The Standard
Items Needed: Bible, sticks, ruler
Send the children outside to find a straight stick. When they return, hold their sticks (one by one) beside a ruler.
Is this stick crooked? How do you know?
Do this with several other sticks—some very crooked and some that look almost straight. Hold each one alongside the ruler—the standard.
Some sticks are more crooked than others. Sometimes it might be hard to tell a stick is crooked until you hold it up next to something that is perfectly straight.
Just as a ruler is a standard for a straight line, is there a standard for what is right and wrong? If so, what is it? (God, the Bible, Jesus, etc.)
The Bible is God’s truth, and it is like the straight ruler. Lies we might hear are like crooked sticks. We must compare what we hear or read to what the Bible says. For example: We might hear the statement that man evolved. Is that true or is that a lie? Compare it to what the Bible says. Read Genesis 1:1, the verse of the month your children are learning at church.
We can count on God and His Word to always be true!
Allow your children to recite Genesis 1:1.
Obey Like Noah!
Items Needed: Bible, paper, writing utensil
Write each of the following Bible verses on a piece of paper: Ephesians 6:1; Ephesians 4:32; Philippians 4:4; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Ephesians 4:29.
Write each of the following rewards on a piece of paper: Stay up 30 minutes later; play a game together; skip a chore; pick 3 books to read; pick a dessert that you like; etc.
Read one verse each morning at breakfast and challenge the children to obey the command in the verse that day. Try to catch them obeying the verse and talk about how they did every night at dinner. If they have done well, allow them to pick a reward card.
Remind your children of how Noah obeyed God, and as a reward for his obedience, God saved Noah and his family from the flood. Obedience isn’t always easy, but it is always the right choice.
Will It Float?
Items Needed: Bible, device with internet access, milk jugs, plastic water or soda bottles, meat trays, cereal or cardboard boxes, etc.
Make a boat that floats. You can work individually, on teams, or all together. You might want to make it a competition if you have older children.
Noah’s ark did not need to go anywhere; it just needed to stay afloat. Noah obeyed God and followed God’s instructions to build the ark.
Read Genesis 6:13–16 to find the instructions God gave to Noah before He built the boat. A possible picture is available at (http://www.biblestudy.org/biblepic/how-big-was-the-ark-of-noah-scale-model.html)