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Demo: Sunday School
Program: The Heart of God
Format: Ages 3-6
Quarter: Quarter One
Lesson 1: God Creates Us in His Image (Genesis 1)
Summary Verse: "Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding" (Isaiah 40:28).
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Opening
5 min View
Opening
WelcomeSupplies
- Bible
Welcome
- Thank kids for coming.
- Just for fun, have children shake hands with four friends using the back of their hands.
- Make announcements.
- Introduce new kids.
- Celebrate birthdays by having preschoolers say “happy birthday” in the voice of their favorite cartoon characters.
- Collect the offering.
Introduce the Lesson
Say: Today we’ll learn that God is creative. That means he makes things. He can make anything. He makes things that are wonderful and wild and big and small and amazing! He even made you and me to be creative. Today we’ll learn how God made you and me and the whole world. Let’s think about some things we’ve made.
Share
- Share about something you made that you’re proud of. For example, it might be a craft, a meal, or a song you wrote.
- In leader-led small groups, have preschoolers share things they made that they’re proud of. It might be a building they made with blocks or a picture they drew during free time, or it might be something made at home with their parents or siblings.
- After small groups have discussed, have adult or teen helpers share with the whole group what they talked about in their small groups.
Summarize
Open a Bible, and say: Each of you is creative—God made you to be creative in the ways you think, move, and make things. God made everything; he’s creative. The Bible tells us about all the things God made with his creativity. The Bible shows us how much God loves us and how we can share that love with others. Let’s find out more about that as we read the Bible today.
Pray, thanking God that he’s creative and he made us to be creative, too.
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Core Bible
20 min View
Core Bible Discovery
God Creates Us in His Image (Genesis 1)Supplies
- Bible
- blocks or Legos
- craft supplies such as construction paper, pompoms, chenille wire, sequins, foam shapes, and glue
- fabrics in different colors and sizes
- stuffed animals or other toy animals, fish, or bird
- gold foil wrapping paper (available at Walmart and craft stores)
- bell
Easy Prep
- Make a creation station for every 5 to 6 kids. Make at least 1 creation station per set of supplies: 1 station with blocks or Legos, 1 station with craft supplies, and 1 station with fabrics in different sizes and colors and the stuffed animals. If you have more than 18 kids, make several stations per set of supplies so kids can work in groups of 5 or 6 with 1 set of supplies.
- Cut the gold foil wrapping into 6x6-inch squares, 1 per child.
Tip
- Leave kids' creation scenes in place for use in the Life Application Wrap-Up activity.
Make Creation Scenes
Dim the lights in your room. Say: Today we’re learning that God is creative. That means God can make things. But he doesn’t just make simple things. He makes amazing and exciting things! The Bible says he made the whole world, and he even made you and me. God created us, and he made us to be creative, too. God made us in his image. That means God created us to be like him. God is kind to others, and he made us to be kind to others, too. God is brave, and he made us to be brave, too.
Point out the creation stations. Say: We can be creative because God made us in his image. Let’s use these creation stations to show how God made the whole world. Invite children to choose a station based on the supplies they want to play with. It’s okay if groups aren’t even. Your kids may gravitate more toward certain supplies, but try to steer kids into groups of fewer than 10 so there aren’t too many kids at a station for everyone to participate.
Have an adult or teen helper join each creation station and help children in the creation process as you tell the Bible story.
Show the Bible. Say: The Bible shows us God is creative. Read Genesis 1:1. God made the world. At first it was covered only in water. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to make a round world covered only in water. There’s no right way for them to create the creation scenes—the idea is to invite preschoolers to be creative,— but adult or teen helpers can help them with ideas about what supplies to use at their stations. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might use blue blocks to make a big circle.
- Craft station: Kids might tear a blue sheet of construction paper into a circle. They might work independently, making their own blue circles.
- Fabric station: Kids might lay out a large piece of blue fabric, and bunch the edges to make a circle.
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Read Genesis 1:3, and then turn on the lights. Read Genesis 1:4-5, and demonstrate night and day by turning the lights on and off a few times.
Say: God created night and day. And then God separated the sky from the ground.
Read Genesis 1:9-10. Say: Next, God made the land and the oceans. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add land to their world. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might use brown blocks to add patches of land on top of the water.
- Craft station: Kids might add brown foam shapes over the water they previously created.
- Fabric station: Kids might place small pieces of brown fabric on their water, creating different shapes of “land.”
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Say: God also made the plants we see growing up from the land. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add plants to their scenes. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might make trees by stacking several blocks on top of each other.
- Craft station: Kids might bend chenille wires into trees or flowers.
- Fabric station: Kids might bunch brightly colored pieces of fabric to look like flowers or treetops.
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Say: When God looked at the land, water, and plants he made, God said it was good. What you made is good, too. God made you in his image, so you can be creative like him.
The Bible says God named all these things—he named the day and the night. He named the sky, the land, and the seas. The Bible says God made the stars and moon to light the sky at night, and he made the sun to light the sky during the day. God said all he made was good. Let’s see what good things you can create. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add to their creation scenes. Kids might make only a nighttime scene or a daytime scene, or they could create a daytime scene on one side of their world and a nighttime scene on the opposite side of their world. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might use yellow blocks to make stars and the moon or the sun.
- Craft station: Kids might use sequins to make stars above their world. They might use a large pompom or a round foam shape for the sun or the moon.
- Fabric station: Kids might make a yellow ball from a yellow piece of fabric for the sun or the moon.
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Say: Your creations look good! When God looked at the stars, sun, and moon he created, he said it was good. God is creative, so we can be creative, too. But God didn’t stop there. Read Genesis 1:20. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add fish and birds to their creation scenes. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might put together various Lego pieces to make a bird or a fish. They might also pretend one brightly colored block is a bird and another is a fish. They can make fish faces with their lips and make “tweet” noises with their voices.
- Craft station: Kids might use pompoms to make birds or fish. They might also bend chenille wires.
- Fabric station: Kids might pick out stuffed birds or other toy birds or fish to add to their creation scene.
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Say: God told the fish and birds to multiply. God wanted the birds and fish to have baby birds and baby fish so there would be lots of them. God saw the birds and fish, and he said it was good. I like your creations—they’re good, too. Next, God created the animals on the land. Read Genesis 1:25. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add animals to their creation scenes. They can add the animals in a similar way to how they added the fish and birds.
Say: Let’s find out what God made after he made the animals. Read Genesis 1:26-27. That means God made people. He made boys and girls in his image. He made us to be like him. And because God is creative, we can be creative. Encourage children to work in their creation station groups to add people to their creation scenes. Here are some ideas:
- Block or Lego station: Kids might put Lego people in their scene.
- Craft station: Kids might make chenille-wire people.
- Fabric station: Kids might be live models for their scene.
Signal with a bell to let kids know it’s time to move on to the next part of the Bible story. Say: God named the people, and he told them to have families. He wanted there to be lots of people on earth. He made the people rulers over the plants, animals, fish, and birds. And he looked over all he made and said it was good. God is creative, so we’re creative, too. Encourage each group to show off its creation scene to one other group.
Talk About It
Give each child a square of gold foil. Say: God is beautiful, kind of like this beautiful, shiny gold square. God gives us light—it’s like he shines and sparkles. He’s kind, loving, patient, strong, and all the other good things in the world. Every good thing comes from him. When God created us… Begin to shape a square into a heart by crumpling it. He made us in his image. He put some of himself in us when he made us. Because God is kind, when he made us in his image, he put his kindness in us. Because God is creative, when he made us in his image, he put creativity in us.
Show kids how to crumple their gold foil into hearts.
Share about something you think God put in you. You might share about how God made you to care about others’ feelings or that God made you to be strong so you can help others.
Ask: • What’s something you think God put in you? Help children think of characteristics of God’s that God created in them. They might talk about how they can be helpful because God is helpful or they can listen because God made them to be listeners like he is.
Say: God is creative. He created you, and he created me! Like this gold paper was formed into a heart, God put his character into us when he made us. He made us in his image. We’re made to be like him.
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Wrap-Up
5 min View
Life Application Wrap-Up
Creative Under His CreationSupplies
- creation scenes kids built in Core Bible Discovery
Choose a Creation Scene
Gather the children away from the creation scenes. Say: Today we found out that God is creative and that we can be creative, too! We learned how God created, or made, the whole world, and we made our own creation scenes to show some of the things God made. Let’s thank God for creating us right now.
Encourage the children to choose a creation scene to sit in. If you have adult or teen helpers, ask them to join children in each creation scene.
Thank God
Say: Look around in your creation scene. God made everything in it, including the friends you’re sitting next to! Let’s thank God for creating us. Lead the children in a brief prayer, thanking God for creating the land, the sky, the water, the animals, and each one of the children. (If you have a small group, name each child individually.)
Say: God is so creative that he even made each of us to be special and unique. We each have special talents and things about us that God gave us, and God likes when we use the special things about us to create new things, too. Let’s thank God for making us creative. Lead children in a brief prayer, thanking God for making each person creative. (If you have a small group, name something special about each child.)
Say: It’s wonderful to have each of you creative kids in church with us today. We hope you’ll come back next week!
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Music Video
10 min View
Music Video
Light of the WorldSupplies
- “Shine” (watch or download here)
- “No, Not One” (watch or download here)
- “You Are in Charge” (watch or download here)
Tip
- Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can choose your own worship songs from our Best Of Dig In Music DVD here.
Sing Songs to God
Sing the three songs in any order.
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Core Bible at Home
20 min View -
Talk-About Video
10 min View
Talk-About Video
Super Quadcopter World Racing ChampionSupplies
- “Super Quadcopter World Racing Champion” teaching video (watch or download here)
Tips:
- Talk-About Videos may work for preschoolers, but they’re geared more toward elementary kids. If you find that the videos aren’t hitting the mark for your preschoolers, try using the Preschool Puppet Skit activity block instead.
- Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can download the videos before class using the “download” button at the link provided, or purchase DVDs here.
Discuss and Watch “Super Quadcopter World Racing Champion”
Say: Today we’re learning that God is the greatest, and we don’t need to be.
Ask: • If you could be the best in the world at something, what would you want it to be?
Say: Let’s watch a video about a kid who’s getting ready to be the best super quadcopter racer in the world.
Watch “Super Quadcopter World Racing Champion.”
Ask: • What did you think about how Carter was acting?
• Who is someone you noticed that Carter hurt? Explain.
Say: It’s not bad to be great at something, but we don’t want to think we’re better than other people. And we do want to remember that God is the greatest. He’s more amazing than anyone or anything. The people we’re reading about in the Bible today tried to build the tallest tower so they would be the greatest. They found out, like Carter did in our video, that we don’t need to be the greatest. Because God is the greatest we can put him first.
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Preschool Puppet
10 min View
Preschool Puppet Skit
Theo Makes a Block TowerSupplies
- Theophilus the FaithRetriever™ Puppet (order here)
- blocks (1 per child, plus a few for Theo)
Easy Prep
- Set a few blocks where you and the kids will be sitting with Theo. Place the other blocks around the room.
Tip
- You may find it helpful to highlight your part and set the script on a music stand nearby during the skit.
Leader: It’s time for our puppy friend, Theo, to come for a visit. Let’s call him to our class with a “woof, woof.” Ready? (Leads kids to bark until Theo is brought into view.)
Theo: Hi, friends! (Pants.) I really, really want a good scratch. I was wondering if you’d scratch my back? (Circulates among kids so each child can pet him.)
Leader: Thanks for giving a friendly welcome to Theo, kids!
Theo: I brought these fun blocks to share today. (Begins to build a tower.)
Leader: That was nice of you, Theo! What did you want to make together?
Theo: The tallest tower in the world! (Looks to kids.) Will you help me? (Stops building.)
Leader: If you all work together, you sure can build a tall tower. But I’m not sure you can build the tallest tower in the world.
Theo: Do you see any taller towers around here?
Leader: Not in this room, but I have seen some pretty tall towers. Like [name a tall building in your town or city]. Kids, can you think of other tall buildings you’ve seen around town? (Encourages kids to share about buildings in their town.)
Theo: How tall are those buildings?
Leader: Some are VERY tall. (Looks to the ceiling.)
Theo: (Looks up, too.) Very tall, huh? Hmm. We’re going to need some more blocks! (Leads kids to gather blocks from around the room.) We need our tower to be the tallest!
Leader: Theo, why does your tower need to be so tall?
Theo: Because I want MY tower to be the best! (Turns to kids.) Let’s get to work, friends. (Works with kids to build for a minute, muttering how he’s going to be the greatest when he has the tallest tower.)
Leader: Theo, are you hoping this tower will make you the greatest?
Theo: Yep! I’m going to be the greatest puppy of all time. (Points to kids.) And my friends are going to be the greatest kids!
Leader: (Chuckles.) You all are pretty great, Theo. But you don’t need to be the greatest. There’s only ONE who is the greatest.
Theo: What? Who is greater than me and my friends? (Points to kids and then continues to build.)
Leader: God is the greatest.
Theo: (Freezes and slowly turns his head toward leader.) I didn’t think about God. (Smiles and acts cheerful.) God really is the greatest!
Leader: He is, and we don’t need to be the greatest.
Theo: Do you think God is mad at me for building a tall tower?
Leader: No, Theo, God loves it when you do your best.
Theo: Really? Like when I run as fast as I can after my ball?
Leader: Yes, God likes it when you work hard and do your best.
Theo: So I can do my best, but I don’t have to be the greatest?
Leader: That’s right, Theo. God wants us to do our best.
Theo: (Looks to kids.) What do you work hard at? (Encourages kids to share about things they work hard at, like playing a sport, learning their letters and sounds, or drawing a picture.)
Leader: (Looks to Theo.) Theo, you have some hardworking friends.
Theo: (Looks at leader.) That’s right—my friends can do some great things.
Leader: They sure can!
Theo: But they’re not the greatest. God is the greatest!
Leader: That’s right.
Theo: God is the greatest at taking care of me. (Looks to kids.) Friends, will you help me think of some other things God is great at? (Helps kids think of more ideas, like God is the greatest at loving, he has the most power of all and he’s the strongest, and he’s the greatest at creating things.)
Leader: God is the greatest at all those things!
Theo: If God is so great, then we don’t need to be because he’ll take care of us and show us how to love and use his muscles to help us! (Makes muscles.) Everyone make muscles with me! (Leads kids to make muscles.)
Leader: Look at all those big muscles! God sure did make all of you strong!
Theo: (Pauses and looks over at his tower.) I guess we don’t need a tall tower to make us great when we have the greatest God taking care of us. (Knocks tower over.) I’m going to make the world’s SHORTEST tower ever! (Picks up only one block.)
Leader: You’re so silly, Theo! We’ll see you later—kids, give him a big “woof, woof, goodbye”! (Leads kids to say “woof, woof, goodbye,” and then places Theo out of sight.)
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Object Lesson
10 min View
Object Lesson
The Greatest BubbleSupplies
- bubble solution
- several small wands
- several larger wands
- shallow pans (1 for every 5 kids)
Easy Prep
- If you don’t have larger wands readily available, try making some out of chenille wire. Simply form and twist one into a large circle, and then attach another to make a handle.
- Pour bubble solution into shallow pans so several kids can reach the bubbles at the same time.
Use Small Bubble Wands
Say: It’s so much fun to blow bubbles! Let’s try to make the biggest and greatest bubble ever!
Have kids take turns blowing bubbles with small wands. Invite adult or teen helpers to blow bubbles, too. Encourage kids and challenge them to blow the biggest bubbles they can.
Use Large Bubble Wands
Say: You made some great bubbles. But now let’s see if we can make bubbles that are even greater! Instead of using small wands, let’s use these big ones.
- Have kids take turns using the large wands to make even bigger bubbles.
- Invite kids to continue playing with all the wands to make bubbles.
Talk About It
Say: The small wands make great bubbles, but the big wands make even greater ones! Invite children to talk about the biggest bubble they saw during their time playing.
Say: We can try to make great big things, but nothing is as big or great as God! God can do anything, and he loves us more than anyone. God is the greatest. Blow a big bubble, and invite kids to shout “God is the greatest!” before it pops.
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Deeper Bible
15 min View
Deeper Bible
Towers of GreatnessSupplies
- Bible
- sticky notes (1 pad for every 3-4 preschoolers)
- bulletin board paper
- thick marker
- crayons, washable markers, stickers, and other craft supplies
- painter’s tape
Easy Prep
- Roll out a length of bulletin board paper (at least 6 feet long) and write “God is the greatest!” in large letters. Set this aside until later in the lesson.
Make a Tower
Divide preschoolers into groups of three or four, and have each group sit together near a wall in your room.
Say: There are so many great things and people in the world. As you name each of the following great things, place one sticky note on the wall, adding one note above another to resemble a tower. Some great things include our families, fun parks, ice cream cones, pretty lakes…and so much more! Let’s work in groups to build sticky-note towers to show all the things we think are great!
Give each group a pad of sticky notes.
Let preschoolers take turns sharing something or someone they think is great, peeling off a note from the pad, and sticking it to the wall to create a tower. Have preschoolers put their first sticky notes at the base of the wall and continue sharing and adding sticky notes as high up the wall as they can reach.
Talk About It
Once kids can’t reach any higher, have preschoolers share with the whole group some of the things they think are great.
Say: Thanks for sharing about all those great things. And you know, all of those things are great because of God! God made everything that’s great. He made great big grassy hills that we have fun rolling down, and he made yummy berries to eat. God gave us great people in our lives and our favorite music to listen to. Everything that’s great is that way because it’s a gift from the greatest one: God. Here’s what the Bible says about that.
Read James 1:17.
Say: Out of all the great things in the world, God is the greatest! That’s because God is the creator of every great thing, and he’ll always love and care for us. God is so good to us!
Decorate Banner
Show preschoolers the banner you made before class, and tell them what it says.
Say: Let’s decorate this banner and hang it above our towers to remember that God is higher and greater than anyone or anything. God is the greatest!
Lay the banner on the floor along with the craft supplies, and let preschoolers decorate it. Then hang up the banner above preschoolers’ sticky-note towers, and lead kids in cheering “God is the greatest!”
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High-Energy Game
10 min View
High-Energy Game
Line LeaderPlay a Game Like Follow the Leader
Say: When we walk together in a line, the person at the front is called the line leader. Let’s play a game where everyone will have a turn to be the line leader. As we walk in line, we’ll do what the leader does!
- Have kids line up. If you have a large class, form lines of about 10 kids each. Each group will have its own leader.
- Tell kids that they’ll do what the line leader does. You may want to provide parameters of what not to do so everyone stays safe and has fun. For example, if you’re in a smaller room, you might discourage running; if you share a space with others, you might ask kids to make only quiet noises.
- Demonstrate by being the first line leader. As you go around the room, move in different ways and have kids follow your lead. Ideas include:
- hop like a bunny
- skip
- clap above your head as you walk
- pretend to be airplanes and make zooming noises
- tiptoe
- gallop like horses
- After one trip around the room, move to the back of the line and let the next child be the leader.
- Play until everyone has had a turn to be the line leader.
Talk About It
Tell kids what you enjoyed about being the line leader. Perhaps you felt important or liked making kids laugh and have fun.
Ask: • What did you like about being the leader in our game?
Say: In our game, we had to watch the person at the front of the line because they were most important. But people aren’t really the most important; God is—God is the greatest! He’s the most important, so we watch and follow him. We can watch God when someone reads to us about him in the Bible, when we pray and talk to him, and when we listen to how he’s helping people around us. God is the greatest! We can follow him.
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Low-Energy Game
10 min View
Low-Energy Game
Tower BowlingSupplies
- plastic cups (6 cups for every 5 or 6 kids)
- small playground balls (1 for every 5 or 6 kids)
- masking tape
Easy Prep
- Make a masking-tape line across 1 end of the room. Then make a masking-tape X across from the tape line. Make an X for every 5 or 6 kids. (See diagram in activity.)
- Place a ball on the tape line across from each X.
Build a Cup Tower
Say: In our Bible story, the people worked hard to build a tall tower. But God stopped their work and separated all the people. Let’s play a game where we’ll build a tower with cups and then separate them!
- Form groups of five or six, and assign one adult or teen helper to each group. Invite each group to gather by an X on the floor.
- Give each group six cups, and have kids build a pyramid-shaped tower on their group’s X (three cups on bottom, two on the second level, and one on top). Encourage adult or teen helpers to be ready to help.
- One by one, have kids take turns running to the tape line and rolling the ball to knock down the cups. (Have the other kids in the group gather behind their group’s X so they’re not in the way of the ball. The adult or teen helpers will return the balls to the tape line.)
- When cups are scattered, have kids work together to rebuild the tower before another child runs and rolls the ball into the cups again.
- Repeat, giving each child several turns to roll the ball into the cups.
Talk About It
Say: Like the cups separated and scattered in our game, the people in our Bible story were separated. They forgot that God is the greatest! God is the greatest at loving people and taking care of us. He’s the most powerful and knows more than anyone. Since God is the greatest, we don’t have to be. We can trust that he’ll help us, even when we mess up or fall down!
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Craft
20 min View
Craft
Gold Medal for GodSupplies
- yogurt lids, old CDs, or circles cut from card stock (1 per child)
- gold aluminum foil (available in hobby stores)
- large paper clips (1 per child)
- blue ribbon (2-foot length per child)
- permanent marker
- stickers, foam shapes, and other decorating supplies
- tape
Easy Prep
- Make a sample craft to show preschoolers.
Make Gold Medals
Say: The people in our Bible story tried to build a really, really tall tower because they wanted to be the greatest. They had forgotten that God is the greatest, and nobody could ever be as great as God. God is the greatest because he made us. Nobody is as powerful or loving or amazing as God. I’m so glad that God is the greatest and that we don’t have to try to be.
Show preschoolers the sample craft. Explain that athletes sometimes get a medal that looks like this when they win a race or a game. Say: A gold medal shows that you’re the best! Let’s make a gold medal for God that says “God’s #1” to remember that God is the greatest and that we get to be on God’s team.
- Give each child a yogurt lid and a sheet of gold aluminum foil large enough to cover both sides of the yogurt lid.
- Have each preschooler wrap the foil around the lid to look like a gold medal.
- Give each child a length of blue ribbon and a paper clip.
- Help each preschooler loop the ribbon through the paper clip and tape the ends of the ribbon together.
- Preschoolers can then tape the paper clips to the back of their gold medals.
- Let preschoolers decorate their medals with stickers, foam shapes, and other craft supplies.
- While preschoolers are working, write “God’s #1” on the front of each child’s medal.
- When preschoolers have finished, let them wear the gold medals around their necks.
Celebrate God’s Greatness
Say: Let’s sing a song to celebrate and worship God for being the greatest.
Lead preschoolers in singing “My God Is So Great.” For a fun version kids can sing along with, look up “My God Is So Great” on the Lifetree Kids YouTube channel for the arrangement used in Group’s Everest VBS.
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Take-Home
0 min View
Take-Home
Dig In @ HomeSupplies
- this week’s “Dig In @ Home” handout (1 per child) (download here)
Easy Prep
- Add your church announcements to the “Dig In @ Home” handout.
Distribute a copy of the “Dig In @ Home” handout to kids as they leave, or email it to parents during the week.
Lesson 2: Builders Try to Build a Great Tower (Genesis 11:1-9)
Summary Verse: "Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding" (Isaiah 40:28).
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Opening
5 min View
Opening
WelcomeSupplies
- Bible
Welcome
- Thank kids for coming.
- Just for fun, have preschoolers high-five three of their friends.
- Make announcements.
- Introduce new kids.
- Celebrate birthdays by having preschoolers shout this birthday cheer: “Two, four, six, eight; it’s birthday time, let’s celebrate! Gooooo, [names of birthday kids]!”
- Collect the offering.
Introduce the Lesson
Say: Today we’ll learn that God is the greatest. We’ll hear about some people who tried to be greater than God by building a very tall building.
Share
- Share some examples of times you’ve been in tall buildings, on airplanes, or on a tall mountain.
- In leader-led small groups, have preschoolers share about the tallest things they’ve ever experienced. For example, preschoolers might share about a tall mountain or hill they stood on, a tall building they went to the top floor of, or an airplane they flew in that was high up in the sky.
- After small groups have discussed, have adult or teen helpers share with the whole group what they talked about in their small groups.
Summarize
Open a Bible, and say: All those things are high up in the sky, and some are probably even higher than the building the people in the Bible built. It can be fun to be high up in the sky in a building or an airplane! But the people in the Bible wanted to build a tall building to make themselves greater than God. They learned that they couldn’t make themselves greater than God. No one can, because God is the greatest. The Bible tells us all about how amazing and great God is. God uses the Bible to talk to us. Let's listen to God as we hear from the Bible today.
Pray, thanking God that he’s the greatest.
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Core Bible
20 min View
Core Bible Discovery
Builders Try to Build a Great Tower (Genesis 11:1-9)Supplies
- Bible
- newspaper or newsprint
- masking tape
Share About Famous People
Say: Today we’re learning that God is the greatest. He’s greater than anyone who ever lived.
Share about a well-known person or public figure you think is great. If possible, share about someone kids might be familiar with. You might share about your pastor or a person in a movie your kids are currently interested in.
Ask: • Who is someone you think is great? Preschoolers can share about famous people or people they know personally. Encourage them to share what they think makes those people great. For example, maybe the people they mention can do something no one else can do.
Say: All of the people we talked about might be great, but they’re not the greatest. God is the greatest of all. He’s stronger and more powerful than anyone. He’s more helpful and loving than anyone. He’s the best at being a good friend to us. God is the best!
Build a Tower
Show a Bible. Say: The Bible tells about some people who wanted to become great, and they had an idea. They decided to build a city made of bricks. Give children sheets of newspaper or newsprint. Have them crumple the paper to make at least one “brick” each.
Say: They used the bricks to build a tower. They hoped to make it so tall that it would reach the sky! Let’s see if we can build a tower that tall. Invite children to work together to continue to make “bricks” with the newspaper and stack them on top of each other. Help kids tape the bricks together to stabilize the tower. They can continue doing this for about eight minutes. If the tower falls, they can try building it again.
Say: Our goal was to build a tower that reached the sky.
Ask: • Tell whether you think we reached our goal. Encourage children to explain why they did or didn’t reach their goal of making a tower that reaches the sky.
Say: The people in the Bible didn’t reach their goal. They wanted to become the greatest by building their tower, but that’s impossible because God is the greatest. Invite children to tell reasons they think God is greater than the people in the Bible. Help them get started by giving your own examples, such as God made everything, God can do anything, and God is stronger than anyone.
Say: The people wanted to become famous for their tall tower. They stopped thinking about God and started thinking about how great they could be. But God knew that wasn’t what was best for them. God did something to protect the people: He separated them. He made them move away from one another so they couldn’t work together anymore and make choices that would hurt them.
Share about a time you and your friends had to be separated to keep you safe or focused on doing right.
Ask: • When have you and a friend been separated after you made a wrong choice together?
Say: God separated the people by making them speak different languages so they couldn’t understand one another. Invite preschoolers to “separate” by spreading out in the room, and have them make up pretend words or repeat “babble” over and over again so no one understands what they’re saying.
Talk About It
Say: When we’re separated, it’s usually what’s best for us. That’s why God separated the people in the Bible. God wanted what was best for them, and God wants what’s best for us, too.
One thing that’s best for us is to remember that God is the greatest, so we don’t need to be! We don’t need to build a tall tower, because we have God on our side. God’s the best at taking care of us. He’s the best at giving us what we need.
Share about a time God provided for you. Maybe God gave you a job so you could buy food and a home.
Ask: • What are some things God’s given us? Preschoolers might share that God gives them parents to take care of them and feed them.
Say: God is the greatest at bringing us people to take care of us and give us what we need. God is also the greatest at loving us.
Share about a time you felt love from God. Maybe you were sad, and God reminded you of a verse in the Bible about his loving care.
Ask: • God loves you so much! Why do you like knowing that? Preschoolers might say because God is strong and will take care of them.
Say: God is the greatest! He likes it when we show love to others, but he’s the one who teaches us how to love.
God is the strongest and the most powerful, and we can celebrate him for how great he is. And because God is so great, we don’t need to be!
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Wrap-Up
5 min View
Life Application Wrap-Up
A Cheer for the GreatestLearn a Cheer
Say: Today we found out that God is the greatest, so we don’t need to be. Let’s say a cheer for God!
Lead the children in the following leader-and-response cheer. After you say something great about God, the kids will respond with, “God’s number 1!” Encourage children to pump their fists as they cheer.
You: God’s the greatest! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God made me and you! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God made the whole world! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God loves us so much! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God takes care of us! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God protects us! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God’s the strongest! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God’s always with us! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: No one is greater than God! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
You: God’s the greatest of all! Preschoolers: God’s number 1!
If the children want to add things about God, they can take turns being the leader while you and the other children shout “God’s number 1!”
Pray and Close
Say: There’s no one greater than God. God’s the greatest! Let’s thank God for being the greatest at loving us, caring for us, and protecting us. Lead the children in a short prayer.
Let the kids know that you enjoyed having them in class today. Tell them you hope they’ll return next week.