The Greatest Journey

 During Christmas, many shoeboxes of gifts and school supplies will have been distributed to children all around the world. Organizations and churches that give out shoeboxes from Samaritan's Purse also agree to offer Bible lessons using THE GREATEST JOURNEY. This is an excellent introduction to the Gospel. 

This series begins additional activities for each lesson from the creators of Davar: Bridging to Literacy. These are created with children from oral cultures in mind. They also use minimal or readily-found materials. Plus they suggest ways to break these excellent but very full lessons into several sessions. 

Lessons 1-6:  Know the Gospel

Welcome Lesson

1.    The Great Creator,  Gen 1:1-2:3 (Creation)

 

Discussion/circle questions: 

1.    Which day of creation would you like to have been there to see?

      (Develops children’s sense of:  Who am I? What do I want? Need to develop this in order to be able to make a choice for Jesus.)

2.    What do you see that God has made? What do you feel?  Hear?

Activities: 

Make a puzzle with the illustration in teacher’s guide

Retell the story.

Game in book:  Guess animal, 20 questions

Davar Game: Beginning sounds of names (might be too advanced; see below)

Davar Start Game Mosaic—begin with a mess; make something from it.

God spoke and it was (see below)

Free drawing; mess + design (see below)

 

Beginning sounds.  Game that introduces theme + pre-reading skills.

1.    Explain to the children that each of their names begins with a sound.

For example:  Maria--mmmmaria

Other words begin with the same sound.

For example:  mama--mmmmama

2.    Ask one child to say their name. The group can then all make the sound that that name begins with. Can that child (or the group as a whole) think of something else that begins with the same sound?

Note:  focus on the sound, not the spelling. For instance, in English “Oscar” does not begin with the same sounds as “ocean” and “Chantal” does not begin with the same sound as “church.”

You might want to think of a couple of sound examples ahead of time.

3.    Repeat with each child.

4.    Make a list of all the names.

 

 God Spoke and it was there

·      Everyone walks freely around the classroom.

·      When the leader says a word, everyone stops and acts out that word.

·      The leader does, too, as an example.

·      Choose words of things God created (and the children will know):

§  Tree

§  Tiger

§  Frog

§  Flower

§  Mouse

§  Elephant

 

·      Repeat the game with the words that the children appeared to like best.

This practices:  Listening, paying attention, creativity.

 

Beginning handcraft.  Craft/handwork that introduces theme + practices writing skills.

Needed:  paper, colors/colored pencils; two drawings you make ahead of time.

1.    Give every child a paper and access to different colored pencils or crayons. Let them draw whatever they like. Little children will probably make a mess; others will draw something.

2.    When the children are finished, show each of the drawings you made ahead of time:  Design of the beginning (a mess) MADE BY YOURSELF

And a design of order (a world) MADE BY YOURSELF. 

Samaritan’s Purse
PO Box 3000
Boone, NC 28607

USA