Jesus Changed Zacchaeus' Heart Video Lesson

I pray you and your little ones are well.  Enjoy this week's video!

Follow the links below to see my original blog posts for this lesson, where  you'll find songs and printouts for a couple crafts and a coloring sheet.

Jesus Changed Zacchaeus' Heart

Jesus Changed Zacchaeus' Heart: Home Ideas   

The Gospel is Good News: Home Ideas

The gospel is the good news about Jesus!  As you talk about sharing the gospel with others this week, you can also introduce your preschooler to simple map and geography concepts.

• Read stories in your child's Bible about the Apostles Paul and Peter as they spread the good news gospel of Jesus.   Pray together for your pastors and missionaries that you know who preach the gospel.

• Look at a map or globe together.  Find the city where you live, as well as the places where family, friends and missionaries you know may live.

• Watch this animated story of Paul's travels as he preaches the gospel.

• Find opportunities to share the love and good news of Jesus with people you and your little one encounter in your neighborhood, at the park, at the grocery store, etc.

Jesus Sends the Holy Spirit: Home Ideas

Teaching your little one about the Holy Spirit can be as fun as making a windsock, doing sidewalk art, and eating yummy snacks.  Here are some great springtime activities to do with your child this week that also help introduce them to the concept of the Trinity, and the Holy Spirit as our helper.

• Read the story of the Day of Pentecost in your child's Bible.  Talk about how Jesus kept His promise to send the Holy Spirit, and gave us a special language to help us talk to God when we pray.  Pray together, and thank Jesus for sending the Holy Spirit.  Ask the Holy Spirit to help them obey, tell the truth, and tell others about Jesus.

• Look for times when your child is having difficulty doing the right thing, completing a task or overcoming fear.  Pray with your child to ask the Holy Spirit to help them in this situation.

• Make a windsock.  Let you child decorate an empty toilet paper roll.  Staple long strips of ribbon or streamers to one end of the tube and hang it up outside.  Watch the wind blow the sock.  Discuss the wind: “We can’t see the wind, but we can feel the wind and we can see the wind blowing things.  That’s just like the Holy Spirit. We can’t see Him with our eyes, but we know He is with us.  He will help us obey and follow Jesus.”  (You could also fly a kite and discuss the same concept.)           

• God has three parts just like a triangle.  Help your child draw triangles with sidewalk chalk.  Then think of other things you can draw with triangles (i.e. house with a triangle roof, ice cream cone, hat, etc.)

• Hard boil an egg.  Crack it open to discover the three parts of an egg: the shell, the white and the yoke.  It is one egg but it has three parts.  There is one God but he has three parts.  Sprinkle on salt and eat a yummy egg snack!  An apple is another great snack that also has three parts: the peel, flesh and core.

A Home in Heaven: Home Ideas

This week's activities are designed to introduce your child to the hope and promise of heaven.  The reality of our heavenly hope was renewed in my own heart as I planned and prepared these lessons.  My prayer is that in the teachable moments you have with your children and students this week, that your heart is also encouraged and uplifted by the promise of our eternal home.

• Read the story of Jesus ascending into heaven. Pray together and thank Jesus for preparing a home for us where we can live with Him forever. 

• Jesus said that in His Father's house there are many mansions. Help your child construct their own mansion with recycled boxes and containers. Then let them paint and decorate it. 

• Sing, clap and dance along to "Soon and Very Soon"

• 'H' is for Heaven. Print the letters 'H' and 'h' in a large font. Show your child how to roll out long thin pieces of play dough and form an upper and a lower case 'H'. Then use the play dough to form things that begin with the letter 'H' such as a horse, hippo, hat, house, heart etc.

Jesus is Alive: Home Ideas

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter celebrating our risen Savior! Telling the story of Jesus' death and resurrection to young children is always a highlight of my Easter Sunday.  The genuine sadness I see on their faces as I describe Jesus' death, followed by the pure joy expressed at His resurrection, is a precious display of their child-like faith, and love for Jesus.  Keep the spirit of Easter alive in your child's heart throughout the week with these activities.

• Read the story of Jesus' death and resurrection in your child's Bible.  Pray together to thank Jesus for giving His life to save us.

• Watch "The Resurrection" from the Beginner's Bible.

• Make your own set of Resurrection Eggs.  Gather six plastic eggs.  Fill each egg with one of the following objects to represent a different part of the Easter story.  
• Strands of string or yarn tied together to make a whip
• A small branch twisted into a circle as the crown of thorns
• Three nails for Jesus' hands and feet
• A piece of white cloth or napkin as linen to wrap Jesus' body
• A stone for the tomb
• Leave the last egg empty for the empty tomb

             Hide the eggs around your house for your child to find, open and recount the Easter story.

• Watch and sing "1 2 3 Jesus is Alive"

• Affix masking tape in the shape of a cross to a piece of paper.  Provide paint for your child to fill the paper with their own design and color.  Remove the tape to reveal the shape of the cross.

Hosanna to the King: Home Ideas

The miracles of Jesus have shown us how powerful He is, and how good is He is to us.  That's the reason we praise and worship Him!  Here are some activities to do at home with our child this week to praise and worship and Jesus together. 

• Read the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey in your child's story Bible. Pray together to praise Jesus and celebrate Him as your King.

• Watch "A Praise Parade."

• Sing, shout and jump along to "Shout Hosanna!" by the Donut Man. 

• Sing the "Hosanna Rock" and praise the Lord.

• Help your child make a parade with stuffed animals and dolls to welcome and praise Jesus! Include any musical instruments that your child may have in the parade, or make your own instruments with recycled items you have around your house.

Jesus Calms a Storm: Home Ideas

This week we are discovering that Jesus is stronger and more powerful than anything that we are afraid of.  He is always with us, and we can always ask Him to help us when we feel afraid.  After teaching the children this week's story, I ask them if Spiderman or Elsa can stop a storm like Jesus can?  Since these are characters with super powers that many young children admire, I want them to know that Jesus is more than a superhero.  He has real power.  He is awesome!

• Read the story of Jesus calming a storm out of Matthew 8:23-27 and Mark 4:35-41 in your child's Bible.  Talk about any fears your child may have and pray about their fears with them.  Assure them that Jesus is bigger and stronger than any fear.

• Watch this animation of Jesus calming the storm.

•  Let your child create a boat to reenact the story.  Use a big box, laundry basket, or get creative with chairs and blankets.  Bath time would also be a good time to reenact this story.

• Sing "Our God is Awesome God" along with these kids.  Remind them that God is big and strong, and He is always with them to help them when they feel afraid.

• In the bath tub, or at the sink filled with water, use a plastic container to demonstrate why the disciples though their boat would sink when it started filling up with water.  Experiment with other objects.  Ask your child to make a prediction as to whether an object will float or sink, and then test it to see if their prediction is correct.

Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man: Home Ideas

This week's activities introduce Jesus to our children as our healer, and also help cultivate a compassionate heart towards people who are sick and in need of prayer and encouragement.  The paralyzed man in the story would have not received such an incredible miracle if not for the faith and persistent love of his friends. 

• Read the story of Jesus healing the paralyzed, whose friends lowered him to Jesus through the roof, in your child's Bible (Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26). Pray together for anyone you know who is sick, asking Jesus to heal them. 

•  Throughout the week read other Bible stories of Jesus healing. 

• Watch this claymation of Jesus healing the paralyzed man.

•  Help your child build a house out of Legos or blocks.  Use Lego figures (or other small figurines) to reenact the story together. 

• People who are sick need to feel love and encouragement from others, as the friends did in our story. Give your child supplies to make a card for someone who is sick. Write a note to let them know that your family is praying for them. 

•  Jesus is the best doctor, but he also gives us doctors to help us when we are sick. Gather first aid items that are safe for your child to handle, to create a doctor's kit for dramatic play.  Suggested items include band-aids, gauze, a medicine dropper, cotton balls, empty medicine bottles and a clipboard with paper to write on. Stuffed animals and/or dolls can be their patients. 

Jesus Feeds 5,000 People: Home Ideas

This week we are learning about the power of Jesus through one of His incredible miracles, which also involved a little boy.  I explain to preschoolers that a miracle is something only Jesus can do.  Only Jesus could take a basket with five loaves and two fish and make enough food to feed 5,000 people!  This miracle teaches us that we can trust Jesus to take care of us, and give us everything that we need.

Here are some activities to do with your child at home this week!

• Read the story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people in your child's Bible together. Talk about the things that Jesus gives you and your family to take care of you such as a house, clothes, food, a job, etc.  Pray together and thank God for always taking care of you and your family.

• Watch this animation of the story called "A Boy Who Shares".

• Pack a lunch of tuna fish sandwiches and have a picnic in the park like the 5,000 people in our story.

• Download "One Basket", and play it as part of your soundtrack throughout the day.
  
• "My God is So Big" is one of our favorite songs to sing in Faith Roots.  Download it here to sing along with  your child.

• Reserve children's books from the library with keywords: from farm to table.  Talk about how God makes things grow and farmers work hard so that we can buy and prepare food to eat.  This is a great preschool science and social studies lesson.

Jesus Changed Zacchaeus' Heart: Home Ideas

Zacchaeus is a prime example of the power of Jesus to forgive us and change our hearts!  He also shows us true repentance.  After he met Jesus, he not only stopped stealing from people, he began giving his money away to help  people in need!  It is good for your child to see that Jesus welcomed Zacchaeus as a friend, even when he had a sinful heart, and then to see the love of Jesus that changed the very core of who he was.

Take some time throughout the week to teach God's Word to your child with these fun, no-prep activities, and practice some preschool skills along the way!

• Read the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus in your child's Bible.  Pray together and thank Jesus for the power that He has to change our hearts.  Ask your child if there is anything for which they want Jesus to forgive them.  If so, lead them in a prayer pf repentance. 

• Use one of your child's dolls or stuffed animals as Zacchaeus.  Place it up high on a shelf.  Invite your child to pretend to be Jesus and reenact the story.  Have a tea party or picnic with "Zacchaeus."

• Watch this animation of the story of Zacchaeus.

• Watch this song by the Donut Man called "Zaccheus".

• Here is the traditional song that you may already know, "Zacchaeus Was a Wee Little Man."

• Here are the lyrics to "The Repent Song" to sing with your child.

• Practice pre-writing skills.  'Z' is for Zacchaeus, who was a tax collector.  Print the letter 'Z' in large font. With your supervision, show your child how to place coins over the letter you printed to create the letter 'Z' with coins. ( DO NOT leave your child unattended with coins.)

Jesus Blesses Little Children: Home Ideas

With a little empathy, one can imagine the painful sting of rejection the young children felt as the disciples harshly turned them away from seeing Jesus.  In the next moment, they were overwhelmed with the sweetness of acceptance, as Jesus intervened, rebuking the disciples, and inviting the children to come to Him.

Quite likely, your child has experienced this sort of rejection when they are told that they are too young, or too little to do something, or go somewhere.  Or perhaps we ourselves, busy and distracted, miss something that our children or students are trying to communicate is important to them.  It is comforting for children to know that they are not too young or too little to come to Jesus.  He is never too busy to listen and respond to their prayers.  This week, assure your child of Jesus' love for them.  Just as the parents in this story, bring your child to Jesus.  As they identify with the children, pray that they come to know the pure joy and peace of a loving touch from Jesus.  Here are some ideas to help you do just that!

• Read the story of Jesus blessing the little children together in your child's Bible.  Talk about the love of Jesus for His children.  Pray together, and thank God for showing us in the Bible that Jesus loves them.

• Watch the story called "Let Them Come".

• Along with your child, form play dough figures of Jesus and the children, even the parents and disciples.  Encourage your child to retell the story in their own words, using the figures.

• 'J' is for Jesus!  Show your child how to form the letter 'J' with play dough.  Talk and about the sound of the letter 'J'.  

• As you are preparing snacks this week, think about including things you can serve that start with the letter 'J', such as juice, jelly, Jell-o, etc.  Ask your child to identify what they are eating that starts with the letter 'J'.

Jesus is My Shepherd: Home Ideas

This week we are discovering the love of Jesus as we come to know Him as the Good Shepherd.  Stories are such a powerful way to teach a truth or message.  Jesus knew the power of storytelling, and used parables to teach us about the Kingdom of Heaven.  I have always found that young children are captivated by animal stories.  Enter, The Parable of the Lost Sheep.  Jesus teaches us about His unconditional love for us, even we go astray, using characters and a story line that appeal to little ones.  It is the love and the care of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, that compels us and our children, His sheep, to follow Him.  

• Read The Parable of The Lost Sheep together in your child's Bible.

• Pray together for family or friends that your child knows who do not know and follow Jesus.  They are the lost sheep that Jesus loves so much.

• Use stuffed animals as sheep and create a sheepfold for them with boxes, chairs, or couch cushions.  Let your child be the shepherd and count how many sheep are in their fold.  While they are pretending to sleep, take one of the "sheep" and hide it.  Wake up your child and ask them which "sheep" is missing?  They can be like the Good Shepherd.  Go look for the lost sheep and bring it back to the fold.

• The shepherd in the parable counted his sheep, so here's a counting sheep challenge for your child.  Creating groups of ten is a foundational math skill.  Give your child 100 cotton balls and 10 small containers.  Ask them to put 10 cotton balls in each container.  For younger preschoolers, this will be enough of a challenge.  Older preschoolers may be ready to count all the cotton balls in each container up to 100, while others may be able to learn to count by 10's to 100.

•  Write the numbers 1-10 in large font on half sheets of paper or index cards.  Allow your child to glue cotton balls to the numbers to help them develop a sense of the shape of each number.  Also add stickers corresponding to each number to each page.  Display the numbers where you and your child can refer to them.  (This maybe a project that you work on over several days.)
   

Jesus Teaches Me to Love Others: Home Ideas

No doubt, kindness, sharing and loving others are values that you are trying to instill in your child's character.  As you are reading the story of the Good Samaritan, and doing these activities with your child this week, emphasize that this is the way Jesus taught us to treat others.  We are following Jesus when we share His love with others.

• Read the story of the Good Samaritan in your child's Bible together.

• Children learn and process their learning through play.  Use stuffed animals or dolls to act out the story of the Good Samaritan.  Allow your child to use band-aids or gauze, blankets, etc. to be the Good Samaritan and care for the "injured traveler." 

• Watch and sing Love One Another.

• Bake cookies together and bring them to a neighbor, or someone you know who may be lonely and/or in need of encouragement.

• "L" is for Love.  Be sure your child knows the letter "L."  Then throughout the week make a game out of finding the letter "L" in books you read, on cereal boxes, signs, license plates, etc.

Jesus Teaches Me to be Wise: Home Ideas

The parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders is a great story to teach your preschooler about wise and foolish choices. In this parable Jesus teaches us that we are like the wise man when we hear His word and act in obedience.  We are like the foolish man when we hear His word and do not do as He says.  Ephesians 6:1 instructs children to obey their parents in the Lord.  Since God's word to children is to obey their parents, you can explain to your child that they are like the wise man when they listen to you and obey.  In contrast, they are like the foolish man when they hear you and choose to disobey you.  Introduce God's Word to your child as the authority, and as the foundation for teaching your child obedience.  Obedience is a lesson parents are always teaching, and truthfully, always learning.

There are several YouTube links this week.  They were just too good, so I had to share them with you!  In balance, though, I also have lots of suggestion for "hands-on, digging-in-the-dirt" fun. :)

• Read the story of the wise man and the foolish man together in your child's Bible.

• In your backyard, or at the park, build a sand castle, and then build a house out of rocks.  Pour water over the houses.  Observe and discuss what happens.

• Watch this Lego animation version of the parable read right from the Bible.

• Here's another cool Lego animation of the story without narration.

• Watch this sweet animation of the story, set to African style music, also without narration.

• Watch and sing "The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock."

• After watching all those Lego movies, build and re-enact your own story of the Wise and Foolish Builders.  As you are building, talk about how Jesus says we are like the wise man when we obey, and we are like the foolish man when we disobey.

• Outside, arrange small rocks into various shapes and letters for your child to identify and re-create on their own.  You could also draw shapes and letters in the sand.

Jesus Teaches Me to Pray: Home Ideas

Can you pray at home without your mommy or daddy?  When I posed this question to the kiddos in my class yesterday, the overwhelming response was no.  Now of course children are still learning how to pray and need guidance and modelling from their parents, but begin to encourage your child to pray on their own.  At times ask them to pray for meal time prayers, bedtime prayers, prayers of repentance, etc.  Encourage them that they do not have to "say it just like you".  They can use their own words to talk to God, because God loves to hear them pray.  This is a way to help your child cultivate their own relationship with God.  Here are some more ideas to do with your child at home this week, reinforcing the concept of prayer and the letter 'P".

• Read Bible stories this week with your child about people such as Daniel and Hannah, who faithfully prayed, and saw their prayers answered. 

• Use a small photo album to make a prayer book for your child, with photos  and/or their drawings of people and things they are praying for. 

• Sing these songs with your child throughout the week.  Click on the song titles for words and actions.

• Read Your Bible and Pray Everyday - I also suggested this song a couple weeks ago with the lesson Jesus Teaches Me to Love God's Word.  Refer to this post if you would like to see a video of the song.

• This is the Way I Talk to God -the "Prayer Cup" craft we made in my class last night is a fun interactive visual for this song.  See my previous post for pictures, print outs and instructions for making the craft.

• When I'm Sad - This is an all-time favorite song to sing in my class!

• The Bible says our prayers are as sweet incense before the Lord. Bake cookies together.  While they are in the oven talk about the sweet aroma, and what our prayers are like to God. 

• The letter 'P' is for prayer. Write upper case and lower case 'P' in large font. Show your child how to roll out play dough and form the letter 'P'. 

• Give your child a pail and help them fill it with things around the house that begin with the letter 'P': pencil, paper, paperclip, puppy (stuffed animal), pony, etc.

• Eat snacks that begin with the letter 'P': pretzels, popcorn, peanut butter, pudding, pears, peaches...

Following Jesus: Home Ideas

Good morning!  Remember that you can always refer to the previous post of classroom ideas for this lesson that can also be repeated or done at home.  This week is all about following Jesus.  Your child will learn to follow Jesus as they follow and obey you.

Bible Truth: Jesus teaches me to follow Him.
Bible Story:  Jesus calls four fishermen to follow Him.
Bible Study: Matthew 4:18; Mark 1:16-20; Luke 5:1-11 

• Read the story of Jesus calling His disciples in your child's Bible.

• Watch this animation/narration of the story with your child.

• Act out the story of Jesus calling the four fisherman using props you have around the house.  Here are some ideas from a mom who did this with her two young children.

• Watch and sing "Peter James and John in a Sailboat" (Always be careful of inappropriate advertisements for your child that may come up before you watch a video on YouTube.)

• Show your child what it means to be a fisher of men.  Pick up flyers for an upcoming service or concert at your church.  Along with your child, invite a neighbor, grocery clerk or friend and share the love of Jesus with them.

Jesus Teaches Me to Repent and Obey: Home Ideas

Here are some simple ideas, on this blessed Monday morning, to do at home with your child for the week of January 11, 2015.  Our lesson this weeks is from Matthew 3:1-17, Luke 3:1-22, and John 1:19-34.

• Read the story of John the Baptist and the baptism of Jesus in your child's Bible Story book.

• Use waterproof dolls or figurines in the bathtub to act out the story of the baptism of Jesus with your child.

• Sing "The Repent Song" together throughout the week.

• When correcting or disciplining your child, remind them that the Bible says disobedience is sin.  Pray with them to repent and follow Jesus.  Discuss how they should behave if they are following Jesus.

• We used a stop sign and a green light in class to illustrate the concept of what it means to repent.  Draw a large octagon (the shape of a stop sign) on a piece of paper.  Give your child popsicle sticks to lay on top of the shape you drew, and help them count the number of sides.  Continue drawing, creating shapes with popsicle sticks, and counting the number of sides.

Have a blessed week!

Jesus Teaches Me to Love God's Word: Home Ideas

Here we are at first Monday of 2015!  Let's make it a good start in Jesus for both us and our kids! This is the kind of post you can expect to find here every Monday.  I will post ideas specifically for you as parents to do with your children throughout the week, corresponding to the lesson we are teaching at church.  Many of the activities I suggest will help your child develop appropriate preschool skills, such as letter recognition, number sense, color and shape recognition, and pre-literacy experiences.   The main goal is to support you in teaching your child, and to make Bible learning a natural and fun part of your family!


Week of January 4: Jesus teaches me to love God's Word. Luke 2:41-52

• Read the story of Jesus in the temple as a little boy, from Luke 2:41-52 in your child's Bible. Pray together and thank God for giving us the Bible.

• Cut a piece of card stock or cardboard from a cereal box as a bookmark. Let your child decorate it with stickers and markers. Punch a hole in the top and tie a ribbon. Keep the bookmark in your child's Bible to mark the story you are reading.

• 'B' is for Bible. Write both an upper and lower case letter 'B' in large font. Invite your child to form the letters with play-doh by rolling long pieces and laying them over the written letters. If they enjoy this activity, write the word Bible for them to form.

• Give your child a basket or a box and help them fill it with things around your house that begin with the letter 'B', such as a ball, brush, block, etc., and don't forget their Bible!

• Joseph and Mary were looking for Jesus for three days. Add Lego people and make a Lego maze like this for Mary and Joseph to "find" Jesus.

• Watch the "Go Fish" guys sing 'The B-I-B-L-E'. Sing and dance along!

Comment below to let me know how these activities worked out for you and your family. Have a blessed week!