone change when God forgives the people in the story, and then give them these statements to act out:
When God saw that the people of Nineveh changed the way they were acting, God was happy.
When God saw that the people of Nineveh changed, the people of Nineveh felt loved.
When someone does something mean to us then says they are sorry, we feel pleased.
Explain to campers that God forgives us for all of the mean things we do to others, and one of the ways we say thank you to God for doing that is through forgiving others. When we forgive others, it means that we let go of our angry faces and feelings and we remember to put on our loving faces and feelings.
Big splash!
Lead campers to a safe area that has plenty of pavement. Give each camper a piece of sidewalk chalk and a hula hoop. Instruct campers to lay their hula hoop on the ground and think about the “Gone fishin’ ” activity they did at the beginning of the session. Tell them to draw a picture inside their hula hoop of a time they got angry, or of something that makes them angry. Give them a few minutes to draw this, and remember that some campers may need prompting to think of things.
After campers have drawn their pictures, bring the Big Fish stick puppet back. Walk around with Big Fish and the campers to look at all of the drawings on the ground. Prompt campers to tell Big Fish what it means to forgive someone. Have Big Fish confirm what campers say, then talk about how sometimes when Big Fish jumps out of the water it makes a big splash. If Big Fish made a big splash over the angry pictures, then it would make the pictures go away . . . just like what happens when we forgive. Take Big Fish around to each drawing to make a big splash (have Big Fish dump a water on each drawing) so the anger goes away.
Send
Feelings, faces, AND . . . action!
Have campers recall and discuss the “Feelings and faces” activity you did earlier. In their discussion, have them tell you the things they have learned about forgiveness today. Explain to them that you are going to do that activity again, except this time they will need to think of something to do to show they are forgiving someone. This time you will read the statements to campers and also act out the action of the person who needs forgiving. Give each camper an opportunity to act out how they will show forgiveness in return.
You are playing basketball with your older brother, and your brother pushes you over. This makes you feel very sad. Your brother says he is sorry. How do you show your brother you forgive him?
You are at school and your friend takes your favorite book from you when you are reading it. Your friend gives it back to you after she sees that you are angry. How do you show your friend you forgive her?
You take a piece of candy from the kitchen table even though your mom told you not to. Your mom is upset with you. How do you think your mom would show she forgives you?
Sensory experience: Digging for Jonah and the fish
Fill the sensory area with sand. Have plastic fish, fish cutouts, or some other fish-shaped objects buried in different places throughout the area.
Additionally, bury some clothespins that have a stick-figure Jonah drawn on them. Explain to campers that when the big fish released Jonah, it probably left him on some sand near the water. Give campers time to play in the sand and to find all of the hidden fish and Jonah clothespins in the area.
Repeat-after-me prayer
Invite campers to repeat each line after you.
Dear God,
Thank you for forgiveness.
Sometimes we feel angry,
but you help us forgive.
Thank you for loving us enough,
to forgive us for the things we do wrong.
Amen.
Resources
Crafts
A fishy friend
Materials: 1 adult sock for each camper, newspaper or pillow stuffing, blue chenille craft stems (1-2 inches [2.5-5 cm] long), red yarn (about 1 inch [2.5 cm] long), white yarn, craft eyes, glue, scissors
Distribute a sock to each camper, and place piles of newspaper in different areas throughout the workspace. Have campers take crumpled pieces of newspaper or handfuls of pillow stuffing, then put them inside their sock. Stuff the socks until the campers get a nice, plump looking fish. Once stuffed, campers will need assistance using the white yarn to tie the end of the sock shut. After the shape of the fishy friend has taken form, there will likely be quite a bit of extra sock at the end.
Cut off whatever extra material is there so campers are left with a reasonable amount of tail. Cut two triangles from the extra sock material and glue those to the sides of the fish to serve as fins. Campers will need to poke 2-3 blue chenille craft stems through the top of their sock in a small cluster; these serve as the spout of water coming from the top of the fishy friend. Use glue to attach craft eyes and the piece of red yarn to make a mouth for the fishy friend.
Forgiveness bracelet
Materials: Elastic string, pony beads, fish-shaped beads, letter beads, scissors
Assist campers in cutting a piece of string that will go around their wrist or ankle. Spell out forgive somewhere so all campers are able to see it— have them pick through the letter beads to find all the letters they need for that word. Tie a knot at one end of the string to stop the beads. Have campers string a mixture of pony beads, fish-shaped beads, and their letter beads to spell the word forgive. When finished, explain to campers that when they look at this bracelet it is their reminder to forgive others just like God forgave Jonah and the people of Nineveh.
Games
Jonah toss
Materials: Hula hoop, beanbags
Lay a hula hoop on the ground and tell campers to form a line about 4 feet [1.3 meters] away from the hoop. Tell them the hoop is the belly of the big fish and it is up to them to get Jonah into the belly.
Give campers 2-3 beanbags to represent Jonah and have them throw the beanbags into the hoop.
Once the entire line has gone through, move the hoop back 1-2 feet [.3-.6 meters] and have the campers each try again. Keep moving the hoop back after each round to challenge campers to make it into the hoop.
The swim to Nineveh
Set up an obstacle course for campers that will require them to jump, crawl, roll, run, walk, and go over, under, and around. If you have a sprinkler, try to incorporate it into your obstacle course. Explain to them that they are the big fish that is carrying Jonah to Nineveh. Give them a beanbag or a ball that can represent Jonah. Their job is to safely carry Jonah through the obstacle course and in to Nineveh. Allow campers to do the obstacle course once by themselves, and then match them up with a partner. Remember that you will likely have to run alongside campers to remind them what they are supposed to do at each challenge.
Each pair has to work as a team to safely get Jonah to Nineveh. While they are going through the course they both need to be touching Jonah. For an added challenge, you may want to time each pair as they go through, being sure to celebrate with campers no matter what their time ends up being.
DAY 5: Jeremiah
Focus question
How do we share God’s BIG love?
Theme statement
God has so much love for us that we get to share it with others.
Objectives
This Bible study will help preschool campers and their leaders:
understand just how much God loves us.
explore and discuss what to do with all of the love God has for us.
practice showing love to others as a way of celebrating how much God loves us.
Bible text
Jeremiah 1:4-10 (Jeremiah’s call)
Materials
Children’s story Bible, piece of paper, pair of scissors, tall bottle, 2 Tbsp. [30 ml] baking soda, dish soap, ⅓ cup [90 ml] vinegar, 3 drops red food coloring, piece of card stock that has a large heart made with dashed lines on it for each camper, pencils, crayons
Gather
God’s love overflows
Bring campers to an outdoor area. Start the session out by asking campers what you have been talking about all week in Bible study. Discuss how you have been talking about God’s love for us, and then how we show love to God and others.
Explain that you are going to do an experiment to show them how much God loves us.
Place the bottle on the ground and start a discussion with campers to see if they think the bottle will hold all of God’s love. As you are having this discussion with them, put the baking soda, a few drops of dish soap, and the red food coloring in the bottle. Tell campers the things you are putting in the bottle are some pretend ingredients for God’s love.
Take a moment to stop and show campers your cup of vinegar. Explain how the stuff in the cup is the love that we have and can share with others. Ask campers for predictions on what they think will happen if you add your love to the bottle of God’s love.
Once campers have given their predictions, have them count down with you as you prepare to add the vinegar. Slowly pour the vinegar into the bottle to watch God’s love overflow. Ask campers what they think of what they just saw, and what they think it tells them about what happens when we share God’s love.
Do the demonstration a few times to give campers multiple opportunities to learn.
God’s love grows!
Write “God’s love” in large letters on a piece of paper. Show campers your piece of paper and tell them about what it says. Tell them the corners of your piece of paper are helpful in figuring out how much of God’s love you have. Ask campers to count out loud with you as you count how many corners the paper has. (Four.)
Ask campers what they think you should do with God’s love. If they don’t encourage sharing as an option, you may want to prompt them to get to this. Act like you are unsure about doing that because then you will have less of God’s love; eventually cut off a corner of the paper and give it to a camper. Test the idea that you have less of God’s love in your hands through working with campers to count how many corners your paper has now. (Five.) As you count, be sure to count the corners of the piece you shared as well. (Total of eight.) Act mystified (you did just cut a corner off, of course!).
Try this a few more times, each time cutting off another corner and sharing it with a camper. Stop in between each round to count all corners. Ask campers what they think is happening and give them time to respond.
Conclude by explaining how God’s love gets bigger when we share it with others.
Word
Sorting through the facts: Jeremiah
Tell campers that today you are going to talk about a boy who God loved very much. Gold told the boy to go out and share this love by telling other people about it. Read the call of Jeremiah from the story Bible, or read Jeremiah 1:4-10 using stick puppets. Ask the following:
Who was this story about? (Jeremiah and God.)
How did God feel about Jeremiah? (God loved Jeremiah very much.)
God told Jeremiah that he was going to be something called a prophet. Does anybody have a guess as to what a prophet might be? (Take multiple answers, explain what a prophet is.)
What did God tell Jeremiah to do? (Tell people what God has to say to them.)
God wants us to go tell people something. What do you think that is? (God loves us very much!)
How did Jeremiah feel about that? (He was afraid.)
How did God help Jeremiah with his fear? (God gave Jeremiah words.)
Explain to campers how God has called upon all of us today, just like God called on Jeremiah. Our job is to share God’s love with other people. Sometimes we don’t know which words to use to tell people, but God helps people come up with the words and actions even today.
Sharing charades
Talk about how we know that God loved Jeremiah very much. From this discussion, have campers think and talk about how they know people love them a lot. Just like Jeremiah, we are to share God’s love with other people. Give campers a few examples on how they share God’s love. (Giving hugs, telling people we love them, helping people when they are sad or in need, etc.)
Instruct campers to think of something they can do at home, and then have them act it out for the group either as an individual or with a friend. Those who are not acting it out get to guess what the actors are doing to show how they share God’s love. Campers may need some coaching and individual help as they think of something and determine how to act it out. You may even want to prepare slips of paper that have ways of sharing God’s love written on them for campers to draw from a hat and act out.
Send
Drawing God’s love
Distribute the heart drawings to each camper along with a pencil and some crayons. Have them trace and decorate their heart. As they are doing this, approach each camper and ask them to name a person they love. Next ask them to tell you what they will do to share God’s love with that person, then write their response on the back of their heart. If time allows, give campers the opportunity to cut their hearts out.
Before campers leave, remind them to take the action with the person they said they would.
Sensory experience: Nature textures
Ask campers what they think God’s love feels like. If needed, give campers examples, such as: “God’s love feels fuzzy and warm.” Explain to campers that you are going to go on a walk through camp. While on the walk they should look for things that they think feel similar to God’s love. Each time a camper finds something, stop in that place to talk about what it feels like. Encourage campers to try touching the things they find. Be sure to avoid walking through any areas that may contain unsafe things to touch.
Repeat-after-me prayer
Invite campers to repeat each line after you.
Dear God,
Thank you for your BIG love.
Please help us,
To tell people about your love for us,
Just like Jeremiah.
Amen.
Resources
Crafts
God loves you! cards
Materials: Glue, construction paper, scissors, glitter, any other card-making supplies
Just as Jeremiah was called to share the things God told him, we are called to share the things God tells us. One of the things God wants us to know is that we are loved. Lay out materials for making a card—the front of the card should have GOD LOVES YOU! printed on it. Instruct campers to think about someone at home who they want to tell about God’s love, and have them make a card for that person. As campers are decorating their cards, have an adult walk around to talk to each camper and write whom the card is for on the front, or to encourage the campers to write this on their own. Adults can work with preschool campers to decide what to write on the inside of the card.
A place for love to grow . . . (flowerpots)
Materials: Small terra-cotta or plastic flowerpots, slightly diluted glue, tissue paper scraps, paintbrushes, potting soil, seeds to plant
Have campers recollect the “God’s love grows!” activity from the beginning of the session. What happened as you shared God’s love (the corners) with others? It grew. Tell campers they will be making a flowerpot to share with someone to spread God’s love.
Give each camper a flowerpot and a paintbrush, and station supplies of the glue solution and tissue paper scraps around the craft area. Each camper should be sitting near one of these stations. Show campers how to dip their paintbrush in the glue and put a little bit of glue on their flowerpot. From there they should stick a piece of tissue paper to the glue, then use their paintbrush to put glue over the tissue paper. Campers should work to cover their entire flowerpot. Give plenty of time for the flowerpots to dry, and then come back to them so campers can plant a seed in their flowerpots. Have campers discuss to whom they will give their flowerpots once they leave camp.
Games
God’s love is for everyone!
Create a large, square-shaped space for campers to run in. Have everyone stand on one end of the space, and then choose three campers to go to the middle of the square. Tell the campers who are in the middle of the square that they are there to share God’s love. It is up to them to share it with the other campers so God’s love can grow. When God’s love is “ready,” campers in the middle will call out to the other campers by yelling, “God’s love is for everyone!” The campers who are standing at the edge of the space will run directly across to the other side of the space. As they are doing this, the campers in the middle will try to “share” God’s love by tagging the campers who are running across. If a camper is tagged, he/she is to join in the middle to share God’s love. Play until everyone has been tagged by God’s love.
Around the world
Materials: Poly-vinyl spots or bandanas, balls
Place 10-15 poly-vinyl spots or bandanas around a large outdoor area. Explain to campers that these are all places in the world where they’ll need to share God’s love. To do that, they need to kick a ball so that it touches each of the poly-vinyl spots. Match each camper up with a partner and have each pair kick the ball back and forth to one another until God’s love has been shared with all of the places. You may choose to have just one pair of campers working at a time, or you may add the challenge of having multiple pairs kicking the ball at the same time. Allow campers to try this multiple times.
“A love that never ends” Outdoor ministries curriculum, © 2014 Lutheran Outdoor Ministries. May be reproduced for local use.
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