Games

Reinforce your message with these fun games!

Firm Foundations

1.Divide the class into two building teams. 2.Challenge the children to see which team’s house can be built the highest without falling over. 3.Allow children to choose from a variety of materials to lay out their foundations. (Examples: carpet squares, a stack of hardback books, a sheet of cardboard, pretty fabric. colorful copy paper) 4.After they have laid out their foundations, give the signal for house building to begin. Point out, or demonstrate the fact that a firm foundation is needed to keep the house standing. Explain that today they are going to learn about building. We will learn that the foundation we build upon is very important. A foundation built on the TRUTHS of God’s Word will always stand. The wise man (or boy or girl) will listen, believe in, and do what God’s Word tells us to do!

Noah's Ark Guessing Game for Preschoolers

Use a sheet of cardboard to fashion an ark for your animal puppets. Cut out a window for the animals to peek through while children listen to your clues and try to guess which animal you describe. Let the animal tell about his journey to the ark and his gratitude to be out of the rain. The last puppet to come up is Noah. Noah expresses gratitude for God's good plan.

Joy Tag

Instructions: •Start by picking one or two players to be “Joy-Takers”. The other players will be “Joy- Givers”. (A small group needs one Joy-Taker. Larger groups need two or more) •Set a timer or choose a song to play the game's length. (Approximately 2 minutes.) •Takers try to tag and freeze the Givers when the timer starts, or the song begins. •Takers shout “No joy!” each time they tag a Giver. •After being tagged, the Giver must freeze and stay in that position until another Giver taps them and says, “Joy!” •After the timer has sounded or the song has ended, “measure” the amount of joy remaining in the group by counting the number of those who aren't frozen. Encourage a big celebration cheer if the game ends with every Giver keeping their joy. •After a few rounds, bring the children back together and point them to the lessons we learn by playing this game. Bring Home the Message Explain: You had joy until a tag from a Joy-Taker "froze" you. Your joy was gone. Without the help of someone else, you would stay frozen. You didn’t have the power to get your joy back on your own. It wasn't easy to be a Joy-Giver. It meant forgetting about yourself for a while. Slowing down to help someone come out of their sad, cold, frozen state meant risking getting tagged by the Joy-Taker yourself. When Givers put themselves at risk to help you, you were grateful. Your joy returned. God loves us. His Spirit brings us joy. He wants us to love others and take His joy to those who are suffering. Reaching out to those who have lost their joy isn't always easy. It might mean giving away money, material things, time, energy, popularity. Deciding whether to help someone who is hurting requires an answer to the question: What would I want someone to do for me if I were in their situation? We do the right thing when we follow God’s instructions: “Do to others what you would have them do to you!” Matthew 7:12

Good Shepherd

Supplies: •Balloons and taped-fence area used in Bible Discovery Time •One pool noodle for each child •Green, blue, and yellow construction paper Easy Prep Before class time, designate areas to represent a green pasture, a blue stream, and a (yellow) sunny meadow by taping colored construction paper on various walls of the room. Tips oHave a few extra balloons ready to inflate in case one or more burst during game time. oIf you don’t have access to enough pool noodles for this game, children can pretend they are holding staffs while bouncing the balloons with their hands. Get Ready... Say: I’ll unlock the gate and give you your sheep. You’ll need a shepherd’s staff to lead your sheep to the pasture where it can eat green grass, and to the stream where it can drink cool water. Your sheep might also like to go to the sunny meadow where it can run and play. (Point out the location of each of these areas.) At the end of the day, take it back to its fence so we can shut the gate and keep it safe during the night. I’ll call out the places to take your sheep. Use your “staff” to guide it to the right place. (Demonstrate bouncing the balloon in the air with the pool noodle as you guide it to the pasture, the stream, and the sunny meadow.) Remember, you’re good shepherds. Treat them gently and watch them carefully. You don’t want to lose your sheep. If yours falls down and wanders off, find it and start guiding it again with your shepherd’s staff. Play the Game! oPass out pool noodles o“Unlock” the fence’s gate and give each “balloon-sheep” to its shepherd. Instruct children not to begin moving until all shepherds have their sheep and you have given directions on where they are to go. oBegin calling out instructions such as: oYour sheep is hungry. Guide it to the green pasture for some tasty green grass. oNow your sheep is thirsty. Let’s take them to drink cool water in the blue stream. oTime for play! Go to the sunny meadow! oOh, our sheep are thirsty again… Take them back to the blue stream. To end the game, tell children it is nighttime. Instruct them to bring the sheep back into the fence. Shut and lock the gate. Let them know you will unlock the gate at the end of class so each shepherd can take their sheep home with them. Talk About It Ask: oWhat were the good things you did for your sheep to show how much you cared for it? oDid your sheep ever “wander away”? oWhat did you do when you lost your sheep? oHow does it feel to know your sheep is safe in the fence so it will be there for you when it’s time to take it home? Say: Remember the story Jesus told when you play with your pretend sheep. Jesus is sad when we stop obeying Him and stop showing our love for Him. He goes to find us like a good shepherd goes to find his lost sheep. God shows us the ways we have disobeyed Him and helps us feel sorry for the things we have done. He helps us remember how much He loves us. We are happy when Jesus, our Good Shepherd, brings us back into His family!

Which Sheep is Missing?

Swallowed Up!

Before class put a blue table cloth or sheet over a table and add features to make it resemble a big fish. When children gather into circle time, explain that this big, hungry fish is swimming deep under the ocean water, looking for some lunch. We will take turns stepping out of the room and guessing which one of our class room friends has been “shallowed up”. Choose one child to step outside the door with your assistant. While they are out, choose another child to be shallowed by the fish. After the student is hidden, bring the assistant and guessing-child back into the room. Challenge them to guess which of their classroom friends has been swallowed by the fish. Point out that God does not have to guess. He does not have to scratch His head and think. God SEES ALL things and God KNOWS ALL things.

Supplies: •10 pompoms of various sizes and shapes, no two alike •A small bowl Say: Simon the Shepherd has 10 sheep. He loves his sheep and takes good care of them. (Pick up each pompom and give it a color/size name to make it easy to remember. Tell the children to look and listen carefully so they can remember the names.) This is Big Blue. This one is called Little Yellow….etc. Every morning, Simon counts the sheep to make sure they are all there. Let’s count them to see if any are missing. (Lead children in counting the 10 pompoms) Do you remember their names? Say: Count them together with me. (Point to each sheep and have children call out the names with you.) Now it is time for the sheep to go to sleep. Shepherd Simon puts them in the fence and closes the gate. (Lower the bowl over of the pompoms.) The next morning, he checks on his sheep. (Lift the bowl slightly and slide your hand underneath. Pick up one of the pompoms, carefully holding it so children can’t see which one you have.) What did Shepherd Simon find when he counted his sheep? Let’s count to see if they are all here. (Lead children in counting.) Oh no! What happened? Are all the sheep here? Which one is missing? When the child names the missing sheep, hold out both cliched fists and say this rhyme while they guess which hand it is in. Say: Big sheep, little sheep, One is gone. Find it, find it Bring it home! Encourage children to give a loud cheer every time your hand opens to reveal the lost sheep. If the wrong hand is chosen, allow a second chance so that each child can enjoy the celebration of finding the lost sheep! Tips Some children will be quicker than others to call out a correct answer. To give everyone a chance to guess, go around the room and allow each child to have a turn. Remind enthusiastic participants to keep quiet until it is their turn, even if they know the answer. Make the game more challenging after children catch on by removing two pompoms instead of one! Talk About It Ask: How does this game remind you of Jesus’ story about the good shepherd? Say: The good shepherd found his lost sheep and carried it home for a big celebration with his friends and neighbors. We can celebrate with our friends. Let’s celebrate being in God’s family. Let’s cheer for Jesus, our Good Shepherd! Lead children in a loud cheer.

Wonderfully Made!
Exploring Our Five Senses
We are fearfully and wonderfully made. Use all your senses to discover the world around you!

For older children,add some “feel-alike” pairs to make the game more challenging: Nickles and pennies Pencils and crayons Chenille pipe cleaners and metallic pipe cleaners Rubber bands and elastic hair ties GET READY Cut a hole in one end of the box and decorate it with craft items. Glue construction paper to the sides and top of the box and decorate with stickers and markers. GAME TIME Put one of each item in the Feeling Box and their matches in front. Point to an object and challenge children to reach inside to find its match. After matching all the items, place a secret object in the box to see who can guess what it is.

What's That?

Feeling Box

Gather Supplies

Shoe box with top
Craft items: stickers, markers, construction paper, scissors, glue
Pairs of small objects with varying textures and shapes, such as rocks, seashells, pompoms, crayons, plastic spoons, etc.

Noise Toys

Gather Supplies:

3 oatmeal canisters with lids

Construction paper, wrapping paper, or contact paper
Bells
Pebbles
Uncooked rice

Get Ready:

Cover the canisters with matching papers.

Put a handful of bells in one canister, pebbles in the second, and rice in the third. Cover with lids. GAME TIME! Place a sample cup of each item in front of the mystery canisters. Slide the canisters around to mix them up. Be careful not to make a sound! Instruct children to listen as you shake each.one. Challenge them to match their sounds with the correct sample cup. Open the canisters to see if they have guessed correctly.

Zoom in on God's Creation!

Let's go outside and take a close look at our world.

GATHER SUPPLIES and prepare unfinished binoculars for each child to decorate:

three toilet paper tubes for each child
scissors
stapler or tape
Washi tape and stickers
yarn
a list of things to search for

GET READY

Before class: Cut one toilet paper tube down the middle. Stretch the cut tube over the remaining two. Staple or tape the four corners of the cut tube to the outside of each roll. Punch holes on the topsides of both rolls Thread yarn through the holes and tie the ends together at a comfortable length to wear. During class: Pass out unfinished binoculars and encourage children to decorate them with strips of Washi tape and stickers. ACTIVITY TIME Pass out lists of things to look for. Go outside and join children in looking through your binoculars to find the items listed. Check off successful findings and add new discoveries to the list. Gather children together after the hunt and allow time for each to report on the wonderful things they saw. HUNT SUGGESTIONS: purple flower bird round rock butterfly yellow leaf cloud stick shaped like the first letter in your name Scripture Ears that hear and eyes that see— the Lord has made them both. Proverbs 20:12

Smell and Tell

GATHER SUPPLIES

Several “smelly” items
Small container for samplings of each item
Cotton balls
Sharpie or small photo to represent each smell

“Smelly” suggestions: •Lemon juice •Peanut butter •Perfume •Baby powder •Toothpaste GET READY Put a sampling of each smelly item onto a cotton ball or place it directly on the bottom of the container. Use a Sharpie to write the correct name on the outside/bottom of each container, or glue a small picture for groups consisting of nonreaders. Stretch out the remaining cotton balls to cover any visible clues. Arrange a display of the "smelly" sources for children to see. ACTIVITY TIME Let the children take turns smelling the samples. After a guess is made, allow the class to look at the photo on the bottom of the container to see if they guessed correctly.

Taste Test