Children Activities Kit

Transcription

1 Children Activities Kit Includes: * Micro Children s Activity Guide * Kids Take Home Page * Coloring Page and a Maze

2 Micro Children s Activity Guide Micro is all about connecting parents and other adults with other hardworking parents in developing countries people empowering people to help their families thrive. But this event isn t just for adults! It s a great opportunity to help the kids in your group learn how different life can be for kids in other parts of the world. While the adults learn about Micro, we want to equip you with the tools to also teach the kids about Micro too! We hope you enjoy the resources we ve included to plan a fun, interactive time about learning how Micro can change lives! Here s how to get started: 1) Get familiar with Micro! Your group will be learning how Micro empowers hardworking men and women, and you can too by going to and watch the Meet the CEO video to see how microfinance changes lives. 2) Check out the provided lesson. We ve already done the planning for you! Review the activities provided and choose which ones you want to use. Then, gather supplies and touch base with any other leaders to make sure everyone is ready for your Micro Event. 3) Have fun! Make your portion of your Micro Event interactive and memorable. Enjoy using the provided stories, games, and crafts to help the kids in your group learn about caring for kids in need. Children s Activities All resources are available online at Story The story of Pedro (written for ages 3 through 5) will give children a picture of what life can be like for kids in other countries. Coloring page Children can color a picture of Pedro s chickens to help them remember the story.

3 Maze Older preschoolers can help Pedro feed his chickens by leading him down the road to the chicken coop. Pato, Pato, Gonso This Spanish variation of Duck, Duck, Goose will help children imagine what it might be like to grow up and play games in Mexico, where Pedro lives. Macaroni bracelet Older preschoolers can make this fun craft as a reminder of what they ve learned. Take-home sheet You can send this sheet home with children to give parents an idea of what their kids learned and help them continue the discussion at home. Story time: Pedro s Chickens Pedro* is 8 years old. He lives in the country of Mexico with his mom, dad, and older sister. Pedro likes to play ball with his friends, and he loves eating fresh mangoes. But Pedro remembers not long ago when his parents were sad and worried all the time. (Have children show you their sad faces.) Life was very different for Pedro than it is for us. Pedro s family didn t have a refrigerator full of food. Instead, they grew food in their garden. Sometimes they couldn t grow enough. When that happened, Pedro would go hungry. Pedro s family didn t have a sink with running water like we do. Every day, Pedro s sister walked to the river. She would bring back a big bucket full of water. But when the bucket was empty, Pedro would have nothing to drink. One reason Pedro s parents were sad was that they didn t have enough money for all the things that Pedro and his sister needed. When Pedro s shoes got too small, his parents didn t have money to buy new ones, so he had to walk barefoot on the dirt roads in his village. The roads were hot and the rocks hurt his feet. When Pedro s friends started going to school, Pedro wanted to go with them. But his mom said that school costs money, and she didn t have money for school. Pedro had to watch all his friends go to school without him. This made Pedro sad. (Have children show you their sad faces.) Then one day, something happened that changed everything. Pedro s mom came home with some real, live chickens! She said that some kind people had loaned her money to help her get the chickens. Pedro thought it was fun to have chickens around, and he asked his mom if they could be his pets. You can help me take care of them, she said. They are going to make things better for us.

4 Every day, Pedro helped his mom feed the chickens. He liked spreading dried corn on the ground and watching them pick it up with their beaks. Pretty soon, the chickens started laying eggs. Pedro s mom sold some of the eggs. He would help her carry the eggs to the market in a big basket. When all the eggs were sold, Pedro and his mom would buy food like fresh, juicy mangoes. Pretty soon, Pedro s family had a whole bunch of chickens. They were selling a lot of eggs. Pedro s mom had money to buy the things Pedro and his sister needed. She bought seeds so they could grow more food in their garden, and she got clean water to come right to their house. Now, Pedro wasn t hungry or thirsty anymore. He had shoes to wear so the rocks wouldn t hurt his feet, and he was able to go to school with his friends. Pedro s mom was right. The chickens had made things better! And this made everyone in Pedro s family very happy. (Have children show you their happy faces.) Follow-up questions: After the story, you can get older preschoolers talking about helping others in need with these follow-up questions. Why was Pedro s family sad? What happened when Pedro s mom brought home chickens? Why was Pedro happy at the end of the story? Someone showed kindness to Pedro s family and helped them get chickens because they had a need. Do you think God wants us to help people in need like Pedro and his family? Closing: You can wrap up by reminding children that God wants us to show love and kindness to everyone especially kids like Pedro who don t have basic things like food. Then, children can say the following verse together. Love one another. John 13:34 *Pedro s story is based on stories of real children living in poverty around the world.

5 Game time: Pato, Pato, Ganso To help your class imagine what it might be like to live in Pedro s country, you can play Duck, Duck, Goose in Spanish. Here are a few things you can say to introduce the game: Did you know that kids in other countries use different words than we do when they talk? This is called speaking another language. In Mexico, where Pedro lives, they speak a language called Spanish. Today, we re going to play Duck, Duck, Goose, but we re going to pretend we live in Mexico with Pedro. This means we ll be using the Spanish words. In Spanish, Duck is Pato (pah -to), and Goose is Ganso (gon -zo). So, instead of saying Duck, Duck Goose, we ll be saying Pato, Pato, Ganso. Craft time: Macaroni bracelet This craft will serve as a tangible reminder of what children have learned. Macaroni noodles dyed green, yellow, blue, and red will remind preschoolers of different things they learned from the story about Pedro (Recommended for children ages 3 and up). Needed: Macaroni noodles (or other dried noodles that can be easily strung onto yarn) Food coloring Yarn Masking tape Prep: 1) You ll want to dye the macaroni noodles a few days before Experience Micro so the food coloring has time to dry. Noodles can be easily dyed by placing them in a sealable plastic bag, squeezing in several drops of food coloring, sealing the bag, and then shaking it to distribute the food coloring. Once noodles are colored, spread them out on a cookie sheet covered with foil or wax paper.

6 2) You may also want to cut strips of yarn about twice the length of a preschooler s wrist so they ll be ready to go for your craft. Then, tie a large knot at one end and use masking tape to make a point on the other end (this will help preschoolers slide the noodles on more easily). Here s how you can introduce the craft: Let children know they ll be making a bracelet they can take home to help them remember Pedro s story. Use the descriptions below to let them know what each color stands for. Green Have you ever had a garden? Like Pedro, many kids around the world get all their food right from a garden. You can put a green noodle on your bracelet to remind you about kids who grow their own food. Yellow Pedro liked feeding dried corn to his chickens. Since corn is yellow, you can use a yellow noodle to remind you of Pedro and his chickens. Blue Pedro s sister walked to the river every day to get water. Sometimes, they would run out and Pedro would get thirsty. But thanks to the chickens, Pedro s family was able to get water at their home. Your blue noodle can remind you that many kids like Pedro don t have water in their homes. Red Things got better for Pedro s family when someone helped his mom get chickens. Since red is a color that makes us think of love, you can use a red noodle to remind you that we re showing God s love when we help kids in need. Help children string at least one of each color noodle onto their length of yarn. Then tie it to fit their wrist and cut off the extra yarn. For more information about Micro and the miracle of microfinance, visit World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice.

7 Here s what I learned today! Mom: While you were learning how Micro empowers hardworking people around the world, I learned about Pedro,* a little boy from Mexico. Pedro s family was struggling. His mother didn t have money for things like food, clothes, and school. But then, someone showed her kindness. They loaned her money so she could get some chickens. She started raising chickens and selling eggs. And that made things better for Pedro s family. Now, Pedro has food, water, and new shoes. And he s going to school with his friends! I learned that God wants me to show love and kindness to everyone especially kids like Pedro who don t have things like food. Here s the scripture verse we learned today: Love one another. John 13:34 If I m wearing a new bracelet, ask me what it means. Here s what the colors can remind me of: Green: Many kids around the world get all their food right from a garden. Green can remind me of kids like Pedro whose families grow their own food. Yellow: Pedro liked feeding dried corn to his chickens. Yellow can remind me of the chickens that helped change Pedro s life. Blue: Pedro s sister walked to the river every day to get water. Sometimes, they would run out of water and Pedro would get thirsty. But when they got help, Pedro s family was able to get water at their home. Blue can remind me of kids like Pedro who don t have water in their homes. Red: Things got better for Pedro s family when someone helped his mom get chickens. Since red is a color that makes us think of love, red can remind me that when we help kids around the world, we re showing them God s love. *Pedro s story is based on stories of real children living in poverty around the world World Vision, Inc.

8 Pedro is ready to feed the chickens. Guide him safely along the path to the chicken coop. DM113540_maze_ World Vision, Inc.

9 DM113540_colorpg_ World Vision, Inc. Chickens made thing s better for Pedro s family!