Unit 17 / Lesson 2
Getting Things Done
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Teacher's Prep
Games
Nose Dive
Materials:
Petroleum jelly (i.e. Vaseline)
A bag of cotton balls
Up to six bowls (two for petroleum jelly; two for holding cotton balls in the beginning; and two for receiving cotton balls)
Watch this video to see how the game works:
Stacking Cups
For every four children, get 66 styrofoam cups.
Each team needs exactly 66 styrofoam cups, as that allows for a triangle with 11 cups on the bottom, and the triangle will be 11 cups high.
You will want to portion out 66 cups per team before the lesson, so that you can just hand each team a big stack of cups.
Hula Hoop Pass
Watch this video
Materials:
One hula hoop for each team (suggested: have two teams, depending on the size of your group)
Two loops of rope around the size of a hula hoop. Alternatively, you could just get more hula hoops.
Ideally, you would have hula hoops of varying sizes, so that you can adjust the difficulty of the game.
Main Activity (Board Games):
Prepare several board games or card games that the children would enjoy. Board games will ideally be short, and suitable for multiple children and a wide age range.
You may want to make a plan with volunteers to quickly set up tables and games stations at the end of the station. That way, your lesson can transition more smoothly from the main teaching portion to the main activity.
Intro
SLIDE 1
Gathering
How was your week?
Intro Game: Nose Dive
Instructions
We'll start our lesson with a game!
SLIDE 2
Let’s watch how the game works.
Teacher: play the first 30 seconds of this video
Minute to Win It: Nose Dive (Head-to-Head)
SLIDE 3
Teacher: We will be doing a relay race, so instead of having just one person running back and forth, each team member will make a single run. Also note: to prevent the spread of germs, have someone apply petroleum jelly to the noses of all the children
So this is a pretty simple game. We'll have two teams, and this will be a relay race. When it's your turn, we'll put some petroleum jelly on your nose, and then you can try to stick your nose into a bowl and bring the cotton ball across the room.
If you make it across the room, you can shake the cotton ball into a bowl. Then someone else on your team can have a turn, and they’ll run to the cotton balls and try to bring another one back.
If the cotton ball drops to the ground, you can just leave it there. Then you can go to the back of the line, and someone else on your team will try.
We will keep lining up until we have TEN cotton balls in your team's bowl on the other side of the room.
Teacher: demonstrate how the game works, then run the game. If time and interest allow, you may want to play another round.
Debrief
In the game we played, we wanted to find the fastest way to get the cotton balls into the other bowl. So, we had to think about how to get things done.
Relevance
And actually, life is like that too. In life, we need to think about how to get things done.
SLIDE 4
We’ve all had days when we felt like we didn’t do anything. Some days can feel boring or even frustrating. But, we’ve all had good days too. Some days, we get so many things done, and we look back and we think, “wow that was a great day.”
We want more days like that!
SLIDE 5
And, if you follow Jesus, it's extra important that we are good at getting things done -- because people need us. And, we can help a lot of people if we know how to get things done.
Bible Reference
SLIDE 6
Let’s read this verse from the Bible:
Ephesians 5:15-16 (CEV).
Act like people with good sense and not like fools. These are evil times, so make every minute count.
This verse reminds us that there are terrible things happening in the world. People need us, and what’s why we need to make every minute count.
SLIDE 7
Big Question
So, our big question today is: how can we get a lot done?
Big Idea
Our big idea for our lesson is: we should make a plan; and we should try our best
Point 1
First, we should make a plan
SLIDE 8
Game: Cup Pyramid Challenge
Instructions
We'll start our point with a game. It's called the cup pyramid challenge! In a moment, we will need to split into teams. Each team will have four people, and you will see how high of a pyramid you can build together.
The pyramid will be a big triangle, with eleven cups on the bottom, and if you finish it, it will be eleven cups high.
You'll have eight minutes to finish. You might not finish because it’s super challenging, BUT let's see how far you get in eight minutes!
Teacher: split children into groups of about four people each. Each group should have 66 cups. Keep time so that each group has exactly eight minutes.
Debrief
We played this game because it makes us think of a good plan. If we just put cups anywhere we feel like, our pyramid will keep tumbling down. But, if we have a really good plan, we can all work together, and we can get it done really fast.
SLIDE 9
Sometimes a good plan makes a big difference.
Bible Reference
The Bible tells us,
SLIDE 10
Proverbs 21:5 (CEV)
If you plan and work hard, you will have plenty; if you hurry to get rich, you will end up poor.
Explanation
SLIDE 11
This verse teaches us to plan and work hard. If we plan and work hard, we will have everything we need. But, some people don't want to make a plan. They feel like they have no time to plan. But, then they make a lot of mistakes and they end up in trouble, because they didn’t know what they were doing.
Application
SLIDE 12
So it’s important to stop and think about a plan. Every morning, you can think of five things that you want to do. Once you think of those five things, the rest of your day can become like an adventure, and you can have fun racing to get those things done.
SLIDE 13
And, if you know how to write down your plan, that's even better! Scientists have found out that when people write down their plans, they're much better at getting things done. So, whenever you get a chance, write down the things that you want to do.
And, that way, you’ll be a lot better at getting things done, and you’ll be able to help other people too.
Discussion Question
SLIDE 14
Now, let's break into pairs and brainstorm for a moment.
What are five things you would like to do before tomorrow night?
Point 2
Our second point is: we should try our best
Game: Hula Hoop Pass
Instructions
SLIDE 15
We will start this point with a game! It's called the Hula Hoop pass. Let's watch this video to see how it works.
Video: Team Building Activity - Hula Hoop Pass, by ultimatecampresource
SLIDE 16
Teacher: form two groups, and play two rounds. For the first round, give each group one hula hoop. For the second round, give each group a hula hoop and a second loop going in the opposite direction. If there are not many children, you can just have one group.
Debrief
SLIDE 17
We played this game because it reminds us that some challenges are a bit tricky. We don't know exactly how to finish the challenge, and sometimes we might feel a bit stuck. But, if we keep trying, we'll get it eventually.
And, real life is like that too. Sometimes we just need to keep trying our best.
Bible Reference
SLIDE 18
Let's read another verse from the book of Proverbs.
Proverbs 14:23 (ICB)
Those who work hard make a profit. But those who only talk will be poor.
Explanation
This verse reminds us, we can't just make a plan and talk about it. If we stop there, we'll get into trouble! But, any time we work hard, we'll have some kind of reward for it.
Application
There are actually a lot of reasons why hard work is good for us.
SLIDE 19
When we work hard and do our best, that’s when we learn the most, and that’s when we get better. And, when we get better at our work, we can help other people.
When we help people, we can make friends, and our friends will want to help us back.
The Bible also tells us that we can earn money by working hard.
SLIDE 20
But, there are things that are even more important than money.
SLIDE 21
When we do our best work for people, we are actually serving God.
And God will reward us, and He’ll give us the kind of treasure that lasts forever.
That's what we can have if we have a plan and we work hard to make that plan happen. We can help people, and serve God, and God will reward us, and He will make everything good for us in the end.
Discussion Question
SLIDE 22
Now let’s pause for a couple of discussion questions:
Why would a person want to be lazy?
What's so great about working hard?
Conclusion
SLIDE 23
Let's wrap up this lesson by going over the big ideas again.
Our big question for the lesson was: how can we get a lot done?
It's an important question because there is a lot of trouble in the world, and people need us. And, we can help a lot of people if we know how to get things done.
We saw in the Bible that we should make a plan. If we're too busy to make a plan, we'll just make mistakes and we'll get into trouble. But, if we make a plan and we work hard, then great things will happen.
SLIDE 24
Main Activity: Board Games Day
Now it's time for our main activity. It's board games day! Board games help us to think about the lesson we just learned. Most board games are tricky, so we need to make a plan. And after we make a plan, we can't just talk about it, but we need to do the work to make the plan happen. And if we do that, we can win!
Teacher: set up board game stations for the children to visit.