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Week 2: Preschool Sunday School Christmas Lesson-Wise Men

12/16/2016

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WEEK 2 of our Christmas lessons for our Sunday School class was centered around the Wise Men!  These men were truly wise as they sought to honor God with their lives.  They were obedient to the Lord's message to not report to Herod about the born Messiah.  
It would have been so amazing to be there at the time when the Magi came to visit Joseph, Mary, and Jesus.


OPENING:

As the kids entered into the room, we had these coloring sheets out for them to use.  My preschoolers LOVE to color so it is nice to always have this option...plus, they do like routine.   When I don't have a coloring sheet laying out for them, they look at me cross-eyed and ask, "Where is our picture, Mrs. Cook!?"  Ha...so I better stick with what they like.
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SONG AND STORY TIME:
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Once all the kids have been checked into class and they've had enough time to color, we moved over to the reading area for our singing and story time.  We usually spend a little more time on the singing since this is one of their favorite things to do.  We keep it pretty simple but I do try to sneak in a new song from time to time.

Here are their all-time favorites (classics but still just as popular):
"Jesus Loves Me" - We do the sign language movements with this one
"This Little Light of Mine" - Their favorite verse is about "Hiding It Uunder a Bushel, NO".  Haha!
"The Lord's Army" - We sing this atleast 3-4 times through.  If I forget this song, they always remind me.



365 Bibe Stories for Young Hearts is a GREAT Children's Bible. I love using this Children's Bible for our Story Time. It is our personal Bible from home and I love using it for class too.

We read through last week's story and added the next part on the Wise Men.  This is a great way to review from the previous week and add a little bit of newer information.  


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We talked briefly about why the Wise Men (they were commonly referred to as the Magi) may have given Jesus these 3 gifts and what they actually were.  Gold-because it is valuable and Jesus was a King, Frankincense-because it was a highly valued oil and used in priestly roles of the church, and Myrrh-this was a common and important incense for funerals and burials.  They may have been familiar with the important prophesies of the Old Testament about Jesus' eventual death and resurrection.
(This is the condensed preschool version)


These Wise Men were obviously well versed in both the Scriptures and in Astronomy.  They knew when the Star of David was in position to signal Christ's birth and understood how to follow it through the night sky towards Bethlehem.  Their names were thought to have been Melchior (he brought the Gold), Caspar (he brought the Frankincense), and Balthasar (he brought the myrrh).

CRAFT TIME:

We then moved over to the table to make our Wise Men Picture.  I had pre-cut different colored triangles, Light Tan Circles, and 3 varying shaped crowns.  The kids were given these to glue onto their paper to form the 3 Magi.  I even gave them the verse Luke 2:11 "For Unto You is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord". They could glue this on their page as well.  The kids added faces and stars in the sky with crayons.  

SNACK TIME:

We kept snack simple...first, washing hands, then saying a prayer thanking God for our food.  The kids enjoyed animal crackers this week and had to count how many camels they could find out of all their crackers. They had fun finding and counting them.

CLOSING:
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We ended by giving each kiddo a set of the 3 Magi Gift Ornaments.  We didn't finish these up but they were sent home for the kids to complete at home.  I printed out the black and white version of the FREE Printable from the sundayschoolcrafts website.  There is a color version you can print out for FREE too. Once the kids color them, laminating them would be a super nice touch!  

​Click on the picture of the ornaments to print out your 
FREE copy! 


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Hope you have a VERY Merry Preschool Christmas!

Hallelujah, A Savior is Born!
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Week 1:  Preschool Sunday School Christmas Lesson-Shepherds

12/16/2016

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It is my month for teaching the cute preschoolers at my church for Sunday School.  Since I was given December, I decided to break down the Christmas Story and go over the important people God chose to be a part of it.  We focussed on the Shepherds for the first week.  

First thing, the kids came into the class and as I welcomed them, they can go over and color a picture to keep them busy as we wait for the kids to all get to class.
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We then moved on over to our reading circle where we had our praise and worship singing time and then our story time.  

We focused on the Shepherd's story.  Before beginning the story, I talked with the kids about the importance of a Shepherd's job in the time of Christ's birth.  
  • The shepherd faced the continuous challenge of teaching the sheep to obey his commands. A good shepherd took care of the animals in their charge, even giving them names to which they would respond.
  • For many days, shepherds would work and sleep outdoors so the flock could graze in the fields and spent the nights guarding them. At times, the shepherd might shelter his flock overnight in a cave, where they would be protected from wild animals that could harm the sheep. If the howl of a wild animal panicked the flock of sheep in the dark of night, the shepherd’s calm reassuring voice would still them.
  • Each evening, the shepherd counted the sheep and checked the health of the animals. In the morning, he would call, and the flock would follow him to the pasture ground. (John 10:3, 4) During the day, shepherds led the animals to the water to drink. 
  • Good shepherds were diligent, dependable, and brave. They would even risk their lives to protect the flock.--1 Samuel 17:34-36.


I LOVE using this Bible that our family purchased for our kids.  The stories and pictures are very detailed and engaging!  

After our story, the kids moved over to the table to work on our Sheep ornament.  It was simple for the kids to complete but kept them busy and engaged.  I precut the sheep and the stars before class and hole punched them and strung them.
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Click here for the sheep pattern

Click here for the star pattern

The kids added the cotton balls, googly eyes and glued the verse on the star.  They LOVE having an ornament to take home for their tree.  I used a verse from Veggie Tales that I found online but you could use any verse.  



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​We moved on to our HERDING SHEEP game.  This is so very simple and the kids had a blast!  

I made 2 "corrals" out of popsicle sticks and put a bunch of sheep in random places in front of the corral.  The kids had to "herd" the sheep (by blowing air) into the corral.  We made it a kind of competition.  Even my teen helpers had fun playing.  haha!



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​The last thing we did was our snack time...this was a hands-on snack time today.  We talked about the importance of the Shepherd's staff.  
  • The staff was used to help a sheep find it's mother if he gets lost.  The shepherd will gently use his staff (with the rounded "crook" on the end) to help lift the sheep and get it back over by it's mother.
  •  It is also used for guiding his sheep.  Either down a path or to help guide them away from danger if they were too close.  The hook can be used to catch a straying sheep and bring it back to safety.  The hook could fit nicely around a sheep's neck when the sheep is out of arms reach from the shepherd.

We had a box of fruit loops (I bought the fruit rings from Aldis) and a pipe cleaner for each kid.  The were able to make a shepherd's staff with their pipe cleaner and fruit loops.  

​          Of Course they were given a pretty large pile so they could also enjoy these for their snack.  



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We had a great class!  It was fun and the kids learned a lot about the life of the Shepherds.  

​The Lord used them for an important role in the Christmas story.  We will continue our study of the important people that God used during the birth of Christ with next week's lesson!

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Even my son who was my helper, enjoyed making the shepherd's hook!  :)  
​He was helpful with the other kids too!
 



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Enjoy & Christmas Blessings!
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Juggling Act!

10/12/2015

0 Comments

 
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Ever feel like you are in a circus with your homeschooling day?!  It can be sooo crazy! Trying to help a 7th grader, 6th grader, 3rd grader, preschooler and a toddler all at the same time? Phone is ringing, laundry is piled high, dishes are overflowing in the sink, a to-do list on the brain...makes ya wanna scream, right? This is when you stop, lock yourself in your bedroom, take a deep breath and PRAY for God's peace and strength!

There are times when life is so crazy outside of homeschooling that I will just give myself a "grace" day.  A day to have the kids pick a favorite book, do one subject of choice and write in their journals for the day...independent work so I can tackle some other projects that I need to do that will help relieve some of the pressure piling up.  We homeschool so flexibility is a GREAT blessing so letting the schedule take over can get overwhelming.  Once in a while, THROW out the schedule and enjoy the day!  

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To tell ya the truth, if I am feeling pressured, stressed and overwhelmed, chances are, my kids are feeling this too! My kids enjoy a day of playing outside, free independent time spent on activities of their choice once in a while...they enjoy throwing out the schedule too!

Today was one of our GRACE days! My oldest daughter LOVES reading so she spent hours doing this, my son went to a friends to play his new FAVORITE activity...airsoft battles. He was so happy!  My 3rd grader was able to play "fashion show" with one of her closest friends.  Such a happy, relaxing and enriching day!
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Now my 4 year old has a favorite activity too...one she gets to do from time-to-time during out school day...this is what she chose to do for part of her"FREE" day!
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I want to share one website that has TRULY helped with my preschooler that makes our homeschool day so much better.  She
really has enjoyed using the FREE website www.starfall.com.  My older kids have used this before when they were younger but now that I have 5 kids, it has helped tremendously!

She LOVES to feel "grown up" by having her own school computer time while I am working with the other kids on their academics.  She sings, laughs and even reads along with the many, MANY fun games, books, and songs on this site.  It is so easy for her to follow along and the ease is simply amazing!  The FREE option offers so much variety and for those who want more, you can upgrade to add more fun and more options as your child gets older!  A simply FUN and SAFE, Ad-Free website for your kiddo...even the older kids enjoy playing!!!

They even have a STARFALL HOMESCHOOL membership
(I have not personally tried this option out yet but I'll be looking into it). 
SO, come on...LET'S GO!
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Ephesians 3:20-21

20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.


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