Group Experiences for K-5Th Grades s2

252 Groups April 2017, Week 5 Small Group, K-1

Chief Executive Officer 252® Groups Reggie Joiner Group Experiences for K-5th Grades Creative Team Scripture marked “NIrV” is taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL READER'S VERSION®. Kristen Ivy Copyright © 1996, 1998 Biblica. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of Biblica. Mike Clear Molly Bell Scripture marked “NIV” is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, Elloa Davis NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. Elizabeth Hansen All rights reserved worldwide. Jessica McKee Brandon O’Dell Greg Payne Statement of Faith Phil Pierce ABOUT GOD Dan Scott God is the one and only true God, yet He exists in three persons: God the Jon Williams Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is the Creator, so everything belongs to Him and is under His control. God is holy, so He is Contributing Writers righteous, majestic, and loving. God is all knowing and purposeful, so He’s Jodi Blackwell at work to bring about His will. No person, thing, or idea compares to God. Becky Jarrett Cara Martens ABOUT THE SCRIPTURES Kelly Nishi God reveals Himself to us through the Bible, and it is 100% accurate, reliable, Julie Tiemann and authoritative. Mike Tiemann John Tillman ABOUT PEOPLE Adam Walsh People are made in God’s image and for His pleasure. But everybody falls short of God’s intention, or ideal, for people. In other words, everyone has Editors sinned. As a result, we are all separated from Him, even though He wants Molly Bell an intimate relationship with each of us. Elloa Davis Dana Wilkerson ABOUT SALVATION That’s why Jesus—God’s Son—came and lived on this earth, died, and Illustrations & Graphic Design rose again. God offers His free gift of salvation to all who believe in Jesus Brian Bascle and accept Him as Savior—the only way to be forgiven and reconciled to Mike Davis God. Anyone who accepts this gift is adopted as a son or daughter into Joe Goode God’s family and will live with Him forever in heaven. Technical & Web Support User Agreement Hadley Brandt Orange gladly grants permission to churches, schools, and other licensees to Orange Specialists tailor 252 Basics® materials to fit their unique leadership requirements, locale Amy Grisham and format preferences, and physical environment needs. However, if you Abbey Carr wish to edit the content substantively, including Bible stories, learning Amy Fenton activities, scripts, and any other content in which biblical principles and Leslie Galema concepts are presented, you are obligated to do so within the doctrinal Misty Phillips guidelines we’ve expressed in our Statement of Faith. These resources are Stephanie Porter intended to be downloaded and printed for use by the subscribing entity only Courtney Templeton and may not be electronically transferred to or duplicated by other non- subscribing entities. Any unauthorized reproduction of this material or incorporation into a new work is a direct violation of US copyright laws. ©2017 The reThink Group. All rights reserved. 252 Basics® and the 252 Basics® logo are trademarks of Orange and the reThink Group.

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Team Player

Bible Story: Team Player (Humility of Jesus) • Philippians 2:3-8 Bottom Line: Put others first. Memory Verse: “Don’t do anything only to get ahead. Don’t do it because you are proud. Instead, be humble. Value others more than yourself.” Philippians 2:3, NIrV Life App: Humility—putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated.

GET READY Prepare ahead of time for K–1st grade Small Groups this week:

Social: Providing Time for Fun Interaction (Choose one or both of these activities.) Early Arriver  An offering container

Boss of Me  Construction paper; 1 piece for each kid  Markers

Groups: Creating a Safe Place to Connect (Choose as many of these activities as you like.)

* If you don’t have time to do all these activities, be sure to do activity #1.

* 1. On Thin Ice (application activity / review the Bible story)  Paper plates; 2 for each kid  Masking tape  Print the “On Thin Ice” Activity Page; 1 for each small group

2. Spell It Out (application activity)  Construction paper  Toothpicks; 2-3 for each kid  Print the “Spell It Out” Activity Page; 1 for each kid  Towels (or other soft surfaces)  Paperclips; 4 for each kid

3. From a Whisper to a Shout (memory verse activity)  Bibles

Prayer  No supplies needed

Additional Resources:  Make copies on cardstock or email this week’s GodTime and Parent Cue cards.  Tell parents about our additional family resources: Studio252.tv, CUE Box, and the Parent Cue app. To find out more about these great resources, go to http://www.Studio252.tv/leaders.

Team Player

Bible Story: Team Player (Humility of Jesus) • Philippians 2:3-8 Bottom Line: Put others first. Memory Verse: “Don’t do anything only to get ahead. Don’t do it because you are proud. Instead, be humble. Value others more than yourself.” Philippians 2:3, NIrV Life App: Humility—putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve. Basic Truth: I should treat others the way I want to be treated.

Social: Providing Time for Fun Interaction (Small Groups, 15 minutes) Welcome kids and spend time engaging in conversation and catching up. Get ready to experience today’s story.

Before kids arrive, pray for each regular attendee by name. Pray for those who might visit your group for the first time. Today’s Bottom Line sounds simple: Put others first. But we know we need the strength of the Holy Spirit to accomplish that task. Ask God to equip your few to put others first in everything they do. Pray that they would develop an “others first” attitude and that it would change every relationship they have.

1. Early Arriver Idea What You Need: Offering container

What You Do:  Collect kids’ offerings as they arrive.  Ask kids about bosses. Who is the boss of them? Who is their teachers’ boss? Who is their parents’ boss? What do bosses do?

2. Boss of Me What You Need: Construction paper, markers

What You Do:  Remind kids about your conversation about bosses and people who are in charge.  Hand out the paper and markers and ask kids to draw a picture of a person who is in charge.  As they draw, ask them about who and what they’re drawing. Ask them about some things their “boss” would say.  Instruct kids to write down something that a boss would say. Suggest they maybe draw a speech bubble on their drawings and write a quote in it.  You may need to help younger kids write.

What You Say: “People who are in charge can sometimes be bossy and think they are more important than everyone else. [Transition] Today in Large Group, we are going to hear about someone who put himself last, even though He was the boss over everyone.” Lead your group to the Large Group area.

Groups: Creating a Safe Place to Connect (Small Groups, 25 minutes) Create a safe place to connect and learn how the Bible story applies to real life experiences, through interactive activities and discussion questions.

* 1. On Thin Ice (application activity / review the Bible story) What You Need: “On Thin Ice” Activity Page, paper plates; two for each kid, masking tape

What You Do:  Make a starting line on the floor with masking tape on one end of the room.  Approximately 10-15 feet away, make another line for the finish.  Give each kid two paper plates.  Tell kids to put one plate under each foot and stand at the starting line.  Read Philippians 2:3-8 out loud to the group.  Ask kids one of the questions from the Activity Page and encourage them to raise their hands to answer.  If they answer the question correctly, instruct kids to use the paper plates like ice skates to slide forward based on the number of steps they earned by answering the question correctly.  You may need to accept answers that are close, but not quite exact, for younger kids.  Continue asking questions until someone reaches the finish line. (Questions 8 and 9 have multiple answers, so you can ask those a few times and instruct kids to answer in a way that hasn’t already been answered.)  Try to call on a variety of kids throughout the game.  If you run out of questions, repeat questions starting from the top of the list.

What You Say: “Today’s story told us that we should put others ahead of ourselves. Jesus showed us many examples of times He put others first. We can put others first in our own lives by keeping an eye out all week for ways to [Bottom Line] put others first. We can put others first at home, at church, or at school this week—it’s just a matter of thinking about how we can do what other people need us to do rather than what we want to do. [Make It Personal] (Tell kids about a time when someone put you first.) Putting others first helps us to be more like Jesus.”

2. Spell It Out (application activity) What You Need: “Spell It Out” Activity Pages, construction paper, paperclips, toothpicks, towels (or other soft surfaces)

What You Do:  Give each kid a piece of construction paper, an Activity Page, and a toothpick.  Help kids put their Activity Page on top of the construction paper and put a paperclip on all four sides to hold it in place. You may need to help younger kids put their paperclips on.  Instruct kids to place their paper on top of the soft surface.  Show kids how to poke holes in the letters using their toothpick.  Encourage them to poke holes in all the letters to trace them completely.

 When they are done poking holes on all the letters, take off the paper clips and lift up the Activity Page to show them that they have written the words with tiny holes on their construction paper. What You Say: “You guys did a great job of making these signs! We have heard all month about ways we can put others first—from letting other people go first in line to giving up what you want to do to let someone else choose. This week, hang these signs on the window of your room so the light can shine through these little holes and remind you to [Bottom Line] put others first. Putting others first shows them that you care about them and lets people see that you are trying to be like Jesus.”

3. From a Whisper to a Shout (memory verse activity) What You Need: Bibles

What You Do:  Look up the verse and say it together.  Then, repeat the verse as a group, but this time, instruct kids to shout the words “don’t,” “proud,” “humble,” and “others.”  The third time you say it together, ask kids to whisper the words “don’t,” “proud,” “humble,” and “others.”  The fourth time, instruct kids to clap instead of saying “don’t,” “proud,” “humble,” and “others.”  The fifth time, lead them in stomping their feet instead of saying “don’t,” “proud,” “humble,” and “others.”  If time and interest allow, let kids think up their own actions to do in place of the key words.

What You Say: “You guys have done a great job learning the memory verse this month! When we think about this verse, we should think about these important ideas—don’t be proud; be humble. Being humble means we [Bottom Line] put others first. What are some ways you have put others first this month? (Pause for answers) Those are some really great examples of putting others first. Let’s remember to keep up the good work and keep putting others first like Jesus did!”

Pray and Dismiss What You Need: No supplies needed

What You Do:  Guide kids to kneel down.  Pray while everyone is kneeling down.

What You Say: “Today we learned that Jesus was the best example ever of someone who always [Bottom Line] put others first. Jesus humbled himself by serving others every chance He got—sometimes even on His knees. Let’s kneel down and pray that God would show us how to put others first. God, thank You for sending Your Son to be the perfect example of putting others first. Help us to remember that Jesus put others first, so we can put others first too. Show us times this week when we can do things for other people, even if we have to give up what we want.”

Give each child a GodTime card. Pass out Parent Cue cards as adults arrive to pick up.