Curriculum for Home Communities from Imago Dei Kids

Hiking with Jesus

Curriculum for Home Communities from Imago Dei Kids

HOW TO USE THIS CURRICULUM:

Welcome to your hike with Jesus! This curriculum was designed for children to connect Christ with their typical summer activities. It is our hope that this toolbox is a springboard for you and your community to see Christ at work in ALL THINGS. Whether it’s camping or picking fruit or just watching the clouds – God is eager to tell you who He is and just how much He loves you. We hope you have a blast with your little ones and Christ throughout this hike.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

**Many of the lessons will require a sensory bin of sorts. Some easy options are a kiddy pool or an under the bed storage unit. It will need to be waterproof (not a cardboard box) and you won’t want it too deep for the safety and cleanliness of the kiddos. Weeks that it isn’t part of the curriculum, we still highly recommend using it for some of your more tactile kiddos. Some ideas are: beans/rice, moon dough, sand, bubble solution, water, etc.…

**You will need the Jesus Storybook Bible for some of the stories in this curriculum.

This hike begins with backpacks that the children will be working on throughout the hike. We’ll provided the backpacks and the stories, but here are some other things you will need:

-Paper

-Fabric markers or paint (for the back packs)

-Color crayons, pencils, or markers

-Sticks (about half the length of a child’s arm – one per each child)

-String

-Magnets (one for each child - we used the plain circle ones found at a craft stores)

-Pipe cleaners

-Rubber bands

-Plastic straws

-Sifter or pie tins (used for panning)

-Glue (sticks and tacky or hot)

-Sleeping bags/tent (for the kids to explore)

-Toilet paper or paper towel tubes

-Watercolor paints and brushes

-Popsicle sticks

-Scissors (adult and kids’)

-Tissue paper

-Stapler

-Old magazines

-Paint or large stamp pads

STRUCTURE

It will be important for your Home Community to decide on a structure that works well for your families. Some may choose to have some time together in worship or fellowship before having the children leave for their special time.

You’ll also need to decide WHO will be teaching your children during these times and HOW you will best care for everyone’s needs. We hope it is a meaningful conversation for your community to love one another well.

The structure of the kiddos’ time is as such. Feel free to bend the time limits based on how long you meet. This is geared for an hour-long time.

20 minutes: Free play/sensory/memorization

5 minutes: Clean up and center in (can be good to march in a line or sing a song)

15 minutes: Story, songs, prayers

20 minutes: Craft/Free play/memorization

*During those beginning and ending times you’ll have kids that will want to be spending time in each of those areas depending on their age and personality.

Now you are ready to begin!

Love theLordyour God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.Impress them on yourchildren. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Deuteronomy 6:5-7

LESSON 1: THE MAP

This is the frontload for all you will be talking about over the next several weeks with your little ones. It will be something to look back on throughout your hike together.

Sensory

Using the supplies in your surroundings, build an obstacle course for the kiddos to go through. First make an incredibly easy one. Next, add in some extra difficulties. Finally, (if you have older ones) blindfold a couple and have the others lead them through. Talk with them how being a follower of Jesus can be like this. Sometimes it is easy. Other times it is harder. Sometimes it is SO HARD you can only completely trust Jesus to lead you through it. But He will never leave you or lead you astray (even if some of their little partners do ).

Songs/Prayer

We always like to begin our time together with worship and prayer. Feel free to use the songs included or add your own. The children typically sing the Doxology every week at church as their intro to story time.

Story

When Jesus left the earth to join Papa God in heaven, He gave his friends the very important job to tell everyone this good news: We all can be in God’s family when we choose to follow Him with all of our heart!

Jesus told them to go everywhere telling this good news, and He also said “I will be with you, even to the very end.” (Mt. 28:20) We know that God sent the Holy Spirit to be with us until Jesus comes back to bring us to heaven. Now it is our job to go everywhere and tell everyone the good news! They can be inJesus’ family, too!

Sometimes our walk with Jesus can be really hard or scary… sometimes it is SO MUCH FUN – but no matter what, we know that He is with us if we want Him to be and He will never, ever leave us.

During our time together we are going to learn about all the ways we can see Jesus with us. When it’s sunny and warm outside I like to:______(what do you like to do?) One of the best ways we can see Jesus is when we go play outside. He made you and He made our world! It brings him GREAT JOY to see you play in it.

Over our next few times together, we’re going to be following this map for our Hike with Jesus. The hike doesn’t only have to happen here – when we’re together - though! When you go home with your family you can keep looking for ways that Jesus is telling you that He loves you and the people around you.

* End your time in prayer again. Take prayer requests from the children and encourage them to pray for one another. Keep a prayer book for your group so you can remember one another and see how God is working in your lives and the lives around you.

Craft

- Paper, markers

Using the included map as a guide, have the children make their own maps. As you make them, talk about what things have been hard (share some of your own story, too!) and what things have been easy. It’s okay if it’s really literal (climbing up a mountain) or spiritual (learning to pray). The important thing is to share the experience together.

Free play/memorization

See our verse booklet for verses for your little ones. Say the main theme verse all together every time. Even your littlest of littles will find joy in it.

LESSON 2: BACKPACKS

Matthew 4:1-11; Jesus is the strongest. This week we will make our backpacks. The children will be making things for their backpacks throughout the curriculum. Decide if you will have them stay at Home Community or have the families bring them each time you get together.

Sensory

Have blocks or sand for the children to build towers. Talk of how STRONG Jesus is. He could pick up the mountains and throw them in the sea if He wanted!

Songs/Prayer

We always like to begin our time together with worship and prayer. Feel free to use the songs included or add your own. The children typically sing the Doxology every week at church as their intro to story time.

Story (from Mt. 4:1-11)

When Jesus was about to begin telling the people on earth all about His amazing plan to bring us into God’s forever family, He first took a trip out into the wilderness. He went out there for a long time (40 days and 40 nights!) and He didn’t bring a single thing with him.

He didn’t have a water bottle.

He didn’t have any granola bars.

He didn’t have a sleeping bag.

He didn’t have a tent.

He didn’t even have a stuffed animal to sleep with!

Out in the wilderness Jesus was met by the Devil. The bible calls him the evil one. He is God’s enemy and is doing everything he can to stop God from having His kiddos in His forever family. He wanted Jesus to give up being the strongest one that would save us.

Knowing that Jesus was hungry, the Devil came to tempt him. “Turn these stones into bread if you are the Son of God!” said the Devil.

“It takes more than bread to stay alive.” Replied Jesus. “It takes a steady stream of words from God’s mouth.”

“Jump off this high temple if you are the Son of God! Won’t the angels catch you?” teased the Devil again.

“Do NOT test the LORD your God,” responded Jesus.

Finally the Devil took Jesus to a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms… as far as the eye could see. How beautiful they all were!

“Bow to me and they will all be yours!” said the Devil.

“Beat it, Devil!” Jesus told him. “Worship the Lord your God… and ONLY Him. Serve Him with your whole heart!”

Seeing that Jesus was strong enough to resist all of his tricks, the Devil left and God’s angels came immediately to care for Jesus.

Jesus was strong for you and me so that we could be part of God’s forever family. Today we are making backpacks for our adventures together. Today these packs are empty. There is no water bottle. There is no sleeping bag. There is no granola bar. There is nothing inside of it.

Today remember how Jesus went out into the wilderness with nothingand was stronger than the devil because He wants YOU to be in His family forever. We know, just like Jesus did in the desert, that God will provide everything we need.

* End your time in prayer again. Take prayer requests from the children and encourage them to pray for one another. Keep a prayer book for your group so you can remember one another and see how God is working in your lives and the lives around you.

Craft

- Fabric markers or paints

Color the backpacks – make them personal for each child!

Free play/memorization

See our verse booklet for verses for your little ones. Say the main theme verse all together every time. Even your littlest of littles will find joy in it.

LESSON 3: FISHING POLES

Matthew 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11; This week we are fishing, remembering how Jesus first invited some of his fishermen followers to join Him by calling “follow me! I will make you fishers of men!”

Sensory

You will need to pre-make a couple things here for the little ones. Make a lot of fish from pipe cleaners by bending them in half and twisting the two ends together a couple inches from the ends. (see example fish if needed) Toss them in your sensory bin or on the ground for the kiddos to “fish”.

Make fishing poles from your sticks, string, and magnets. Tie the string to the end of the stick. Use glue to connect the magnets to the other end of the string. Now you have a fishing pole for catching fish!

Songs/Prayer

We always like to begin our time together with worship and prayer. Feel free to use the songs included or add your own. The children typically sing the Doxology every week at church as their intro to story time.

Story

Using the Jesus Storybook Bible, read Mt 4:18-22 and Luke 5:1-11. The story is titled Let’s Go!

Here is our hook to connect:

Just like Jesus invited these fishermen to join Him on His adventures, He invites us to come with Him, too! We get to join God’s forever family with Him and we even get to invite OTHERS to come along with us. Today we fished for fish, but you and I can fish for people just like Jesus’ disciples by telling other the good news. We can tell everyone that they are invited into God’s family.

**Brainstorm together as a group how YOUR home community can be telling others. Who comes to mind that hasn’t heard the gospel? How can you each show them God’s love and truth? What’s something you can do together? What’s something each person can do on his or her own?

End your time in prayer again. Take prayer requests from the children and encourage them to pray for one another. Keep a prayer book for your group so you can remember one another and see how God is working in your lives and the lives around you. Pray for those that aren’t in God’s family yet – making sure to ask the kiddos if any of them haven’t joined yet, too.

Craft

- Paper, watercolors, scissors, crayons

Using watercolors, scissors, crayons… whatever suits your fancy – make pictures of fish together. If you’re feeling ambitious, use Popsicle sticks and string to make your cut out fish into a mobile. May it remind us to invite others into God’s forever family every time we see it.

Free play/memorization

See our verse booklet for verses for your little ones. Say the main theme verse all together every time. Even your littlest of littles will find joy in it.

LESSON 4: PANNING FOR GOLD

Matthew 19:16-30 is the story known as the Rich Young Ruler. This lesson shows us how the path with Jesus can be narrow and difficult. Not many can follow it. Only by trusting Jesus to BE our path can we adventure through this difficult journey toward eternity.

Sensory

Fill up your sensory bin with lots of sand/gravel/small rocks, your “gold”, and water. Give the children pie tins or sifters to pan for gold. The gold reminds us of a story from the Bible…

Songs/Prayer

We always like to begin our time together with worship and prayer. Feel free to use the songs included or add your own. The children typically sing the Doxology every week at church as their intro to story time.

Story

We’ve been on a hike together with Jesus. We made our backpacks and we did some fishing… and today we are looking for gold in the bottom of our pond. Today I’m going to tell you a story about a man who had LOTS and LOTS and HEAPS of gold.

This man came up to Jesus one day. He had lots of gold, but there was still one thing he wanted.

“Jesus,” he asked, “what good thing do I need to do to have live that lasts forever and ever?”

“Follow what God has told you to do in His rules,” Jesus answered.

“Well…. Which ones?” Asked the man.

“Don’t kill. Don’t steal someone’s wife or husband. Don’t take what isn’t yours. Don’t lie. Honor your parents. And love your neighbors as much as you love yourself.” Replied Jesus.

“Great! I’ve kept all of those things! What else am I missing?” Asked the man.

“Sell EVERYTHING you have (those heaps and heaps of gold) and give it all to the poor – then you will have treasure in heaven! Come, follow me!” Invited Jesus.

But the man hung his head and walked away sadly. He loved his heaps of gold too much to sell them and follow Jesus.

“Oh! It’s so hard for those with heaps of money to enter God’s kingdom!” Jesus told his friends. “It is easier for a camel to squeeze through the hole of a needle than for the rich to enter God’s family.”

Friends, the path that we walk on with Jesus is a narrow one, but He will always show us the way. It is hard sometimes to love God more than we love anything else… but that’s how we follow Jesus! We know that it is worth it to give up EVERYTHING to be with our good God.

* End your time in prayer again. Take prayer requests from the children and encourage them to pray for one another. Keep a prayer book for your group so you can remember one another and see how God is working in your lives and the lives around you.

Craft

- Scissors, markers, glue

Cut out hearts together and glue them on paper. Write “I,_____, will love the LORD with my whole heart”. For your older ones – talk with them about things you’ve had to give up in order to follow Christ. How do you feel about it now? Why did you do it?

Free play/memorization

See our verse booklet for verses for your little ones. Say the main theme verse all together every time. Even your littlest of littles will find joy in it.

LESSON 5: SLEEPING BAGS

Luke 5:17-26 tells the story of Christ healing a lame man. The man’s friends display great courage and Jesus shows great power: forgiving sins and healing the broken. In this lesson we see that We Can Trust What Jesus Says.