Scripture: Matthew 26:31-35 and 57-75
Memory Verse: “All of us have
sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.”
Romans 3:23 (CEV)
Offering: One
Great Hour of Sharing
Concepts:
Objectives:
The children will explore and practice the movement games of mirroring
and flocking and compare what they learn from that experience to Peter and his
denial.
Procedure:
Welcome and Introductions:
1.
Greet the
children and introduce yourself. Wear
your nametag. Make sure the children are wearing nametags. If not, ask the
shepherd to supply a temporary badge. Remember you are interacting with a
different group of students each week that may not know you.
2.
Explain the
purpose of this workshop. Today we are
going to play some movement games to help us understand the story about Peter’s
denial that he knew Jesus.
Scripture/Bible Story:
Review the Bible
story. Read the story aloud to the children and
discuss the following questions: 1) Why
do you think Peter said he would never say he didn’t know Jesus? (he wanted to stay faithful, he didn’t want
to let Jesus down) 2) Why do you think
Peter ended up saying he didn’t know Jesus?
(he was afraid) 3) How do you
think Peter felt afterwards? (sad, angry with himself, afraid)
Application:
Begin by having all the children stand in one or two rows facing
you. Tell them they are going to mirror
your movements. Just like when you look
in a mirror and your reflection does the exact same thing you do at the exact
same time. (As the leader, you will need
to keep your movements simple, slow and smooth, watching the children to be
sure they are keeping up with you. Hand
and arm movements are the easiest to start with) You may wish to use some background music to
help establish a calm mood. After the
group has successfully done that, ask the children what they had to do in order
to match your movements exactly. (pay
attention, concentrate, focus, look at you, not look at anything/anyone
else)
Repeat the whole group mirroring activity, but this time, have the shepherd
create distractions by talking or singing or making funny faces—anything to try
to take the children’s attention away from you.
As they do lose focus and concentration, remind them to try to refocus
on you and not pay attention to the distractions. Afterwards, ask the children what happened
when the shepherd started doing distracting things. (they lost their concentration, they had
trouble following the movements exactly, etc.)
Tell them that the distractions were similar to what happens to us when
we’re trying to follow Jesus: when we
get distracted, we sometimes lose our way and can’t follow Jesus anymore. What are some things that could be
distractions in our lives? (fear, like
Peter felt—what might we be afraid of?
Peer pressure to do things we know are not good choices; television;
etc.)
How can we stay focused or refocus when we lose it? (Pray, read the bible, talk to parents,
pastors or other trusted person, we can persevere—keep trying until we get it
right)
Divide the children into partners and let them try mirroring
one-on-one. Afterwards, discuss whether
there were any differences in focus and concentration with a partner. Was it easier? Harder? Reiterate how to
refocus in our lives and that we can still do great things to honor God even
though we make mistakes.
Older
children: They may try flocking which is similar to
mirroring, but instead of partners, a small group of 3-5 children work together
all facing the same direction. They
should arrange themselves in a triangular shape so that there is one person out
in front who cannot see the rest. That
person is the leader. The leader uses
slow, smooth movements just like in the mirroring and the others copy those
movements. When the leader changes
directions, there should be a new leader who can’t see the others. The leader keeps changing as the group
changes its direction/facing.
Younger
Children: Only do mirroring. Change partners to see how that affects
concentration. Add distractions and see
who can stay focused despite them.
Reflection Time:
At 10:35 a.m. ask the
shepherds to pass out the journal sheets and pencils/markers. Suggestion: You
may wish to give the children a sticker or some memento to paste in their
journal as a reminder of the story or activity.
Prompts for
journal writing: What might be a distraction for you this week? Draw a picture of it. Write a sentence or two that tells what you
will try to do to stay on track despite that distraction.
At 10:45 ask the students to
close their journals and sit quietly for prayer.
Prayer: Dear God, help us to stay
focused on following Jesus. When we do
get distracted, help us realize that we have made a mistake and guide us back
on track. Amen.
Tidy and Dismissal: Ask children to help tidy up. Close/lock the door and turn off the
lights.
Teacher preparation in advance:
1.
Read the
scripture passages and attend the Faith Quest Leaders Bible Study.
2.
Prepare
a closing prayer.
3.
Check
out the room before your first Sunday workshop so that you know where everything
is located. The bin with supplies is located in on the stage in the Great Hall.
Supply List
·
Boombox
·
Music like Suzanne Cianni Neverland. (I will be happy
to make a tape for you or let you borrow a cd.)
References
Notes from Bible
study prepared by Lori Houck.