Advent and Christmas. Preschool Leader Guides. Advent and Christmas 173

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1 Preschool Leader Guides Advent and Christmas Advent and Christmas 173

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3 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Big Picture Overview Visit for more Spark content. Watch a short Lesson Prep Video that will prepare you and give you confidence to explore this Bible story with the kids you are leading. You will also find 6 Coloring Pages to use during Gather Time and a downloadable Family Page for this rotation s story filled with ideas for families to use to explore this story and live out their faith at home. week 1 An Angel Visits Mary Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Kids blow a feather to other kids. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Angel Touch: Kids play an angel game. Art Angels: Kids make angels from Christmas cards. Snack Angel Face: Kids decorate an English muffin. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids watch angel cutouts during the story. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. week 2 Joseph s Angel Visit Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Kids pretend to go to sleep. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Music God Sent Us a Son at Christmas: Kids sing a song to a common tune. Art Christmas Card Nativity: Kids make nativity scenes. Snack Make a Manger: Kids make a nativity snack. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids get ready for bed during a story about Joseph sleeping. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. Advent and Christmas 175

4 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Big Picture Overview week 3 Name Him Jesus Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Kids pretend to be animals. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Wise Men Relay: Kids play a camel and Wise Men relay. Art Jesus Banner: Kids make a banner. Snack Bagel Wreath: Kids decorate a bagel like a wreath. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids learn hand actions with the story. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. week 4 Born in a Stable Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids play with nativity sets and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Kids find things that start with the letter B. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Music Jingle Bells: Kids play jingle bells while listening to Christmas carols. Art Fishy Animal Ear Headbands: Kids make animal headbands. Snack Census Trail Mix: Kids sort and count trail mix. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids make animal sounds. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. 176 Preschool Leader Guides

5 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Big Picture Overview week 5 Shepherds Adore Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids play with nativity sets and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Kids make silly, joyful noises. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Angel Touch: Kids play an angel game. Art Thumb Print Christmas Card: Kids make a greeting card. Snack Christmas Color Roll Ups: Kids eat a red and green snack. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids dress up to act out the story. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. week 6 Wise Men Bring Gifts Gather (10 minutes) Center Time: Kids play with nativity sets and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time: Leader cuts an apple to see the seed star inside. Prayer Time: Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Activate Faith (25 minutes) Music God Sent Us a Son at Christmas: Kids sing a song to a common tune. Art Lotion Painting: Kids paint with baby lotion. Snack Gift Crackers: Kids frost and eat crackers shaped like gifts. Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling: Kids enjoy the smells of Christmas. Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time: Kids bless one another. Prayer Time: Kids pray with flashlights. Advent and Christmas 177

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7 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Lesson At-A- Glance Chart Week 1 Lesson Focus: An Angel Visits Mary Gather (10 minutes) Center Time Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time Kids talk about nativity items and blow a feather to other kids. Prayer Time Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Coloring Page Angels Visit A Small artificial Christmas tree, unbreakable decorations, blank paper, crayons or markers, Christmas music box White feather, gift bag, nativity figures, nativity stable Christmas gift bag, pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Kids watch angel cutouts during the story. Spark Story Bibles White paper, scissors Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Angel Touch Kids play an angel game. Art Angels Kids make angels from Christmas cards. Snack Angel Face Decorate an English muffin. Four or five white feathers Used Christmas cards, round doilies, construction paper, scissors, glitter gel pens, tinsel stems, crayons, glue English muffins, butter, jelly, raisins, plastic knives or craft sticks, cups, napkins, small paper plates Advent and Christmas 179

8 Lesson At-A-Glance Chart Week 1 Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time Kids bless one another. Prayer Time Kids pray with flashlights. Family Pages Two flashlights Visit for more Spark content. Watch a short Lesson Prep Video that will prepare you and give you confidence to explore this Bible story with the kids you are leading. You will also find 6 Coloring Pages to use during Gather Time and a downloadable Family Page for this rotation s story filled with ideas for families to use to explore this story and live out their faith at home. 180 Preschool Leader Guides

9 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Week 1 Gather (5 minutes) Center Time You may choose to set up one or both of these creative play centers where kids can play as they arrive in your classroom. Have helpers in each center to help children with the activities. Kids can stay in one center or travel to more than one. Decorations Set Up: Put the tree where the kids have easy access to decorate it. Let the kids decorate the tree. Talk about other things we do to get ready for Christmas. Share other family traditions that people celebrate to prepare their homes for the birth of baby Jesus. Remember that all families prepare differently. Some will have many traditions and others just a few. Coloring Page Angels Visit A Small artificial Christmas tree Unbreakable decorations Blank paper Crayons or markers Christmas music box Coloring Center Provide copies of Coloring Page Angels Visit A, blank paper, and markers or crayons for each kid. Be sure to write their names on their drawings before they move to Circle Time. When all kids have arrived and have time to participate in at least one center, say to the kids, Since we are talking about Christmas, when I play this Christmas music box, we will know that it is time for everyone to help clean up and get ready for Circle Time. Be sure to play the music box where everyone can hear it. You could use a greeting card that has a song card in it or a CD player with a Christmas CD instead. Circle Time God sends us a gift at Christmas time. God sends us Jesus. Let s take turns reaching in my gift bag and pulling something out. Tell everyone what you pull out and then put your figure in the manger scene. The manger scene helps us think about baby Jesus and Christmas. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle until everyone has a chance to pull something out of the gift bag. Make sure you have enough to go around. Put some back if you need so that everyone has a turn. Blow the feather near one of the kids. There is an angel in our story today. This feather reminds me of a feather from an angel s wings. As we blow the feather to one another, let s remind each other that Jesus came for each of us. I ll start. Gift bag Nativity figures Nativity stable White feather Advent and Christmas 181

10 Let s go around the whole group. Say: Jesus came for you, [Name]. Let the kids blow the feather to each other. Make sure that everyone gets a chance to blow the feather. Prayer Time Bring the gift bag to the circle. We re going to use this gift bag to help us pray. It will remind us that baby Jesus is a gift to everyone. God sends baby Jesus to the entire world. Let s take turns reaching in the bag to thank God for baby Jesus and for all the other gifts we receive. Pass the gift bag around the circle allowing kids to pull a picture out of the bag and add their item to the prayer list. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for all the other gifts we receive. Thank you for things like these. Give kids time to name things they are thankful for. Amen. Christmas gift bag Pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Set Up: Accordion fold the white paper. Draw a pattern for a simple angel on the front of the accordion. You re trying for a paper doll effect, so don t cut the edges of the wings. The wings will string the paper angels together. Slowly cut the paper angels while you talk, but don t call attention to them. We have such an exciting story today. It is about a special visitor with a special message. It is a message from God. What are some ways we send messages? We call or text, we write letters or s. God sends this message in a very special way. God sends the message though an angel. An angel visits Mary one day to tell her that God has chosen her to be the mother of baby Jesus. Mary is very surprised to see an angel. She is surprised that God has chosen her. She is so happy to be the mother of baby Jesus that she sings a special song. She will take very good care of baby Jesus. I wonder if that is why God chose her to be baby Jesus mother. Spark Story Bibles White paper Scissors Look what I have been working on while we were talking. Were you wondering what I was cutting? All of a sudden, we can see angels, just like the one who visited Mary. Let s read the rest of the story in the Spark Story Bible. When we re done, I ll hang up our angels so we can enjoy them. 182 Preschool Leader Guides

11 Take out your Spark Story Bible and open to Angels Visit on pages Read the story out loud and point to the corresponding pictures. Look for Squiggles the caterpillar in each picture. Ask kids what they think Squiggles is feeling or doing. Encourage them to make a face or move like Squiggles. Ask the following questions, allowing time for kids to answer: What message did the angel give to Mary? (The angel said that God chose her to be the mother to baby Jesus.) What do you think an angel looks like? Activate Faith (25 minutes) g a m e: Angel Touch Choose about half of your kids to be angels. Give them each a feather. The others should sit at tables or desks. We re going to play a game called Angel Touch today. The kids with the feathers are angels. They are going to stand up here. The rest of us are going to put our heads down and close our eyes and pretend to be asleep like Joseph. Leave your hands open on the table. One of these angels will come and touch your hands with a feather. No peeking! Close your hand and make a fist so we know you have been touched by an angel. When everyone has been touched by an angel feather, we ll wake everyone up and see if we can guess which angel touched us. If you guess correctly, you will switch places with your angel. Continue to play until everyone has had a chance to be an angel and to be Joseph. Four or five white feathers a r t: Angels Set Up: Cut each card front into a triangle for an angel body. The size does not matter; just cut as large a triangle as possible. Cut the doilies in half; They will be the angel s wings. An angel came to visit Mary to tell her the good news about Jesus. We are going to make angels to take home. Pass an angel body, construction paper and a half doily to each kid. We ll use our scissors and crayons to make heads out of this construction paper. Show the kids how to cut a circle head. When you re done, I ll help you cut this tinsel stem to make a halo. Use an old scissor to cut the tinsel stem into a halo to fit the head. We ll just use some glue to put our angels together. Help kids glue the doily behind the triangle card shape and the circle head at the point of the triangle and the little tinsel stem to the head. When we re done, we can share this glitter pen to add a little sparkle to our angels. Let the kids use the glitter pen and crayons to decorate their angels. Used Christmas cards Round doilies Construction paper Scissors Glitter gel pens Tinsel stems Crayons Glue Advent and Christmas 183

12 s n a c k: Angel Face Before serving any food, always check with caregivers for kid who have food allergies. Provide an alternative if necessary. Pass each kid an English muffin on a plate and a cup of water. We re going to make angel face snacks today. Spread the butter around with your spreader. I ll give you a couple of blobs of jelly that you can make into the eyes. Then add some raisins for the mouth. When you have finished making your angel face, you might want to spread some more jelly on top so your English muffin tastes even better. Send (5 minutes) English muffins Butter Jelly Raisins Plastic knives or craft sticks Water cups Napkins Small paper plates Good-bye Time Have the kids stand in two circles one inside the other. We re going to walk in our circles in opposite directions. When I say baby Jesus you will all stop walking, turn and face the person next to you in the other circle and say, Came for you, [Name]. Then we ll start walking in the other direction. Continue to walk and stop for several turns until the kids tire of the activity. Prayer Time Stay in your two circles. Give a flashlight to a kid in each circle. Pass the flashlight around the circle while we pray. We are using a flashlight to remind ourselves that God sent us Jesus to be the light of the world. We ll keep passing the flashlight until everyone has a turn to hold it. Every time you hear me say thank you, pass the flashlight. (You will have to repeat the prayer or add more petitions.) Family Pages Two flashlights Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for sending him to be the light of the world. Thank you for each of these kids who wants to share that light. Amen. If your group hasn t received this rotation s Family Page, send one home with each family. 184 Preschool Leader Guides

13 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Lesson At-A- Glance Chart Week 2 Lesson Focus: Joseph s Angel Visit Gather (10 minutes) Center Time Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time Kids talk about nativity items and pretend to go to sleep. Prayer Time Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Coloring Page Angels Visit B Small artificial Christmas tree, unbreakable decorations, blank paper, crayons or markers, Christmas music box Pajamas, robe, slippers, pillowcase, toothbrush, toothpaste, blanket, stuffed animals, hairbrush, cup, storybook, gift bag, nativity figures, nativity stable Christmas gift bag, pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Kids get ready for bed during a story about Joseph sleeping. Spark Story Bibles Stuffed animals Activate Faith (25 minutes) Music God Sent Us a Son at Christmas Kids sing a song to a common tune. Art Christmas Card Nativity Kids make nativity scenes. Snack Make a Manger Kids make a nativity snack. Christmas cards, brown construction paper, raffia, glue, scissors, markers, star and animal stickers Shredded wheat crackers, shredded cheese, grapes, water cups, napkins Advent and Christmas 185

15 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Week 2 Gather (10 minutes) Center Time You may choose to set up one or both of these creative play centers where kids can play as they arrive in your classroom. Have helpers in each center to help children with the activities. Kids can stay in one center or travel to more than one. Set Up: Put the tree where the kids have easy access to decorate it. Let the kids decorate the tree. Talk about other things we do to get ready for Christmas. Share other family traditions that people celebrate to prepare their homes for the birth of baby Jesus. Remember that all families prepare differently. Some will have many traditions and others just a few. Coloring Center Provide copies of Coloring Page Angels Visit B, blank paper, and markers or crayons for each kid. Be sure to write their names on their drawings before they move to Circle Time. Coloring Page Angels Visit B Small artificial Christmas tree Unbreakable decorations Blank paper Crayons or markers Christmas music box When all kids have arrived and have time to participate in at least one center, say to the kids, Since we are talking about Christmas, when I play this Christmas music box, we will know that it is time for everyone to help clean up and get ready for Circle Time. Be sure to play the music box where everyone can hear it. You could use a greeting card that has a song card in it or a CD player with a Christmas CD instead. Advent and Christmas 187

16 Circle Time God sends us a gift at Christmas time. God sends us Jesus. Let s take turns reaching in my gift bag and pulling something out. Tell everyone what you pull out and then put your figure in the manger scene. Help the child name what they pull out. The manger scene helps us think about baby Jesus and Christmas. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle until everyone has a chance to pull something out of the gift bag. Make sure you have enough to go around. Put some back if you need so that everyone has a turn. Set Up: Put the pajamas, robe, slippers, toothbrush, toothpaste, blanket, hairbrush, cup, and storybook in the pillowcase. Sit down with the pillowcase in the center of your circle. Oh, I am so tired! Yawn. I am going to get ready for a nap. Pull something out of the pillowcase. Hand the item to one of the kids. What is this? Who uses one of these when they go to bed? What is it for? Continue to hand or toss the items around the circle until everyone has had a chance to talk about what they do before they go to bed. Include some serious items and some silly items. If you have a silly pillowcase or slippers or a funny toothbrush, the kids will enjoy these night-time items! Gift bag Nativity figures Nativity stable Pajamas Robe Slippers Pillowcase Toothbrush Toothpaste Blanket Stuffed animals Hairbrush Cup Storybook Prayer Time Bring the gift bag to the circle. We re going to use this gift bag to help us pray. It will remind us that baby Jesus is a gift to everyone. God sends baby Jesus to the entire world. Let s take turns reaching in the bag to thank God for baby Jesus and for all the other gifts we receive. Pass the gift bag around the circle allowing kids to pull a picture out of the bag and add their item to the prayer list. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for all the other gifts we receive. Thank you for things like these. Give kids time to name thing they are thankful for. Amen. Christmas gift bag Pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Remember our pillowcase? Pass everyone a stuffed animal. Our Bible story is a sleeping story. It happens at night. I think we should all get ready to go to sleep. Let s pretend to change clothes. Let s get on our pajamas and take off our shoes and socks. I think I want a glass of water. Does anyone else get a drink of water before you go to bed? How about a snack? Let s pretend to eat a little snack. Spark Story Bibles Stuffed animals, 1 per kid 188 Preschool Leader Guides

17 Now we need to brush our teeth. Let s all brush our teeth. It s time to fluff up our pillows and get our blankets. Snuggle down and say our prayers. Kiss our families good night. Now I am ready for a bed-time story. I ll read us a bed-time story from our Spark Story Bible. Some stories we read a made up stories. They are lots of fun. This story is a true story. Snuggle in with your stuffed animals and let s listen to hear what happens to Joseph when he goes to bed one night. Take out your Spark Story Bible and open to Angels Visit on pages Read the story out loud and point to the corresponding pictures. Look for Squiggles the caterpillar in each picture. Ask kids what they think Squiggles is feeling or doing. Encourage them to make a face or move like Squiggles. Ask the following questions, allowing time for kids to answer: What did the angel say to Joseph? (Don t be afraid. Mary will have a baby you will name Jesus.) Have you ever had a dream? What happened in the dream? Activate Faith (25 minutes) m u s i c: God Sent Us a Son at Christmas Sing this song to the tune of We Wish You a Merry Christmas. God sent us a son at Christmas. God sent us a son at Christmas. God sent us a son at Christmas. And they call him Jesus. Mary and Joseph were his family. Mary and Joseph were his family. Mary and Joseph were his family. They loved him very much. He was born in a lowly stable. He was born in a lowly stable. He was born in a lowly stable, with animals all around. The angels and shepherds praised him. The angels and shepherds praised him. The angels and shepherds praised him. Gloria in excelsis. The wise men, they brought him presents. The wise men, they brought him presents. The wise men, they brought him presents. Gold, frankincense and myrrh. He came to the earth to save us. He came to the earth to save us. He came to the earth to save us. God loves us that much. Advent and Christmas 189

18 a r t: Christmas Card Nativity Set Up: Cut the fronts off of the Christmas cards. Pass out the craft supplies. Each kid will need Christmas cards containing parts of the Nativity scene. Make sure everyone has shepherds, angels, and the Holy Family. We re going to make our own nativity scene. Draw a stable with the markers. You may cut it out if you wish. Cut out the parts of the Nativity and glue them into your stable. Put the pieces anywhere you like. Add the star sticker to the top of your stable. Glue a little raffia hay to the floor of your stable. Put the animal stickers in the stable, too. s n a c k: Make a Manger Before serving any food, always check with caregivers for kid who have food allergies. Provide an alternative if necessary Pass snack supplies to all the kids. If we think this cracker is a manger, what do you think this cheese is? It is the hay, that is right! Show the kids how to sprinkle some shredded cheese on the cracker and set the halved grape in the middle. And let s pretend the grape is baby Jesus! We have a manger snack. Let s enjoy our manger snack. Serve kids a cup of water with their snack. Christmas cards Brown construction paper Raffia Glue Scissors Markers Star and animal stickers Shredded wheat crackers Shredded cheese Grapes cut in half Water cups Napkins Send (5 minutes) Good-Bye Time Have the kids stand in two circles one inside the other. We re going to walk in our circles in opposite directions. When I say baby Jesus you will all stop walking, turn and face the person next to you in the other circle and say, Came for you, [Name]. Then we ll start walking in the other direction. Continue to walk and stop for several turns until the kids tire of the activity. Prayer Time Stay in your two circles. Give a flashlight to a kid in each circle. Pass the flashlight around the circle while we pray. We are using a flashlight to remind ourselves that God sent us Jesus to be the light of the world. We ll keep passing the flashlight until everyone has a turn to hold it. Pass the flashlight when you hear me say thank you. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for sending him to be the light of the world. Thank you for each of these kids who wants to share that light. Amen. Family Pages Two flashlights If your group hasn t received this rotation s Family Page, send one home with each family. 190 Preschool Leader Guides

19 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Lesson At-A- Glance Chart Week 3 Lesson Focus: Name Him Jesus Gather (10 minutes) Center Time Kids decorate a Christmas tree and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time Kids talk about nativity items and clap everyone s name. Prayer Time Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Coloring Page Angels Visit B Small artificial Christmas tree, unbreakable decorations, blank paper, crayons or markers, Christmas music box Gift bag, nativity figures, nativity stable Christmas gift bag, pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Kids learn hand actions with the story. Spark Story Bibles Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Wise Men Relay Kids play a camel and Wise Men relay. Art Jesus Banner Kids make a banner. Snack Bagel Wreath Kids decorate a bagel like a wreath. Wrapped gift boxes or bags (one for each three kids), Nativity set Felt or other fabric strips (Christmas fabric if possible), drinking straws, yarn, scissors, markers, glue, sequins Mini bagels, cream cheese, green food coloring, red apple slices, small knives or craft sticks, cups, napkins, water Advent and Christmas 191

21 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Week 3 Gather (10 minutes) Center Time You may choose to set up one or both of these creative play centers where kids can play as they arrive in your classroom. Have helpers in each center to help children with the activities. Kids can stay in one center or travel to more than one. Decorations Set Up: Put the tree where the kids have easy access to decorate it. Let the kids decorate the tree. Talk about other things we do to get ready for Christmas. Share other family traditions that people celebrate to prepare their homes for the birth of baby Jesus. Remember that all families prepare differently. Some will have many traditions and others just a few. Coloring Page Angels Visit B Small artificial Christmas tree Unbreakable decorations Blank paper Crayons or markers Christmas music box Coloring Center Provide copies of Coloring Page Angels Visit B, blank paper, and markers or crayons for each kid. Be sure to write their names on their drawings before they move to Circle Time. When all kids have arrived and have time to participate in at least one center, say to the kids, Since we are talking about Christmas, when I play this Christmas music box, we will know that it is time for everyone to help clean up and get ready for Circle Time. Be sure to play the music box where everyone can hear it. You could use a greeting card that has a song card in it or a CD player with a Christmas CD instead. Circle Time God sends us a gift at Christmas time. God sends us Jesus. Let s take turns reaching in my gift bag and pulling something out. Tell everyone what you pull out and then put your figure in the manger scene. The manger scene helps us think about baby Jesus and Christmas. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle until everyone has a chance to pull something out of the gift bag. Make sure you have enough to go around. Put some back if you need so that everyone has a turn. Gift bag Nativity figures Nativity stable Advent and Christmas 193

22 Let s go around the circle and clap our names together. We ll start with my name. Go around the circle and clap the syllables in everyone s names. Names are important. Whose name has the most claps? How many names have only one clap? Is there a friend in our circle who has the same number of claps in their name as you do? Go stand by that person. Does anyone in our group have the same name? Names are important. The angel tells Mary and Joseph what to name their son. The angels say to name him Jesus. Prayer Time Bring the gift bag to the circle. We re going to use this gift bag to help us pray. It will remind us that baby Jesus is a gift to everyone. God sends baby Jesus to the entire world. Let s take turns reaching in the bag to thank God for baby Jesus and for all the other gifts we receive. Pass the gift bag around the circle allowing kids to pull a picture out of the bag and add their item to the prayer list. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for all the other gifts we receive. Thank you for things like these. Give kids time to name thing they are thankful for. Amen. Christmas gift bag Pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling I need your help to tell the story today. When I say the word angel I want you to spread out your hands above your head like a halo. Put your hands in a circle above your head. When I say Joseph pound your hands together. Joseph is a carpenter so that is why we ll pound our hands. When I say Mary we ll rock a baby and when I say Jesus we ll do the sign language sign for Jesus. Put the middle finger of one hand to the center of the palm of the other and then do the same thing with the other hand. Let s practice our signs again. Angel, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. Now use the signals when you hear the names in the story. Spark Story Bible Tell the story slowly to give the kids a chance to do the hand signals. One day Mary is surprised by an angel. Mary does not know what the angel wants. The angel tells Mary not to be afraid. The angel has good news for Mary. Mary will be the mother of God s son, Jesus. Jesus will come to be a light for the whole world. Mary is so excited, she sings a song. Later, Joseph sees the angel in a dream. Joseph is afraid, but the angel says not to worry. The angel has good news for Joseph. The angel tells Joseph that Mary will have a baby. God has chosen Joseph and Mary to be the father and mother of a special baby. The angel tells Joseph to name the baby Jesus. God has chosen 194 Preschool Leader Guides

23 the name for the baby. God chose the name Jesus. Jesus will be the savior of the world. Jesus will be for all people. Jesus is God s special son. Let s read the rest of the story in the Spark Story Bible. You can stop making the signals now. You did a great job! Thanks for helping me tell the story. You could share your hand signals with your family when you get home today. Take out your Spark Story Bible and open to Angels Visit on pages Read the story out loud and point to the corresponding pictures. Look for Squiggles, the caterpillar, in each picture. Ask kids what they think Squiggles is feeling or doing. Encourage them to make a face or move like Squiggles. Ask the following questions, allowing time for kids to answer: Who visited Mary and Joseph? (an angel) What did Mary have to do to get ready for Jesus? What are some ways you could get ready for baby Jesus to come to your home? Activate Faith (25 minutes) g a m e: Wise Men Relay Set the nativity set at the far end of the room. Put the kids in teams of three. Use a helper to make even teams if need be. We re going to have wise men relays. Choose someone on your team to be the first camel. Give each team a gift box or bag. The camels will carry the gifts. Camels carry things on their backs, don t they? The other people on the team are the wise men. The wise men will hurry along next to the camels in case they drop their gifts. The camels must crawl and carry the gifts on their backs. We re trying to get to the stable over there on the other side of the room. Line up together with your camels. When I say, Go! camels and wise men can take off. If you drop your gift, the wise men need to pick it up and put it back on the camel s back. Hurry to Bethlehem to give your gifts to the baby Jesus! Wrapped gift boxes or bags (one for each three kids) Nativity set After all the teams make it to Bethlehem, start over with a different kid on each team as the camel. Continue until everyone has had a chance to be the camel and crawl with the gift bag on their backs. Encourage the kids to cheer for the other teams. We want everyone to make it to Bethlehem! Advent and Christmas 195

24 a r t: Jesus Banner Set Up: Cut the felt into square banners that are a little shorter in width than your drinking straws. Write the word Jesus on a piece of paper or a white board for the kids to copy. The angels tell Mary and Joseph what to name their baby. The angel says to name the baby Jesus. We want to remember the name of Jesus always. We ll make banners to remind us of that special name. Write the letters with the markers on your felt banner. Glue shapes from the other scraps of felt and fabric to add to the banners for decoration. Use the sequins to decorate your banner, too. When you re ready, I ll help you fold the top of your banner over the straw and staple it. We ll tie the yarn hanger to the straw so you can hang up your banner when you get home. Precut felt and other fabric scraps (Christmas fabric if possible) Drinking straws Yarn Markers Glue Sequins Scissors s n a c k: Bagel Wreath Before serving any food, always check with caregivers for kid who have food allergies. Provide an alternative if necessary Set Up: Use the food coloring to tint the cream cheese green. Cut up the apples. Pass snack supplies out to the kids. We re going to make a Christmas snack today. We are going to make wreaths out of bagels. Show the kids how to spread the green cream cheese onto the bagels. These look wonderful, don t they? Let s add some red apple slices to decorate our wreaths. Serve kids water with their snack. Send (5 minutes) Mini bagels Cream cheese Green food coloring Red apple slices Plastic knives or craft sticks Cups Napkins Water Good-bye Time Have the kids stand in two circles one inside the other. We re going to walk in our circles in opposite directions. When I say baby Jesus you will all stop walking, turn and face the person next to you in the other circle and say, Came for you, [Name]. Then we ll start walking in the other direction. Continue to walk and stop for several turns until the kids tire of the activity. 196 Preschool Leader Guides

25 Prayer Time Stay in your two circles. Give a flashlight to a kid in each circle. Pass the flashlight around the circle while we pray. We are using a flashlight to remind ourselves that God sent us Jesus to be the light of the world. We ll keep passing the flashlight until everyone has a turn to hold it. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for sending him to be the light of the world. Thank you for each of these kids who wants to share that light. Amen. Family Pages Two flashlights If your group hasn t received this rotation s Family Page, send one home with each family. Advent and Christmas 197

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27 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Lesson At-A- Glance Chart Week 4 Lesson Focus: Born in a Stable Gather (10 minutes) Center Time Kids play with nativity sets and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time Kids talk about nativity items and find things that start with the letter B. Prayer Time Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Coloring Page Jesus Is Born A Unbreakable Nativity sets, blank paper, crayons or markers, Christmas music box Gift bag, nativity figures, nativity stable Christmas gift bag, pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Kids make animal sounds. Spark Story Bibles Activate Faith (25 minutes) Music Jingle Bells Kids play jingle bells while listening to Christmas carols. Art Animal Ear Headbands Kids make animal headbands. snack Census Trail Mix Kids eat a snack on the road with Mary and Joseph. Jingle bells, Christmas carol CD, CD player Paper strips, paper scraps, fur, cotton balls, stapler, glue, markers Variety of small crackers, cereal, pretzels, raisins, banana chips, water, cups, napkins, large bowl, large spoon Advent and Christmas 199

29 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Week 4 Gather (10 minutes) Center Time You may choose to set up one or both of these creative play centers where kids can play as they arrive in your classroom. Have helpers in each center to help children with the activities. Kids can stay in one center or travel to more than one. Born in a Stable Let the kids tell you the Christmas story as they set up the nativity sets. Bring different sets if you can locate them. Over the weeks the kids will see different types of nativities, maybe some from different countries. Coloring Center Provide copies of Coloring Page Jesus Is Born A, blank paper, and markers or crayons for each kid. Be sure to write their names on their drawings before they move to Circle Time. Coloring Page Jesus Is Born A Unbreakable Nativity sets Blank paper Crayons or markers Christmas music box When all kids have arrived and have time to participate in at least one center, say to the kids, Since we are talking about Christmas, when I play this Christmas music box, we will know that it is time for everyone to help clean up and get ready for Circle Time. Be sure to play the music box where everyone can hear it. You could use a greeting card that has a song card in it or a CD player with a Christmas CD instead. Circle Time God sends us a gift at Christmas time. God sends us Jesus. Let s take turns reaching in my gift bag and pulling something out. Tell everyone what you pull out and then put your figure in the manger scene. The manger scene helps us think about baby Jesus and Christmas. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle until everyone has a chance to pull something out of the gift bag. Make sure you have enough to go around. Put some back if you need so that everyone has a turn. Today, our story takes place in Bethlehem. Bethlehem starts with a B sound. There are lots of things in our story that start with the B sound. Look at my Nativity set. Who can think of something here that starts with the B sound? Let s see if we can think of five things in the story that start with the B sound. Kids may name Bethlehem, born, barn, baby, blanket, bird, baa, bow, belt, or barnyard animals. Gift bag Nativity figures Nativity stable Nativity set Advent and Christmas 201

30 Prayer Time Bring the gift bag to the circle. We re going to use this gift bag to help us pray. It will remind us that baby Jesus is a gift to everyone. God sends baby Jesus to the entire world. Let s take turns reaching in the bag to thank God for baby Jesus and for all the other gifts we receive. Pass the gift bag around the circle allowing kids to pull a picture out of the bag and add their item to the prayer list. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for all the other gifts we receive. Thank you for things like these. Give kids time to name thing they are thankful for. Amen. Christmas gift bag Pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Set Up: There are lots of animals in the Christmas story. Whenever I mention an animal, we re going to make the sound that animal makes. Tell the story, pausing whenever you mention an animal so the kids can make the sounds. Mary and Joseph have to go to Bethlehem to be counted. They are taking attendance in the whole country. Mary rides on a donkey all the way to Bethlehem. It was a long way for a donkey ride. Spark Story Bible When Mary and Joseph get to Bethlehem, the hotels are all full and there is no place for them to sleep. One innkeeper tells them that they are welcome to stay in his stable. They will have to stay with the horses and the cows. The pigs will be there, too. Maybe there will be some sheep and some birds flying around the rafters. Do you think there is a kitten in the barn? I wonder. Mary and Joseph decide to stay in the stable with the chickens and cows. They listen to the goats and sheep. They hear the birds singing way up high in the rafters of the barn. Mary has baby Jesus and wraps him in a soft blanket and lays him down on some straw in the cows manger. Not a fancy bed at all! Cows and horses eat hay out of that manger! The shepherds are out in the hills tending their sheep when the angels tell them to go to Bethlehem to see the baby. The baby is lying in the cows manger in a stable with donkeys and pigs. The shepherds leave their sheep and go to Bethlehem to see baby Jesus. They see the cows and horses, too. They hear the birds singing in the rafters. They bow down to worship and praise baby Jesus. They thank God for sending Jesus to the lowly barn with all the animals. 202 Preschool Leader Guides

31 Let s read the rest of the story in our Spark Story Bible. Are you tired from making all those animal sounds? Let s make one more loud animal sound together. Choose any animal you want and make their noise. Now let s settle down to listen to the rest of the story. Take out your Spark Story Bible and open to Jesus Is Born on pages Read the story out loud and point to the corresponding pictures. Look for Squiggles the caterpillar in each picture. Ask kids what they think Squiggles is feeling or doing. Encourage them to make a face or move like Squiggles. Ask the following questions, allowing time for kids to answer: Where was baby Jesus born? (in a stable with all the animals) What is one of your favorite parts of this story about baby Jesus? Activate Faith (25 minutes) m u s i c: Jingle Bells Set Up: If you do not have jingle bell rhythm instruments, simply string three or four craft bells onto ribbon or yarn. Tie knots to hold the bells in place. You can also glue a few bells to a tongue depressor or a small embroidery hoop to make an instrument. Tie a few streamers to the embroidery hoop to add some visual interest as well. Play the Christmas music on the CD while the kids play the bells. Encourage the kids to sing along if they know the songs. Play songs until the kids tire of the activity. Jingle bells Christmas carol CD CD player a r t: Animal Ear Headbands Set Up: Cut paper strips long enough to go around kids heads. Tape them together if necessary. Pass out paper strips to all the kids. Who can tell me where baby Jesus was born? He was born in a barn in Bethlehem. What else do we think was in the stable with baby Jesus? How about some animals? Let s name some of the animals who might have been in the stable. Kids may name horses, donkeys, sheep, cows, goats, birds, and pigs. We re going to make headbands so we can pretend we are the animals in the stable. Choose an animal you would like to make and let s get started. Show the kids how to make animal ears. Let them attach fur or cotton balls to make the ears soft. Glue the ears to the strips of paper. Help the kids fit the strips around their heads. Staple the strips together so they fit each kid s head. Let s wear our headbands and make the sounds our animals make. Do you think it was quiet the night Jesus was born? I wonder how all those animals stayed quiet enough for baby Jesus to sleep. Paper strips Paper scraps Fur Cotton balls Stapler Glue Markers Advent and Christmas 203

32 s n a c k: Census Trail Mix Before serving any food, always check with caregivers for kid who have food allergies. Provide an alternative if necessary Mary and Joseph had a long way to go to Bethlehem. They probably got hungry. I hope they had something like this trail mix to snack on during their long journey. Mix the trail mix in a large bowl. Put some trail mix on every kid s napkin. Joseph and Mary had to go to Bethlehem because they had to be counted. Let s sort out and count our snacks. Make rows of each thing on your napkin. Count how many rows you have. How many different things are in our trail mix? What is the thing you have the most of? Which thing in the trail mix is your favorite? How many of them do you have on your napkin? Are you tired of counting? Are you ready to eat your snack? Mary and Joseph were tired, too. They wanted to find a hotel to rest. Instead they ended up in a stable, didn t they? Enjoy your snack. Are you going to eat the rows or are you going to mix everything up again? Variety of small crackers Cereal Pretzels Raisins Banana chips Water cups Napkins Large bowl Large spoon Send (5 minutes) Good-bye Time Have the kids stand in two circles one inside the other. We re going to walk in our circles in opposite directions. When I say baby Jesus you will all stop walking, turn and face the person next to you in the other circle and say, Came for you, {Name]. Then we ll start walking in the other direction. Continue to walk and stop for several turns until the kids tire of the activity. Prayer Time Stay in your two circles. Give a flashlight to a kid in each circle. Pass the flashlight around the circle while we pray. We are using a flashlight to remind ourselves that God sent us Jesus to be the light of the world. We ll keep passing the flashlight until everyone has a turn to hold it. Dear God, Thank you for sending baby Jesus. Thank you for sending him to be the light of the world. Thank you for each of these kids who wants to share that light. Amen. Family Pages Two flashlights If your group hasn t received this rotation s Family Page, send one home with each family. 204 Preschool Leader Guides

33 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Lesson At-A- Glance Chart Week 5 Lesson Focus: Shepherds Adore Gather (10 minutes) Center Time Kids play with nativity sets and color Bible story pictures. Circle Time Kids talk about nativity items and make silly, joyful noises. Prayer Time Kids pray for things from a gift bag. Coloring Page Jesus Is Born B Unbreakable Nativity sets, blank paper, crayons or markers, Christmas music box Gift bag, nativity figures, nativity stable Christmas gift bag, pictures of things to thank God for Open the Bible (10 minutes) Advent and Christmas Storytelling Kids dress up to act out the story. Spark Story Bibles Angel and shepherd costumes, stuffed sheep, tinsel stems or foil halos for the angels Activate Faith (25 minutes) Game Angel Touch Kids play an angel game. Art Thumb Print Christmas Card Kids make a greeting card. Snack Christmas Color Roll Ups Kids eat a red and green snack. Four or five white feathers Cardstock paper, brown paper scraps, inkpads, wet wipes, fine line and regular markers, scissors Spinach flour tortillas, tomato flour tortillas, cream cheese, deli meats, cups, napkins, water Advent and Christmas 205

35 PRESCHOOL LEADER GUIDE Advent and Christmas (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-12; Luke 1:26-58; 2:1-20) Week 5 Gather (10 minutes) Center Time You may choose to set up one or both of these creative play centers where kids can play as they arrive in your classroom. Have helpers in each center to help children with the activities. Kids can stay in one center or travel to more than one. Let the kids tell you the Christmas story as they set up the nativity sets. Bring different sets if you can locate them. Over the weeks the kids will see different types of nativities, maybe some from different countries. Born in a Stable Let the kids tell you the Christmas story as they set up the nativity sets. Bring different sets if you can locate them. Over the weeks the kids will see different types of nativities, maybe some from different countries. Coloring Page Jesus Is Born B Unbreakable nativity sets Blank paper Crayons or markers Christmas music box Coloring Center Provide copies of Coloring Page Jesus Is Born B, blank paper, and markers or crayons for each kid. Be sure to write their names on their drawings before they move to Circle Time. When all kids have arrived and have time to participate in at least one center, say to the kids, Since we are talking about Christmas, when I play this Christmas music box, we will know that it is time for everyone to help clean up and get ready for Circle Time. Be sure to play the music box where everyone can hear it. You could use a greeting card that has a song card in it or a CD player with a Christmas CD instead. Circle Time God sends us a gift at Christmas time. God sends us Jesus. Let s take turns reaching in my gift bag and pulling something out. Tell everyone what you pull out and then put your figure in the manger scene. The manger scene helps us think about baby Jesus and Christmas. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle until everyone has a chance to pull something out of the gift bag. Make sure you have enough to go around. Put some back if you need so that everyone has a turn. Let s take turns going around our circle today making joyful noises. The shepherds make joyful noises as they praise God for sending us baby Jesus. You can make any sound you want, as long as you think it is joyful. Who wants to go first? Go around the circle and take turns making noises. Have everyone copy the Gift bag Nativity figures Nativity stable Advent and Christmas 207